I love my dog, I love my shoes, and oh, I love you!

     I am sure finding your perfect match has been on every ones mind sometime or another. What does love mean to you? Isn't it interesting how the word “love” is used so much within our culture with just about everything we do?  We hear the word love all the time. “I love that team”, “I love Chinese food”, while at the same time we tell those we care about that we “love” them. Something that is so sacred within relationships such as love is being used with just about everything we do, everyday.

      Within the Greek language love has many different meanings. Storge is the kind of love that is found in the affection between parents and their children. We love our children no matter what they look like, what they might do. We love them no matter what they do because we love them unconditionally. Sometimes children and adults will do things that we might not agree with but we still love that person, just not their actions at times. The next meaning for love Philia, which is love between friends. This refers to a warm and close relationships that has characteristics of intimacy such as sharing, affection, and commitment. The next is Eros, which is the love between men and women. This is a sexual love; where they long to be in each others presence. The last is agape, which is a love that is independent of ones feelings for another. I was fascinated to learn the different meanings of love. Wouldn't our marriages or relationships be enriched if we could implement each of these aspects of love? I believe that if we could use each of these we would have much richer relationships.

      Another topic we discussed was temple marriage. There are many temple marriages that take place, but unfortunately, there are very few that are celestial marriages.  Sadly, the purpose of the sealing is often lost as years pass. The power of the sealing is being over looked too frequently. There are too many couples who are not understanding the meaning behind the sealing. When times get tough, often too many don't cling to the power that comes with the covenant of the sealing. The more we understand about the importance and significance of the sealing power, we will cherish our mates and our marriages even more.

Elder Robert D. Hales taught the importance of our sacred covenant within the temple:

        "The temple endowment blessings are as essential for each of us as was our baptism. For this reason we are to prepare ourselves that we may be clean to enter the temple of God. The opportunity to enter the temple and to take upon ourselves the sacred covenants therein is one of    the greatest blessings available to us in mortality. After we take upon us those sacred covenants, our obedience in living those covenants on a daily basis stands as a demonstration of our faith, love, devotion, and spiritual commitment to honor our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. Our obedience also prepares us to live with Them in the eternities. The temple’s saving ordinances are essential to—and even the central focus of—the eternal plan of happiness."

       Getting married in the temple is something that should not be taken lightly. This is one of the most important ordinances that we have the opportunity to achieve here in this mortal life. Wouldn't we want to do all we can to understand just how important our convents are and the responsibilities that come with them? Just because we get married in the temple doesn't me we automatically reach celestial glory, rather it is daily striving to live up to our covenants and to keep them sacred.

 

Our Divine Nature

      This week in class we discussed gender roles and the different roles that we fill within the family.  In the course of the class I recognized how the world is working and trying to dilute our divine roles within the family unit. It is interesting to me as I reflect upon my Grandparents and the roles they planed within my family. They both worked very hard on every aspect of their lives together.  Both fulfilled their divine roles. When one started to fall behind, the other would step in and lend support.  One was not inferior to the other nor thought that was 'just women's work,' or vice versa. I am of the strong opinion that this is exactly what we need today. We are living in a society where the roles of both women and men are becoming so limited to what we can and cannot do. I believe that as husband and wife we can work together on all aspects of the spectrum. We can pick up the slack where our spouse needs added help. I feel the father can and should be a nurturer to his wife as well as his children. The mother can also fill the role of the protector or provider when necessary. We are truly blessed to have the Family Proclamation. This document was inspired and must be read and referred to often, especially in this day and age. The Proclamation teaches that a man and woman are to work together as one unit and should cleave unto each other and no one else. A mans role is to preside, provide, and protect. The mothers solemn responsibility is to be a nurturer.

       Elder Maxwell gave us great advise about the proclamation. He explains; "If we will hold fast to the Church's proclamation on the family, we will see that we hold the jewels, as it were, that can enrich so many other things. Let the world go its own way on the family. It appears to be determined to do that. But we do not have that option. Our doctrines and teachings on the family are very, very powerful, and they are full of implications for all the people on this planet."

       If we know and understand the proclamation and its truths, we can share these truths with those who are not of our faith as well as strengthening those of our faith.  When we speak the truth, others will find it a comfort and draw comfort from our teachings. We should never be ashamed or afraid to share with others what we believe as it can only make a difference in the long run.

