Love and Charity

I've been thinking a lot about love this morning. What is love? Is there just one definition of love? How do you express your love for people around you? I watched this Mormon message this morning:

I know this video is specifically about couples expressing their love for one another, but I feel like a lot of what is said in this video can apply to families in general. The Lord sent us to our family for a reason. He sent us to a specific family to help strengthen where we are weak, He sent us there to help strengthen other members of our family. Family loves you like nobody else will. They understand you like no one else will. And how do we convey that? All too often we lose our tempers with them. We take out our frustrations on those who are closest to us. We distance ourselves from them. We turn to outside sources for love instead of turning to what is right in front of us - our family. Aside from our Heavenly Father and our brother, Jesus Christ, there is no one on this earth that loves you more than your family does. Whether that be your parents and your siblings, a spouse, or all of the above, there is no one who will stick by your side, regardless of what you've done, there is no one who will ever love you more than your family will.

But all too often, we let other things get in the way of our family. This is Satan's plan. Satan wants nothing more than to rip the family apart, because he knows that in these times, if the family is solid, then he has no power in bringing you down. It breaks my heart to see families fall apart over and over in these last days.

I love how this video talks about eternal marriage. The couple said that they promised the Lord that they would do everything to make their marriage an eternal marriage. Just because you get married in the temple doesn't mean you get a free ride to the celestial kingdom with your spouse and family. You work at it. You have to keep your covenants. Being a family in the eternities means that you have to be a family now.

I am so grateful for my parents. I seriously have the most incredible parents in the world. They are so strong, and have been through so much together, and even though I watch them struggle through their share of trials, I watch them put the Lord first and rely on the atonement through all of our hardships. They've been there for me when I needed them most, time and time again. I watch them express their love for each other in little ways and think how blessed I am to have that example in my life. They aren't perfect, but who is in this life? 

Another thing that has got me thinking is this article by Elder Bednar on Character. It really got me thinking about Christlike character, which really is charity and selfless love. Even though the Lord suffered through all things, He never once though of Himself, This article is amazing and really got me thinking just what is my true character? Am I honest? Am I selfless? Do I think of others first even when I'm hurting? I want more than anything to be like Christ, but if I can't be these things, then I'm never going to come close to becoming like Him.

How do you show your love for those that you love? Your family? Your friends? Or even just people that you care about? Are you Christlike in what you do? Do you think of them first, or do you expect them to do things for you? Think about what the Savior would do before you act, before you speak, before you think of anything else. Put Him first in all you do, even when you're hurting, and you will be blessed. We were sent here to become like Him. So start becoming.

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