Marriage: The BEST choice you can make!
We make thousands of choices each day. Some quick and almost
instantaneous: which shoes to wear, what to eat for breakfast, or what
direction to drive to work. These split-second decisions take almost no thought
and very little time or emotional investment. Thankfully, there are many of
life choices that are just that simple.
Then there are the biggies: what home to buy, where to
invest money and what type of education to pursue. Of all those BIG deal
choices, one of the most important is marriage. Marriage is not for the faint
of heart! It takes sacrifice, commitment and some real “pull up your bootstraps
and get to work” moments.
BUT IT IS SO WORTH IT!
There is nothing so fantastic as that feeling of having the
person you love most by your side. When a couple is truly committed to each
other, the bond of unity is uniquely perfect. That feeling of completion that
comes from sharing the bad times and the good together fills a void in us that
cannot be done any other way. Marriage is not a simple agreement that can be
dissolved at the first sign of trouble. The deep, eternal connection of a
couple truly bonded comes from struggling through the tough days and
experiencing joy together.
F. Burton Howard said, “If you want something to last
forever, you treat it differently. You shield it and protect it. You never
abuse it. You don’t expose it to the elements. You don’t make it common or
ordinary. If it ever becomes tarnished, you lovingly polish it until it gleams
like new. It becomes special because you have made it so, and it grows more
beautiful and precious as time goes by.”[1]
And so it is with marriage. IF we treat our loved one as the
Child of God that he or she is, we can have that special, eternal relationship
that bring true joy! But marriage takes “polishing”.
Unfortunately, divorce is pretty common. "For first
marriages recently formed, between 40 and 50 percent are likely to end in
divorce."[2] With
this comes the ripping apart of the traditional family and all that it stands
for. President Dallin H. Oaks has said, “The
weakening of the concept that marriages are permanent and precious has
far-reaching consequences. Influenced by their own parents’ divorce or by
popular notions that marriage is a ball and chain that prevents personal fulfillment,
some young people shun marriage. Many who marry withhold full commitment,
poised to flee at the first serious challenge.”[3]
Marriage is not a blockade to happy times, but a key to
eternal happiness. It takes sacrifice, but most things worth working for in this
life do. Take the time to choose wisely when deciding to marry and when you do,
take the time to nurture and cherish your spouse. Treat it as the special
relationship that it is; protect it and keep it sanctified. It will be the best
choice you ever make!
[1] F.
Burton Howard, “Eternal Marriage”, April 2003 LDS General Conference, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2003/04/eternal-marriage?lang=eng
[2]
State of Our Unions 1012; The National Marriage Project. p. I
[3]
Dallin H. Oaks, “Divorce”, Ensign, May 2007.
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