Preparing Singles for the Blessings of Marriage and Family Area Council Meeting January 9, 2015 Purpose: Provide vision and suggestions to help single adults prepare for the blessings of marriage and family. “Then shall they be gods, because they have no end; therefore shall they be from everlasting to everlasting, because they continue; then shall they be above all, because all things are subject unto them. Then shall they be gods, because they have all power, and the angels are subject unto them.” D&C 132:20 “When two Latter-day Saints are united together in marriage, promises are made to them concerning their offspring that reach from eternity to eternity. What else could man wish? A man and a woman in the other life, having celestial bodies, free from sickness and disease, glorified and beautified beyond description, standing in the midst of their posterity, governing and controlling them, administering life, exaltation and glory worlds without end!” Lorenzo Snow, The Deseret Weekly, 3 Apr. 1897, 481 God the Father’s Plan for His Eternal Family “The family is ordained of God. It is the most important unit in time and in eternity. Even before we were born on the earth, we were part of a family. Each of us ‘is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents’ with ‘a divine nature and destiny’” (The Family: A Proclamation to the World). Handbook 2, 1.1.1 Why do we have so many young people that are not getting married? How can the principles and doctrine be applied in our area to help facilitate marriage and creation of families?