FAMILY RELATIONS

 Why is it so important for us to be chaste? In a world that is so evil, it is hard to be the one that stands out and chooses chastity. I have been pondering this week on a talk that was given by Jeffrey R Holland. This talk is called "Of Souls, Symbols and Sacraments." This speech was given at a BYU devotional many years ago. He expressed his concern for the youth of the church. He expressed his concern for our souls and our chastity.  We all know, as he does, that this is something that most of the youth struggle with, regardless of if you are a member of our church or not. We are surrounded by unclean things that lead us to believe that it is not considered "cool" or "normal" to live a virtuous life. What many of us don't realize is that those small decisions that we make when we are younger might just effect our entire life to come.  In America 3,000 adolescents become pregnant each day. A million a year. Four out of five are unmarried. More than h...

 Today I wanted to talk about a subject that I have been thinking a lot about lately. I want to talk about dating for marriage. This is something that I think many people are confused about these days. Honestly, can you blame them?  I often think about how much dating has changed since our parent's time, or our grandparent's time, or our great-grandparent's time. It has changed so much! The whole dynamic is completely opposite! Why is that? Is it working for us?  I like to ponder this because when I think about marriages these days, I notice that many of them aren't lasting. This fact is sad but true. We have to open our eyes and realize that something is probably wrong with the way that we view relationships these days.  I want to share some of my experiences while dating. Most of the time my thoughts were: "I will go out with them and most likely never see them again." Am I alone on this? This might just be the thoughts of a girl, however, I don't think ...

  Hey guys!! This week’s blog post is super exciting! (At least I think it is). This week we talked all about DATING. This is a huge topic where I come from and honestly, I think this can be interpreted many different ways. Today I really wanted to talk about what dating means to me and some of the hardships/benefits that I have seen come from it! First off, I wanted to say how much dating can suck. Am I right? I know for me when I was growing up, dating was almost like a chore. It wasn’t fun for me! I think I was way too focused on all the wrong things, and going back, I definitely wish I could have changed my mindset. My definition of dating is finding your eternal companion. That is why we do it, is it not? I think a lot of people will “casually” date around, but not really seek an outcome. This can be a problem because they aren’t thinking of the feelings of those that they are taking on those dates. There are many confusions when it comes to dating. How do I know if ...

 This week I have learned a lot about the struggle of same-sex attraction. In our class, we were able to study why people may feel this way and the things that may play a role in this decision. I wanted to relate this to the gospel today and share some of my feelings on this subject. I know how hard it is these days with everything that is going on in the world. I hope you know, first and foremost, how much your Heavenly Father loves you and is aware of you and your struggles. He knows your heart’s desires and He wants to help you more than anything. I love the scripture in Jeremiah that states “before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” I like this scripture so much because it helps me to realize that God knew me before my life here on earth and He knows me now. God knows what you are capable of and He knows your heart.  I like how in The Family ...

This week I decided to study the impact that that divorce has on children. I found an article that was written by the Marriage and Religion Research Institute titled “The Effects of Divorce on Children. This is a topic that I have always been very interested in especially due to the recent increase in the divorce rate. This article talks about the millions of American children who suffer from the divorce of their parents. This article goes on to explain why divorce has a negative affect on children and families. The growth rate of divorce is almost unrecognizable. We have all heard of many couples who decide to stay together for the sake of their children. Does this article prove that point? I really liked how they talked about how the effect of divorce on children’s hearts, minds and souls ranges from mild to severe. Every child will be affected in some way by their parent’s divorcing, and for the most part it is negative. When a child’s parents get divorced, they usually expe...

 "We proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children." This is a quote from The Family A Proclamation To The World; in this proclamation, given by The First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, we are taught the importance and purposes of having families in this life.  Have you ever wondered to yourself "Where did I come from? Why am I here? or Where am I going after this life?" Many people will ponder this question throughout their lifetime. It can be challenging to understand completely all of these questions unless we spend time studying and seeking for the answers.  Today I wanted to share my experience on how I came to know of these things.  I am the second oldest of 5 children. I have three brothers and one younger sister. We grew up with a mom and dad who loved us and wanted what w...