FAMILY

"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."
"The FAMILY: A Proclamation to the World"

The quotes below are given as counsel and inspiration regarding the FAMILY:

"It is a crowning privilege of a husband and wife who are able to bear children to provide mortal bodies for these spirit children of God. We believe in families, and we believe in children."

"We go forward in faith—realizing the decision of how many children to have and when to have them is between a husband and wife and the Lord."

--Elder Neil L. Anderson "Children" October 2011

"Marriage between a man and a woman is fundamental to the Lord’s doctrine and crucial to God’s eternal plan. Marriage between a man and a woman is God’s pattern for a fullness of life on earth and in heaven. God’s marriage pattern cannot be abused, misunderstood, or misconstrued. Not if you want true joy. God’s marriage pattern protects the sacred power of procreation and the joy of true marital intimacy. We know that Adam and Eve were married by God before they ever experienced the joy of uniting as husband and wife.

In our day civil governments have a vested interest in protecting marriage because strong families constitute the best way of providing for the health, education, welfare, and prosperity of rising generations. But civil governments are heavily influenced by social trends and secular philosophies as they write, rewrite, and enforce laws. Regardless of what civil legislation may be enacted, the doctrine of the Lord regarding marriage and morality cannot be changed. Remember: sin, even if legalized by man, is still sin in the eyes of God!"
--Elder Russell M. Nelson “Decisions for Eternity” October 2013


“Some of our greatest opportunities to demonstrate love will be within the walls of our own home."
--President Thomas S. Monson “Love-the Essence of the Gospel” April 2014 
 
“Brothers and sisters, as we hold up like a banner the proclamation to the world on the family and as we live and teach the gospel of Jesus Christ, we will fulfill the measure of our creation here on earth. We will find peace and happiness here and in the world to come. We should not need a hurricane or other crisis to remind us of what matters among the most powerful and sustaining forces for good in the world. The health of any society, the happiness of its people, their prosperity, and their peace all find common roots in the teaching of children in the home."
--Elder M. Russell Ballard “What Matters Most is What Lasts Longest” October 2005
 

"Families are central to God’s eternal plan. I testify of the great blessing of children and of the
happiness they will bring us in this life and in the eternities."

--Elder Neil L. Anderson "Children" October 2011

“I believe in the family where there is a husband who regards his companion as his greatest asset and treats her accordingly; where there is a wife who looks upon her husband as her anchor and strength, her comfort and security; where there are children who look to mother and father with respect and gratitude; where there are parents who look upon those children as blessings and find a great and serious and wonderful challenge in their nurture and rearing. The cultivation of such a home requires effort and energy, forgiveness and patience, love and endurance and sacrifice; but it is worth all of these and more.”
--Gordon B. Hinckley, “I Believe” Ensign, August 1992 



"The greatest joys of life are experienced in 
 happy family relationships."

--Gordon B. Hinckley, “I Believe” Ensign, August 1992



"To be entrusted with the power to create life carries with it the greatest of joys and dangerous temptations. The gift of mortal life and the capacity to kindle other lives is a supernal blessing. Through the righteous exercise of this power, as in nothing else, we may come close to our Father in Heaven and experience a fullness of joy. This power is not an incidental part of the plan of happiness. It is the key—the very key."
--President Boyd K. Packer “Cleansing the Inner Vessel” October 2010


 "The strength of families is deteriorating at an alarming rate. This deterioration is causing widespread damage to society. I see direct cause and effect. As we give up commitment and fidelity to our marriage partners, we remove the glue that holds our society together."

--Elder L. Tom Perry, Obedience to Law is Liberty, April 2013


“The home is to be God’s laboratory of love and service. There a husband is to love his wife, a wife is to love her husband, and parents and children are to love one another.

Throughout the world, the family is increasingly under attack. If families fail, many of our political, economic, and social systems will also fail. And if families fail, their glorious eternal potential cannot be realized.”
-- Elder Russell M. Nelson “Salvation and Exaltation” April 2008

"Among those truths that had been dimmed by the darkness of apostasy was the stirring reality that we are all the spirit sons and daughters of a loving God who is our Father. We are part of His family. He is not a father in some allegorical or poetic sense. He is literally the Father of our spirits. He cares for each one of us. Though this world has a way of diminishing and demeaning men and women, the reality is we are all of royal, divine lineage."

--Elder M. Russell Ballard “The Atonement and the Value of One Soul” April 2004

"Parenthood is a sacred privilege, and depending upon faithfulness, it can be an eternal blessing. The ultimate end of all activity in the Church is that a man and his wife and their children can be happy at home."

