The Family: A Proclamation to the World

Sixteen years ago today, President Hinckley presented "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" during the Relief Society broadcast. I'm so thankful he did. It's an amazing and prophetic document.

1985

I think two of the phrases that have stuck out to me over the years are "marriage between a man and a woman" and "gender is an essential characteristic." I remember thinking, "That's so obvious; why would it be included?" However, in today's society, those aren't obvious truths. Satan is working overtime to confuse people and it seems like he's succeeding. I'm grateful we have prophets on the watchtowers who warn us to be prepared for Satan's attacks.

1997

The proclamation was also confirmation that my husband and I were heading in the right direction. That's extremely comforting. One of the phrases in my patriarchal blessing mentioned always having love and unity and harmony in my home. Being aware of D&C 130:20-21, which states that any blessing we receive from God is predicated upon keeping the corresponding law, I knew that if I wanted the blessings of love and unity and harmony, there were certain things I'd need to do first - things like get married in the right place at the right time to the right person, keep the commandments and live worthy of the Spirit's guidance, teach my children so they would want to do the same, (doing the little things over and over like personal prayer, family prayer, and family home evening), etc. etc. etc. All of these principles are stated in the Family Proclamation. There IS love and unity and harmony in our home and that is an incredible blessing. It's an even greater blessing to see our sons use these principles to establish their own families and homes built on a foundation of Jesus Christ and his gospel.

2011 - the Utah kids and grandkids

None of these truths were new when President Hinckley presented the proclamation, but it's been wonderful having these doctrines all in one place. And I love that it's for the whole world. Families are important. Families are eternal.

In honor of this anniversary,

Cocoa from Chocolate on my Cranium,

Jaime from Welcome to the Madness,

Shannon from The Redheaded Hostess and

Jocelyn from We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ

have hosted a special celebration over the past two weeks featuring blog posts and link ups to spread the word that “the family is ordained of God” (The Family: A Proclamation to the World). Visiting these various sites is definitely time well spent. But even better would be putting into practice in your own family some of their wonderful suggestions.

Have a wonderful day enjoying your eternal family!