“Sealed … for Time and for All Eternity”

Portland, Oregon 1993

"Thou shalt love thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt cleave unto her and none else" [D&C 42: 22]

This week's lesson will discuss the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 131: 1-4 and Section 132: 4-33. If you are married in the temple, please come prepared to discuss the following questions:

• What did you do to prepare for temple marriage?
• What difference does it make to be married in the temple?
• What counsel could you give class members who have not yet been married in the temple to help them prepare for the blessings of temple marriage?

I encourage each of you to seek the Spirit in what you might add to our discussion on Sunday. Think of your marriage in terms of experiences that have helped you grow and progress both individually and as a couple. How have you avoided selfishness in your relationship? What Gospel principles have helped you rise above the worldly trends which cause so much damage to marriages outside of the Everlasting Covenant? What examples of happy, enduring temple marriages can you think of in your life and what do you believe were the keys to their success?

There is no better gift we can give to our children than to work at and succeed in our marriages. The First Presidency has stated: "The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.
We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan.
Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. “Children are an heritage of the Lord” (Psalm 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.
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" [The Family: A Proclamation to the World, 1995].