Family Relations

Nobody would be able to be here today if it weren't for the companionship of parents. Without parents, we wouldn't have made it past infancy. Mothers and Fathers do so much for us. First, they made us. They care for our every need while we are living in their home as children. They feed us, take care of us when we're hurt, and do everything they can to make our lives as comfortable and happy as possible. When it finally is time to leave the house, they've done what they could to prepare us to live on our own, and hopefully prepped us with all of the life skills we need to take care of ourselves.      The things I stated above, those are exactly the purposes of parents. They are there to bring us into this world. They love and care for us. They prepare us for the natural foes the earth has to offer. There are different styles of parenting, however, and depending on the child, a certain type may benefit more than others. On the Prep assignments for class this week, one of...

 Fathers are an important part of the family. Society nowadays are downplaying the importance of them. Somebody pointed out in class today that Disney Channel shows always portray the fathers as unimportant, and dumb. For the most part, Fathers are the ones who are out working and trying to provide for the family, so it doesn't really make sense, nor is it fair for them to be portrayed in this manner.     It was mentioned in class how as children grow up, around their teenage years, they become more reliant on their fathers. One student in class shared his thoughts on why he thought this was the case. He has said that when kids are younger, they are very cared for, loved, and nurtured by their mothers. But as time goes on and they start to grow up, the father helps to toughen them up. They need a more direct approach towards entering the real world. The world outside the parent's home is not always as forgiving, and it won't treat them in the same way their nurturing moth...

 Communication in a family is probably the most important thing in keeping your family a functional one. Last week I had written about the Family under Stress. When related to communication, this can help alleviate stress and problems significantly.      In class today, we briefly talked about the difference between complaining and communicating. Simply put, my Professor said that Complaining is an adult's way of crying. Complaining won't get us anywhere. It only makes people annoyed, hostile, and distant from us. If something is bothering you, whether it be something your partner is doing, or even just something that happened in your day that wasn't pleasant, talk maturely about it instead of whining and complaining. People are more willing and more likely to listen and change if you have a real conversation with them. For example, say you don't like the way that your partner spends so much time sleeping in on the weekends. There are two ways you could address this ...

 In my past blog posts, we've talked about many aspects of Family. Dating and courtship, Marriage, Sexual Relations, but now I'm going to be talking about the Family under stress. Every Family has rough moments, but there are certain ways to handle these rough patches in a way that can preserve your relationship with the most important people in your life.      In class today, my professor said something that I thought was pretty cool. The word "Crisis" in Chinese Characters are "Danger" and "Opportunity." I find that almost poetic. Sometimes the very dangers we want and try to avoid are the exact opportunities we need in order to improve our family. Some stressors for a family could be after the Honeymoon Phase. During the Honeymoon Phase, you're absolutely smitten with your partner, They're perfect in every way and there is nothing they could do to ever hurt you. Eventually, that phase will end. That doesn't mean you don't love th...

I'm going to be honest, I'm not terribly excited to write about this week's subject, but it is an important subject that should be talked about. Sexual Relations is kind of a taboo topic, but sexual relations are vital in order to start a family. Without it, you can't have kids, and without kids, you can't have a full family and then there will be nobody to continue on and pass on your family name.      To start out, I would like to discuss the Law of Chastity. Now, what is that? Chastity is Sexual Purity. So the Law of Chastity states that we should refrain from any sort of sexual activity with another person until you are married. Then when you are married, to practice perfect fidelity and only perform those acts with your partner. Satan has led many people to believe that sexual actions are acceptable outside of marriage. He influences people's thoughts, words, and actions to be impure and ultimately break the Law of Chastity. Many people may see this as a re...

 In my last blog post, I had talked about dating and building a strong relationship with someone else. In this post, I'm going to talk about the transition from dating into marriage.      I believe I mentioned this last time, but lots of people are scared of commitment. The number of people cohabiting instead of getting married is rapidly increasing. In class today, my professor said how in Idaho, it's easier to get out of a marriage than it would be a housing contract. Now staying on the idea of contract, what is the difference between a contract and a covenant? A Contract is a legally settled agreement, while a covenant is more of a spiritual agreement. A covenant is a two-way promise, a pledge. To think of marriage as a covenant rather than a contract makes it mean so much more. We want to keep our covenants with each other and with God. Often times our partner can come up short. They can frustrate or hurt us in ways, but just try and remember the promises we've m...