--President Boyd K. Packer “The Witness” April 2014

"There is no better setting for rearing the rising generation than the traditional family, where a father and a mother work in harmony to provide for, teach, and nurture their children."

--Elder D. Todd Christofferson "The Moral Force of Women" October 2013

"Lessons taught in the home by goodly parents are becoming increasingly important in today’s world, where the influence of the adversary is so widespread. As we know, he is attempting to erode and destroy the very foundation of our society—the family. In clever and carefully camouflaged ways, he is attacking commitment to family life throughout the world and undermining the culture and covenants of faithful Latter-day Saints.

Parents must resolve that teaching in the home is a most sacred and important responsibility."

--Elder L. Tom Perry “Becoming Goodly Parents” October 2012


“It is the duty of parents to teach their children these saving principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, so that they will know why they are to be baptized and that they may be impressed in their hearts with a desire to continue to keep the commandments of God after they are baptized, that they may come back into his presence. Do you, my good brethren and sisters, want your families, your children; do you want to be sealed to your fathers and your mothers before you … ? If so, then you must begin by teaching at the cradle-side. You are to teach by example as well as precept.”
--Joseph Fielding Smith, in Conference Report, Oct. 1948, 153.

"The gospel is family centered; it must be lived in the family. It is here we receive our greatest and most important training as we seek to create for ourselves eternal family units patterned after the family of God our Father."

--Joseph Fielding Smith "Teachings of the President of the Church: Strengthening and Preserving the Family."

"The joining together of a man and a woman to be legally and lawfully wed not only is preparation for future generations to inherit the earth, but it also brings the greatest joy and satisfaction that can be found in this mortal experience. This is especially true when the powers of the priesthood proclaim a marriage to be for time and for all eternity. Children born to such marriages have a security that is found nowhere else.

Parents must resolve that teaching in the home is a most sacred and important responsibility. While other institutions such as church and school can assist parents to “train up a child in the way he [or she] should go” (Proverbs 22:6), this responsibility ultimately rests on the parents. According to the great plan of happiness, it is goodly parents who are entrusted with the care and development of Heavenly Father’s children."

God bless you goodly mothers and fathers in Zion. He has entrusted to your care His eternal children. As parents we partner, even join, with God in bringing to pass His work and glory among His children. It is our sacred duty to do our very best."

--Elder L. Tom Perry “Becoming Goodly Parents” October 2012

It rests upon each one of us as mothers and fathers to do all we can to prepare our youth to be faithful, righteous men and women. It is in the home where we must teach the gospel by precept and by example.
--Elder M. Russell Ballard "Mothers and Daughters" April 2010

"While many governments and well-meaning individuals have redefined marriage, the Lord has not. In the very beginning, God initiated marriage between a man and a woman—Adam and Eve. He designated the purposes of marriage to go far beyond the personal satisfaction and fulfillment of adults to, more importantly, advancing the ideal setting for children to be born, reared, and nurtured. 

Families are the treasure of heaven"

--Elder Neil L. Anderson "Spiritual Whirlwinds" April 2014

“Our [family] associations are not exclusively intended for this life, for time, as we distinguish it from eternity. We live for time and for eternity. We form associations and relations for time and all eternity. … Who are there besides the Latter-day Saints who contemplate the thought that beyond the grave we will continue in the family organization? the father, the mother, the children recognizing each other … ? this family organization being a unit in the great and perfect organization of God’s work, and all destined to continue throughout time and eternity?” (Teachings: Joseph F. Smith, 385, 386).

Thoughts- by BECKY
I know that the family is essential to our Heavenly Father's plan of happiness for all of his children. The Family: A Proclamation to the World speaks in such a beautiful way about many of the topics that are also covered by the counsel that is given from the latter-day prophets on the importance of what a family is. I love the lessons and messages that are taught about the sacred duty of parents to teach their children the gospel and that we must do our very best. I feel a great responsibility in my role as mother to my little family, I want to do all that I can in love and kindness to show my children the path back to our Heavenly Father. I love my husband, my children, and I know that we can be together forever. I am also grateful for our extended relatives who love and care for us. I know that there are many lessons we learn within our families that we could not understand anywhere else. That is why a family is so special. It is important to remember that we are all children of our Heavenly Father and so we are all brothers and sisters.

I know that this is true. The Family is of GOD!

{MORE QUOTES}
"The intimate marriage relationship between a man and a woman that brings children into mortality is also meant to be a beautiful, loving experience that binds together two devoted hearts, unites both spirit and body, and brings a fulness of joy and happiness as we learn to put each other first."
Sister Linda S. Reeves "Protection from Pornography- A Christ-focused Home" April 2014