Peace Like a River

They say that peace is like a river, but rivers make me think of chaos: rushing and furious, loud and overwhelming, speeding uncontrollably downstream. I’ve heard rivers compared to peace, but to me, they’re anything but.

Life is like a river, though, in that sometimes the current of time feels overwhelming, and it’s all I can do to keep my head afloat. And sometimes, as worries and fears speed uncontrollably through my mind, I start to flail, terrified that I am drowning, convinced that I don’t have what it takes to stay afloat.

But then this image washes over me: Christ’s disciples on a ship as waves twice, three times their height come crashing over the sides, working desperately to keep the ship upright and themselves from being swept overboard, wondering how their beloved Master could possibly be asleep, completely oblivious to this tempest that threatens His life. Terrified, they wake Him, only to hear His surprised response: “Why are ye fearful, oh ye of little faith?” And when He turns to face the sea, He commands, and all is still.

As I face my own storms, with Christ’s disciples I also wonder: What manner of man is this? How can He remain so calm when the world around Him is anything but? And how can He expect me to do the same?

But the Savior is not as other men. He is the Son of God, and as I study His words I realize why the same fear that paralyzed His disciples’ hearts did not penetrate into His own:

Because He knew who He was and what He was capable of.

Because not only did He create the earth, He came to save it as well.

Because not only did He overcome His own death and hell, but He overcame everyone else’s as well.

Because even as I feel like I am fighting for my very life, the Savior has already ensured that I will rise again.  

Then how can I not feel peace?

Additional Resources:

John 16:33

https://www.lds.org/topics/peace?lang=eng#_

Career Woman

Most of us know what “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” teaches us about parents’ roles: “Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children,” while fathers are the ones who “are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families.”

I believe what “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” teaches. I believe that it is the word of God, spoken through the mouths of His modern-day Prophet and Apostles. I want to follow what it says because I believe that doing so is what will bring me the greatest joy.

I have also recently started looking for a career.

Not a job, some temporary form of employment to tide me over until I can finally get married and start a family of my own. A career. A solid, reliable, long-term career. Something that will hone my skills and talents while providing for my physical needs. Something worthy of my intelligence and my potential to make a difference in the world.

But, you ask, isn’t that antithetical to what “The Family” teaches?

No. I don’t believe it is. In fact, I would say that the two are synonymous. Whether I continue on the career path even after getting married or give up my job to spend more time with my children, here is what getting established with a career now will add to my future marriage and family:

• Security: The burden of providing financially for the family will not rest solely on one person. If there ever comes a time when my husband for whatever reason, be it medical or economic in nature, can no longer provide for the family via his own efforts, he can rest assured that there is someone else in the household qualified and willing to pick up that burden for him.
• Example: My daughters will realize that they have the freedom and ability to choose what they do with their lives, and my sons will have a respect for women, including Mormon women, whose life’s journey takes them on a more unconventional route.
• Love: My children and husband will recognize that I choose to put them first because I love them, not because some old guy told me it was important.
• Unity: My future husband won’t feel that he has to sacrifice providing for his family over spending time with them, but will know that he has the freedom to work with me as he tries to find his own balance between the two.
• Self-worth: I will recognize that my growth and development matter independent of what they will add to my children’s upbringing. This will help me lead my children from a place of confidence; rather than basing my worth off of how well my children perform in front of others, I will base my worth off of something more substantial: my personal ability to achieve my goals, independent of the decisions those I’m responsible for make.

So while the most important thing in my future will be my husband and children, in the meantime I will take advantage of this opportunity to establish a career. Not because I care more about worldly things than I do about following the prophet, but because I care about having strong relationships with my future family. And that will begin with having a strong relationship with myself – because, really, how can I nurture my future children if I have never learned how to nurture myself?

The Eternal Truth of Families

"We . . . solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children."

-"The Family: A Proclamation to the World" 

In this one simple sentence, the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints makes clear God’s view on marriage and family. Life is sacred, and the most sacred part of life is the relationships we establish with one another. The most important of these relationships are created and developed in the home. The home creates the ideal environment for growth and joy: it provides constancy in a world that is ever-changing; love in a world that can seem indifferent; a moral anchor in a world of ever-shifting morality; a place to be yourself in a world that judges each individual based off of arbitrary and superficial standards.

For these reasons, God has designed a plan that centers around the family unit. Family is not a social construct; it is a heavenly one. Our Heavenly Parents have an eternal marriage, and they find their joy in helping their children grow and become more like them (see Moses 1:39). As children of our Heavenly Parents, we also will find our purpose and our joy in creating Christ-centered families.

Modern culture has stigmatized those who marry young, as well as those who voluntarily give up their career for their children. However, God’s truth has not changed along with the culture. Marriage is still ordained of God, and the family is still central to the Great Plan of Happiness. Eternal marriage and a Christ-centered family life will always be the key to eternal joy. This is an eternal truth, and as such will never change.