The Family: A Proclamation to the World

I would just like to start off  by saying that I love my family so much and that they are the absolutely the greatest! I love my parents and my siblings like crazy and no other family can even try to compare! Sorry to brag, but I am just blessed! :) Having come from such an amazing family, I have such a strong testimony of the plan of Salvation. I love my siblings and my parents so much and am so grateful to know that I will have the opportunity to live with all of them again if i live righteously. As a latter-day saint, I am blessed to have modern day prophets who receive direct revelation from God for our day. In one of their recent addresses to the world, titled "The Family: A Proclamation to the World", the first presidency and the council of the twelve apostles discusses the divine right of individual children of God, the sacredness of the institution of the family, and the roles of a father and a mother.

Individually we are all described as "beloved spirit son[s] or daughter[s] or heavenly parents" and were all created in the image of our Father in Heaven. With this knowledge we must learn to treat others with kindness and remember that everyone is a sacred creation of our Heavenly parents. We must act accordingly in order to receive our divine inheritance. We all came to earth to obtain a physical body and learn how to become like our Savior, a perfect being.

Continuing on, the proclamation starts to focus less on the individual and more on a man and wife as equal partners. As the Lord commands in Genesis 1:28, we must "be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth" in order to build his kingdom up and allow other spirit children the opportunity to obtain a physical body. However, these sacred powers are to only be used between a husband and wife and as husband and wife, they must raise their children unto the Lord. Each child is "entitled to birth" and as a child of God they must be provided for, loved, and taught of the ways of Christ. These are parents "sacred dut[ies]".

As most people know, happiness and successful relationships do not simply come. You must work for them. In my own family I know this to be true because we have not always been as close with each other as we are now. We have always loved each other and enjoyed each others company, but only after many years have we built strong relationships with one another. In this proclamation, it is advised that in order to have a happy family, your lives must be centered around the Savior and his teachings. Fathers must "preside" and "provide" for their families while mothers must be "responsible for the nurture of their children". Together with the Lord a happy and strong family unit can be built. I am so grateful for my parents willingness to follow the prophets teachings. They always have loved me and my siblings unconditionally and have always taught my family in love and righteousness. I LOVE MY ETERNAL FAMILY!!!!!!