Family

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. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.
The Family: A Proclamation to the World Ensign November 1995 
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I know this to be true. As my family has come into the gospel and as we have worked together to make better family relationships, the more we have our focus on the gospel, and more importantly the center of our family functions, the less contention and fighting's/nit picking we have. I have seen the power of the family. As there have been a few instances where something unexpected has risen up and someone is in the hospital, I have seen my father and his brothers come together to give a priesthood blessing and watched the blessing be fulfilled and everything work out the way it is suppose to be. I get a new understanding of how important a family is, especially in those times where someone is in the hospital and i watch my uncles and each of their families come closer together through trials. Even when we do a mini family vacation and just go camping and 3 & 4 wheeling somewhere, I have seen how spending time together doing wholesome recreational activities has also brought my family closer. I get to spend time with my younger cousins when I normally dont because i am the second oldest out of my cousins, and siblings. There is 18 yrs between me and my youngest cousin and there is all the cousins in between and being able to spend time with them, allows me to get to know them better and find out what they enjoy to do, what classes they are taking in jr, high and high school.  I know there is power and strength that comes from spending quality time with family. I hope that each person who reads this will find that power and strength as well.