Sifting through cultural clutter

This week in class we have focused on social class and cultural diversity. The family not only affects those directly associated within the family, rather it influences society or groups to which we belong. There are many social groups in our society that try to persuade us to conform to their status. Learning about the different social classes was an eye opener. I realized how Satan strives to persuade us to think that we are suppose to be apart of these classes and to look upon the worlds standards to make us feel accepted. What a false teaching this is! We are all unique individuals to our Savior. He made us 

individually and loves us all no matter what or who we are.

President Uchtdorf taught us at the past General Relief society meeting just how important each of us are to our loving Father in Heaven:

Sisters, where ever you are, whatever your circumstances by be, you are not forgotten. No matter how dark your days may seem, no matter how insignificant you may feel, no matter how overshadowed you think you may be, your Heavenly Father has not forgotten you. In fact, He loves you with an infinite love. Just think of it: You are known and remembered by the most majestic, powerful and glorious Being in the universe! You are loved by the King of infinite space and everlasting time! He who crated and knows the stars knows you and your name- you are the daughters of His kingdom.

May we always remember these significant words! We do not need to look for outside sources for comfort and acceptance because we mean the world to our Savior.

There are so many aspects that make up culture. An aspect of Culture that I never gave much thought to, is that we each have our own family culture. Even though we might all have similarities such as religion, places we live, or belonging to a certain race. We all can have similar standards and beliefs but we might have different ideas or customs that we can each contribute to society as a whole. This is important to remember when we are married because we both have different backgrounds and customs that we each bring into the marriage. Sometimes we will have to come to an alliance on a certain situation, or tradition. It is so great that we have some many aspects of culture that we can learn from. It is important that we are respectful of what others customs are. We should not judge or take offense in anyway because we are all here to teach and learn from each other.

One Unit....One Family

Have you ever heard of the Family Systems Theory? I hadn't until this past week in my Family Relations Class. The Family Systems Theory states the family unit consists of one unit. Within that unit are subsets and boundaries between each individual. In my family, my mom and dad are a subset and are the head of the family. They act like the oil that keeps the family running. Since I am an only child, I have a subset with both my mom as well as my dad. I have a close relationship with my mom. Her and I are very similar in many ways, which has only made our bond grow stronger over the years. My relationship with my dad is on a different plane. I have had to work very hard at growing close to him.  When I left for college and was away from our family home, my dad recognized and realized how important our relationship was. Since I have been away at school, the bond between my dad and I has been strengthened. Family is a very important unit and is central to Heavenly Father's plan. By having families, we are fulfilling God's plan. Each person within the family plays a significant role within the entire family unit. We each have a divine nature and eternal purpose to fulfill. As Elder Ballard said;"In these last days it is essential—even critical—that parents and children listen to and learn from one another." We should never feel that we don't have a significant place in our family because each of us are part of a unit – the eternal family!

Family Dinner... Anyone?

     I was fascinated by the recent study surrounding the importance of family dinner and how it is linked with the fact that teens are less likely to be involved in risky behavior later on. After talking about this study in class I decided to read the article. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Parenting/family-dinners-linked-risky-behavior-teens/story?id=14583590.

     I found it very interesting that time spent with family can have a greater positive effect on each individual family member than we may truly understand. I remember learning in my child nutrition class how important it is for children to have interaction with their parents and siblings during meal times. Being able to express questions and concerns while sitting around the dinner table can only strengthen our relationships. The family is usually a safe place where we feel comfortable sharing feelings and thoughts with each other. I can personally testify of the importance of family meals from my experiences with my own family. Over the years, family dinners have been some of the best times for productive communication between myself and my parents. Sitting around the kitchen table and eating a meal together has provided countless opportunities for me to get to know my parents better as we talked about experiences from their childhood, events that have happened during that day, along with their views on certain situations and current events.

     I continue to learn how essential and vital the family is to the Lord's plan. I also recognize that Satan does not want families to stay together and sustain one another. He is doing all he can to break up the family. It is usually by small and simple acts that he does so. It is vital that we learn and understand the importance of the family and hold fast to the eternal bond of families that were created by the Lord.