Family

            If you have ever seen anything that stereotypes members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints then you will have probably noticed that we are pretty fond of the family unit. The typical stereotype is the frazzled parents lugging around enough kids to reboot the Brady Bunch franchise in a big bus like van that has nothing to do with the word “mini”. This stereotype is 100%, and well 100% wrong as well. In our church there are a lot of different types of families ranging from just the husband and wife, to single parents raising kids on their own, and everything in-between. For us the family is the center of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and with it comes many blessings, as well as responsibilities. Family is such an important aspect of life both here on earth and in the hereafter that we’ve created a document I would like to share a portion of. This document is called: “The Family, A Proclamation to the World.”

THE FAMILY is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.
https://www.lds.org/topics/family-proclamation?lang=eng

            The bond created here on earth in the family are so important that we believe in the sealing power of an eternal marriage in our Temples so that we may not be bound by the term, “till death do us part”.

            I am so grateful for this truth we have available to us in this life. I have a wonderful wife and two amazing and adorable daughters and I have learned so much from having them in my life. The most important thing I've learned how ever just how deep that bond is and how the windows of heaven open when we become a family. I am not saying having a family is easy, but it is well worth anything you may go through in the process. My parents are not members of our church and with the death of my mother in 2013 we have had the honor of performing her baptism and other work through my wife that acted as a proxy. My mom on the other side now has another chance to embrace the Gospel and what her true potential really is. I will be doing the same for my father once he passes so that one day, they can welcome me back home using the bond that was never meant to be broken. The same thing I plan to do for my wife and children.

Wisdom from the Prophets and Apostles:

Fathers give blessings and perform sacred ordinances for their children. These will become spiritual highlights in their lives. Fathers are personally involved in leading family prayers, daily scripture reading, and weekly family home evenings. Fathers build family traditions by being involved in helping plan vacation trips and outings that will involve all of the family members. Memories of these special times together will never be forgotten by their children. Fathers hold one-on-one visits with their children and teach them gospel principles. Fathers teach sons and daughters the value of work and help them establish worthy goals in their own lives. Fathers set an example of faithful gospel service. Please remember, brethren, your sacred calling as a father in Israel—your most important calling in time and eternity—a calling from which you are never released.
Finding Lasting Peace and Building Eternal Families, By Elder L. Tom Perry, General Conference, 10/2014

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As the world continues to watch us, let us be certain that our example will sustain and support the plan the Lord has designed for His children here in mortality. The greatest teaching of all must be done by righteous example. Our homes must be holy places in order to stand against the pressures of the world. Remember that the greatest of all the blessings of the Lord come through and are given to righteous families.
Finding Lasting Peace and Building Eternal Families, By Elder L. Tom Perry, General Conference, 10/2014

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The most important setting to forgo contention and practice respect for differences is in our homes and family relationships. Differences are inevitable—some minor and some major. As to major differences, suppose a family member is in a cohabitation relationship. That brings two important values into conflict—our love for the family member and our commitment to the commandments. Following the Savior’s example, we can show loving-kindness and still be firm in the truth by forgoing actions that facilitate or seem to condone what we know to be wrong.
Loving Others and Living with Differences, By Elder Dallin H. Oaks, General Conference, 10/2014

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The Sabbath provides a wonderful opportunity to strengthen family ties. After all, God wants each of us, as His children, to return to Him as endowed Saints, sealed in the temple as families, to our ancestors, and to our posterity.15 We make the Sabbath a delight when we teach the gospel to our children. Our responsibility as parents is abundantly clear. The Lord said, “Inasmuch as parents have children in Zion … that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents.”16
The Sabbath Is a Delight, By Elder Russell M. Nelson, General Conference, 4/2015

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Let’s examine your Aaronic Priesthood duties as described in section 20 of the Doctrine and Covenants. Be sensitive to what you feel as I apply these duties to your service in your family. “Invite all [of your family] to come unto Christ” (verse 59). “Watch over [them] always, and be with and strengthen them” (verse 53). “Preach, teach, expound, exhort, and baptize” members of your family (verse 46). “Exhort them to pray vocally and in secret and attend to all family duties” (verse 47). “See that there is no iniquity in [your family], neither hardness with each other, neither lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking” (verse 54). “See that [your family meets] together often” (verse 55). Assist your father in his duties as patriarch. Support your mother with priesthood strength when a father is not present (see verses 52, 56). When asked, “ordain other priests, teachers, and deacons” in your family (verse 48). Doesn’t this sound like the work and role of a father ?
Fatherhood—Our Eternal Destiny, By Larry M. Gibson, General Conference, 4/2015

