Joseph Fielding Smith, speaking of marriage, explained the beauty and importance of the covenant. “Marriage is a principle that, when entered into, presents more challenges and blessings than any other.… Nothing will prepare mankind for exaltation in the kingdom of God as readily as faithfulness to the marriage covenant. Through this covenant, perhaps more than any other, we accomplish the perfect degree of the divine will. If properly received, this covenant can be the means by which man gains his greatest happiness. The greatest honors in this life and in the life to come—honor, dominion, and power in perfect love—are blessings that flow from it. These blessings of eternal glory are held in reserve for those who are willing to abide in this and all other covenants of the gospel.”

He continued, “The Lord has given to the Church definite instructions in relation to this sacred principle which is so essential to the happiness of man. …There is in the Church a ceremony that gives to the covenanting parties blessings which do not end with death. Marriage as understood by Latter-day Saints is a covenant ordained to be everlasting.”

“No ordinance connected with the gospel of Jesus Christ is of greater importance, of more solemn and sacred nature, and more necessary to the eternal joy of man than marriage in the house of the Lord.”

This month’s Desert Saints Magazine is our Bridal Edition. We have collected some great love stories, some great advice, and bridal vendors and services to help anyone planning nuptials.
And I hope the rest of us who aren’t planning marriages will honor and respect the relationships we have, or be worthy of the ones for which we pray.

All the best,

Editor@DesertSaintsMagazine.com