Crisis= Danger + Opportunity

In class this week we are learning about the family under stress. I really liked how in chinese the word crisis is made up of two characters meaning danger and opportunity.  I remember when I was on my mission and I had to train a new missionary.  It was my fourth transfer and I still felt like I didn't know anything especially with the Spanish language and I panicked.  I didn't think I could do it, but I got a blessing from my mission president and was comforted knowing that this was an opportunity for me to grow. It was difficult, but the Lord blessed me with strength and courage and he blessed me with a wonderful companion.  This was a hard experience for me, but I learned a lot from it, especially about myself and how I handle stress in my life.  I know that if I humble myself and rely on the Lord that He can and will turn my weaknesses into strengths in order to accomplish is will. What stressor events have you had in your life and how did you handle it?  What do you think are the best ways to handle stress?

The Brain is Powerful

This week we have been talking about sexual intimacy and in class Brother Williams made the comment that the most important sex organ is the brain.  I had never thought about that before, but as I have thought about it more it makes sense. One time I was on a date and I wasn't really interested in the guy and he held my hand and tried to kiss me. I didn't let him kiss me because I didn't want him to.  Even as he was holding my hand I didn't like it because I wasn't attracted to him.  However, on the flip side I was dating a guy I really liked and when he held my hand for the first time I was excited and I felt butterflies in my stomach. Both guys held my hands, but I felt a definite difference between the two. I think that had to do a lot with my thoughts and how I thought about each of them. 

Preparing for a Marriage vs. Preparing for a Wedding

Often times I think during engagement we focus too much on the wedding planning and not enough on the marriage planning.  During courtship we should be getting to know the person and start discussing issues that will help prepare for marriage, but sometimes this is put on the back burner, saved till later, and it really shouldn't be.  I also liked how in class we discussed the four distinct phases in a relationship: dating, courtship, engagement, and marriage and how important it is to not "slide" into any one of the phases.  If a couple that is dating "slides" into courtship they may not know where each other stands and what the expectations are.  Sliding into engagement is not good either because the couple hasn't started to make clear boundaries between the couple and their families.  Sliding into marriage is not healthy either because that often involves couples cohabiting before they acutally get married. They are also less likely to be prepared and ready for the commitment of marriage if they slide into it. 

What is Love anyway?

In the text book we learned about the different kinds of love: agape (unconditional), storge (between parents and children, eros (passion), and philia (friendship). So what is love when there are so many different apects and combinations of it. M. Scott Peck said, "I define love thus: the will to extend one's self for the purpose of nurturing one's own or another's spiritual growth."  I agree with Peck's answer, however I think it can apply to other aspects of an indivdiaul such as emotional, intellecutal, personal growth. We can also look to our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ as perfect examples of love. According to the Bible dictionary, Charity is the highest, noblest, strongest kind of love, not merely affection. It is the pure love of Christ. I think that this kind of love relates well with agape in that it is unconditional and that one doesn't expect anything in return.  When we are exhorted to pray for charity in the scriptures I think this is the kind of love that God wants us to develop for ourself and others.

Satan is cunning...

In Brother William's video on same-sex attraction he mentioned a woman who said that for every gay couple there are two women without a man to marry. That really hit me because I never thought of it like that before. The family is central to God's plan and that is why Satan is doing everything that he can to destroy it.  I also thought that is was interesting that often people who feel that they are different or feel lonely tend to go down the path of same-sex attraction.  I think the key to combat this is knowing our identity, that we are children of a loving Heavenly Father and that our gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose. (The Famly: A Proclamation to the World).  If we truly knew our identity as children of God we wouldn't be deceived by Satan's tactics.