Family

I grew up in a small family where I had two brothers, my father and grandmother.  We would go visit my mother once a month.  I remember as a child that family life didn’t always seem the best for me. There were times when it was hard but other times it was magical.  I wasn’t strong family person until I married my husband as I was able to start my own my family with and we could decide what we wanted to do with our children.  I came to know what a family really is and how each other should be. I love my little family I have, and wouldn’t trade the world for it.  I love how Elder Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles says, “Families are the treasure of heaven”.  This is so true; the gospel is centered around the gospel, and this what makes them strong, as God is the center of that too. 

"Families are the treasure of heaven." Neil L. Andersen, April 2014 General Conference "Spiritual Whirlwinds"

 "We have the responsibility to preserve and protect the family as the basic unit of society and eternity."  L. Tom Perry, October 2014 General Conference "Finding Lasting Peace and Building Eternal Families"

 "It is vitally important that our children know they are loved and safe at home."  Quentin L Cook, April 2015 General Conference "The Lord Is My Light"

"Family is the center of life and is the key to eternal happiness." L. Tom Perry, April 2015 General Conference "Why Marriage and Family Matter-Everywhere in the World"

 "....five basic concepts that could increase every family’s chances for success.  First, strengthen relationships through family activities; second, establish reasonable rules and expectations; third, build self-esteem; fourth, set achievable goals; and fifth, periodically evaluate family strengths and needs."  L. Tom Perry, April 1994 General Conference, "Therefore I Was Taught"

"The doctrine of the family begins with heavenly parents. Our highest aspiration is to be like them. The Apostle Paul taught that God is the father of our spirits (see Heb. 12:9 ). From the proclamation we read, “In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshiped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize his or her divine destiny as an heir of eternal life.” The proclamation also reiterates to the world 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” (“The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102)."  Robert D Hales, October 1996 General Conference, "The Eternal Family"

"We need to make our homes a place of refuge from the storm, which is increasing in intensity all about us. Even if the smallest openings are left unattended, negative influences can penetrate the very walls of our homes." L. Tom Perry, April 2003 General Conference, "The Importance of the Family"

"As we go through life, even through very rough waters, a father’s instinctive impulse to cling tightly to his wife or to his children may not be the best way to accomplish his objective. Instead, if he will lovingly cling to the Savior and the iron rod of the gospel, his family will want to cling to him and to the Savior."  Russell M. Nelson, October 2001 General Conference, "Set in Order Thy House"

"The next thing it is good for people to know is how family-centered our theology and our lifestyles are. Once again, simple statements are helpful to someone who is uninformed but curious about the importance we place on families.

• Mormons place particularly strong emphasis on family as the basic unit of the Church and of society. We have a deep commitment to marriage (defined as a union between one man and one woman). Polygamy, a limited practice in the early pioneer days of the Church, was discontinued in 1890, some 117 years ago.
  
• Families and individuals, whether members of our faith or not, can attend Sunday services in our chapels. Here we worship together, instructing one another from the scriptures.
  
• Latter-day Saint families are encouraged to hold family home evenings weekly, usually on Monday nights. This provides a regular and predictable time for parents to teach values to their children and to have fun together. We invite those not of our faith to adopt this practice with their own families.
  
• The Church has auxiliary programs for women, youth, and children as a support to the family. These programs provide such things as religious instruction, opportunities for Christian service, sports, drama, music, and Scouting.
  
• And there is also much focus on extended family, genealogy, and personal family history, providing young and old with a stronger sense of roots, identity, and belonging. The highest and most sacred ordinances of our faith relate to our families, both living and dead, and some of these ordinances take place in our temples." M. Russell Ballard, October 2007 General Conference, "Faith, Family, Facts, and Fruits"

"The commandment to honor our parents echoes the sacred spirit of family relationships in which—at their best—we have sublime expressions of heavenly love and care for one another. We sense the importance of these relationships when we realize that our greatest expressions of joy or pain in mortality come from the members of our families."  Dallin H. Oaks, April 1991 General Conference, "Honour Thy Father and Thy Mother"