Eternally Bound

To be bound in a marriage means an agreement with legal force. When we vow to unconditionally love an individual for all time and eternity that is a pretty big commitment that truly binds you to your spouse. This one event does not mean that a bond is complete, but instead it is the start of the never-ending promise that you will continue to work on that bond with your spouse. We must think of being bound as an action; there can always be improvements and it should be worked on daily. Growing up as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints, I have learned that creating an eternal bond takes three. That bond is founded upon the teachings of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and includes a husband, a wife, and the Lord. When a family has a strong bond, it allows happiness to be a common emotion in the home. In The Family: A Proclamation to the World it says, "Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities."As we as spouses learn to let our homes and marriages be built on these aspects we can hold onto that eternal bond with certainty.

In the book Drawing Heaven into Your Marriage, H. Wallace Goddard teaches us that, "When we put God first, everything else falls into it's proper place!" This is such a powerful statement and we should use it to create stronger bonds in our marriages. We know that God is all knowing and all loving; He intended for and wants our marriages to be strong. As we seek after these things and allow God to be present in our marriage, He will personally allow our eternal bond with our spouse to be strengthened. I really appreciate my spouse when I look at my marriage as a bond because to me that seems like a promise on never ending love and support.

John Gottman teaches many ways that bonds can be strengthened in his book called, The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work. In one his chapters he discusses the action of turning towards your spouse and that is a key aspects in keeping that strong bond or strengthening it if it needs some work. Turning towards a spouse shows that you are there no matter what which is usually part of a vow made when couples get married. As we understand that every time we turn towards our husbands or wives we are solidifying and acting upon that bond. Let us not lose sight of that bond because it is eternal and the more we exercise it's use the more we will get out of marriages.