Be in the World, Not of the World

President Kimball, of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, once said,

"only those who believe deeply and actively in the family will be able to preserve their families in the midst of the gathering evil around us."

There are many things that we can all do to help our families withstand the hardest of times. Every family is different, and you might have other special things that you do to strengthen your family unit. That is fine! For everyone else, here are some things that we can do. With the exception of certain circumstances, do not place sole blame on one spouse/partner for an issue that arises. Instead, communicate with one another and think of ways to prevent it from happening again. In the beginning of my marriage, I was very guilty of this. Our first year of marriage was very rocky simply because I had expectations I shouldn't have, so there were many things that were Mark's "fault." We have made it through many more hard times after realizing that we both were to blame

If you are religious, read from your spiritual book or partake in a spiritually uplifting task together every night. Mark and I have been married for three years, and we started doing this as soon as we started dating. It gives us a routine and helps us end our nights feeling spiritually filled and close to one another. It also helps set the tone to finish a discussion that may have brought up tension earlier in the day. We have just started including Daniel, our 2 year old, in it and it has made such a difference! I can feel our family becoming stronger. 

I cannot say this enough, but COMMUNICATE with your children. Do not hide things from them simply because you want to "preserve their innocence". Anything you don't tell them, they will find out from another source. As soon as they are old enough to ask a question about a subject, they are old enough for an age appropriate answer. This will help them steer clear of evil temptations and will help them feel close enough with you to share when they encounter something spiritually damaging, instead of hiding it. 

This is just a small list, but they are things that Mark and I do everyday to keep our foundation strong. There are so many other things that we all can do. If you are Christian, like we are, the best advice I can give is to keep God at the center of your relationship. As you draw closer to him, your family will draw closer together.


Benson, E. T. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.lds.org/study/liahona/1986/04/what-i-hope-you-would-teach-your-children-about-the-temple?lang=eng