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Brothers and sisters, if we faithfully have family prayer, scripture study, family home evening, priesthood blessings, and Sabbath day observance, our children will know what time it is at home. They will be prepared for an eternal home in heaven, regardless of what befalls them in a difficult world. It is vitally important that our children know they are loved and safe at home.
The Lord Is My Light, By Elder Quentin L. Cook, General Conference, 4/2015

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The role of the family in God’s plan is “to bring us happiness, to help us learn correct principles in a loving atmosphere, and to prepare us for eternal life.”7 The beautiful traditions of religious observance in the home need to be embedded in the hearts of our children.
The Lord Is My Light, By Elder Quentin L. Cook, General Conference, 4/2015

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...children learn the dance steps without learning to hear and to feel the beautiful music of the gospel, they will over time become uncomfortable with the dance and will either quit dancing or, almost as bad, keep dancing only because of the pressure they feel from others who are dancing around them. The challenge for all of us who seek to teach the gospel is to expand the curriculum beyond just the dance steps. Our children’s happiness depends on their ability to hear and love the beautiful music of the gospel....
The Music of the Gospel, By Elder Wilford W. Andersen, General Conference, 4/2015

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A family built on the marriage of a man and woman supplies the best setting for God’s plan to thrive—the setting for the birth of children, who come in purity and innocence from God, and the environment for the learning and preparation they will need for a successful mortal life and eternal life in the world to come. A critical mass of families built on such marriages is vital for societies to survive and flourish. That is why communities and nations generally have encouraged and protected marriage and the family as privileged institutions. It has never been just about the love and happiness of adults.
Why Marriage, Why Family, By Elder D. Todd Christofferson, General Conference, 4/2015

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The entire theology of our restored gospel centers on families and on the new and everlasting covenant of marriage. In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we believe in a premortal life where we all lived as literal spirit children of God our Heavenly Father. We believe that we were, and still are, members of His family. We believe that marriage and family ties can continue beyond the grave—that marriages performed by those who have the proper authority in His temples will continue to be valid in the world to come. Our marriage ceremonies eliminate the words “till death do us part” and instead say, “for time and for all eternity.”
Why Marriage and Family Matter—Everywhere in the World, By Elder L. Tom Perry, General Conference, 4/2015

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What the restored gospel brings to the discussion on marriage and family is so large and so relevant that it cannot be overstated: we make the subject eternal! We take the commitment and the sanctity of marriage to a greater level because of our belief and understanding that families go back to before this earth was and that they can go forward into eternity.
Why Marriage and Family Matter—Everywhere in the World, By Elder L. Tom Perry, General Conference, 4/2015

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...couples are tried by temptation, misunderstandings, financial problems, family crises, and illness, and all the while love grows stronger. Mature love has a bliss not even imagined by newlyweds.
The Plan of Happiness, By President Boyd K. Packer, General Conference, 4/2015

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If any of you are having difficulty in your marriage, I urge you to do all that you can to make whatever repairs are necessary, that you might be as happy as you were when your marriage started out. We who are married in the house of the Lord do so for time and for all eternity, and then we must put forth the necessary effort to make it so. I realize that there are situations where marriages cannot be saved, but I feel strongly that for the most part they can be and should be. Do not let your marriage get to the point where it is in jeopardy.
Priesthood Power, Thomas S. Monson, General Conference, 4/2011

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...In the three years since I was sustained as President of the Church, I believe the saddest and most discouraging responsibility I have each week is the handling of cancellations of sealings. Each one was preceded by a joyous marriage in the house of the Lord, where a loving couple was beginning a new life together and looking forward to spending the rest of eternity with each other. And then months and years go by, and for one reason or another, love dies. It may be the result of financial problems, lack of communication, uncontrolled tempers, interference from in-laws, entanglement in sin. There are any number of reasons. In most cases divorce does not have to be the outcome.
Priesthood Power, Thomas S. Monson, General Conference, 4/2011