Happily Ever After

Yesterday in Young Women we talked about Temple marriage. For my lesson I tied in Elder Uchtodorf’s talk called “Your Happily Ever After”. The first part is from his talk and the rest of it are my thoughts on the subject and kind of brief look at what I taught my girls.

“…In most languages there exists a phrase as magical and full of promise as perhaps any in the world. That phrase is ‘Once upon a time’.”
“Aren’t those wonderful words to begin a story? ‘Once upon a time’ promises something: a story of adventure and romance, a story of princesses and princes. It may include tales of courage, hope, and everlasting love. In many of these stories, nice overcomes mean and good overcomes evil. But perhaps most of all, I love it when we turn to the last page and our eyes reach the final lines and we see the enchanting words ‘And they lived happily ever after.’”
“Isn’t that what we all desire: to be the heroes and heroines of our own stories; to triumph over adversity; to experience life in all its beauty; and, in the end, to live happily ever after?”
“Isn’t it remarkable to know that our eternal Heavenly Father knows you, hears you, watches over you, and loves you with an infinite love?”
“His love for you is so great that He has granted you this earthy life as a precious gift of ‘once upon a time,’ complete with your own true story of adventure, trial, and opportunities for greatness, nobility, courage, and love. And, most glorious of all, He offers you a gift beyond price and comprehension. Heavenly Father offers to you the greatest give of all eternal life- and the opportunity and infinite blessing of your own ‘happily ever after.’” _Elder Uchtdorf

“In fairy tales it’s always the royalty that get their ‘happily ever after’. We are literal sons and daughters of the most high God who is the King of all Kings, that makes us royalty. Only righteous members of the Church who get married in the Lord’s holy temple get their ‘happily ever after’ everyone else gets happily to death do us part.” Quote by Madison Hale

Elder John A. Widtsoe said this: “Marriage, the most important event between birth and death.” Or we could say “Marriage, the most important event between ONCE UPON A TIME and HAPPILY EVER AFTER”. “Therefore, it should be entered into with the greatest of care.”

The only way we will get our Happily Ever After is to be married in a Temple for Time and all Eternity.
In section 132 of the Doctrine Covenants it talks about marriage and what eternity will bring for those who followed God’s commandment to get married in the Temple to be sealed for time and all eternity and those who chose to have a civil marriage.

D&C 132:16 and part of 17 these verses are talking about what will happen to those who chose not to follow God and have a civil marriage.
"Therefore, when they are out of the world they neither marry nor are given in marriage; but are appointed angels in heaven which angels are ministering servants to minister for those who are worthy of far more, and an exceeding, and an eternal weight of glory." "For these angels did not abide my law; therefore they cannot be enlarged, but remain separately and singly, without exaltation..."

As I read and studied this out my heart just broke for the people who made that one decision not to be married in the Temple. Joseph F. Smith said: “Those who have the opportunity to receive the covenant of eternal marriage in a holy temple but choose to be married outside the temple may enter into the celestial kingdom or one of the other kingdoms. But they cannot be exalted and live eternally with their families. They will live as single people and ministering servants to those who chose to follow God’s plan. They will lose great blessings because “they think more of the world and its covenants, that they do of God and his covenants.” Those who are married only for time will have no claim upon their family members in the next life. They will live as single people. This will be a source of great sorrow. How truly sad that is. Can you imagine the regret they will feel once they get to Heaven and realize that they will be alone for the rest of eternity? They will be servants to the ones who chose to follow God’s way. I’m sure that when they see all the people with their families and loved ones they will have so much sorrow knowing that the decision they made to not get married in the temple would have such a huge impact and consequence in the eternities. I wouldn’t want to live forever regretting the decisions I made on Earth. I don’t want to live forever knowing that it could have all been different if I would have only listened a little more to the teachings of our Heavenly Father and a little less to the teachings of the world.

I have such a hard time being away from my husband even for the workday. I wish I could spend every minute of every day with him. To have a relationship that continues to grow stronger with every passing day, to love someone so much that you would do anything to make them happy, putting so much hard work into making sure that your relationship can be the best it can be, to continue to grow and progress in love through out your whole life; and then for it to just be gone once you die is the worst thought of all. Why even get married then? What’s the point? To know that all of that just goes away and is lost forever. That for the rest of eternity you are alone. You don’t have anyone to go home to, the love of your life is gone, all the effort you put forth into making your marriage be the best it can be was all a waste of time…because if you don’t get married in the temple and continue to keep your covenants and live worthily it’s gone forever. You will never get that opportunity again. What a scary, and taunting thought.

I am so grateful that I made the decision early in life that the only place I would get married would be in the temple. I’m so glad that I will get to spend eternity with my sweetheart. It brings such peace and a great source of happiness to know that even though death might separate us for a little bit, we will be together forever and ever. I won’t be alone, I’ll still have my best friend to stand by me and help me continue to progress and become better. Our love will never end, but continue to grow.
You are the writer of your fairy tale. You get to make the decision wither or not the last sentence will say, “and they lived happily ever after”.