Complete Fidelity

 

 

Today’s guest writer is Hank Smith!

He grew up in St. George, Utah.  He served a mission to California, and has an MBA from Utah State University. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate at BYU and teaches in BYU’s Religion Department.   Brother Smith and his wife, Sara, live in Mapleton, Utah.  Brother Smith says that, “Sara is amazing, she knows everything about me and still loves me.” They have 3 adorable children. Maddy is 7 and wants to be a princess and a soccer player when she grows up.  Mason is 4 and carries all of the family animals around by the neck.  Elijah is a year old and enjoys screaming and sleeping.   Brother Smith enjoys running marathons and eating lots of ice cream, which is why he runs marathons.  More than anything else he loves being with his wonderful wife and children.   Brother Smith has authored many “Talks on CD” with Covenant Communications.  There is even a Facebook page about the CDs which has the same number of “likes” as the “Not Being Eaten by Llamas” page.  Brother Smith’s CDs shouldn’t be listened to while operating an automobile because sleeping while driving has a tendency to irritate other drivers.  Listen and drive at your own risk!   Talks on CD: Thou Shalt Be Nice! Real Life Be Who You Are My Soul Hungered…and my Stomach Growled Break Up with the World The Do’s and Don’ts of Dating ——————————————————————————————————–

Complete Fidelity

“This could not happen to me.

Not a girl like me.  I was involved in school, I had a 3.9 GPA and was all honors, I was part of the laurel class presidency.  This doesn’t happen to girls like me.” Braydee was 16 years old and pregnant. “I have stolen something from my eternal companion that can never be replaced.  I have caused so many people pain and suffering and heartache.”

She was devastated.

As months passed Braydee was faced with a life altering choice.  The father of the baby had disappeared, but her parents had offered to help her raise her child.  She didn’t know what to do.  

“I remembered a lesson I had been taught in seminary that year.

We had reviewed the Proclamation on the Family given to the world and it states, ‘Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father AND a mother.’ This statement flashed through my mind many times, and that is when I decided on adoption.”  

Braydee was my student

when I was a seminary teacher and I’m happy to report that her daughter was adopted by a wonderful couple unable to have children.  Braydee is on the road to a full recovery made possible through the Atonement and she is looking forward to a temple marriage one day.   What is significant is that one sentence from The Proclamation impacted the course of Braydee’s life (and many other lives) forever.  That is the power of this inspired page!

Two words from The Proclamation can change a teenager’s dating life.

“Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity.”  Complete fidelity.  Take a look at the meaning of both of these words.

Complete:

Finished, whole, perfect, consummate, highly skilled

Fidelity:

Faithfulness to a person, loyalty, keeping a promise, truthful

If you aren’t married yet,

can you honor your spouse with complete fidelity? Yes! Can a teenager be completely faithful to a spouse they haven’t met?  Absolutely!  When the day comes that you are sealed in the temple for time and all eternity, you should be able to say to your eternal companion, “I was faithful to you long before I met you.”  But in a world completely full of infidelity, how do you date with complete fidelity?  Here are a few suggestions.  

Don’t Date until you are 16

    The Strength of Youth pamphlet says, “Do not date until you are 16 years old.”  I’ve met a lot of teenagers who date before 16, but they just call it something else.  “We’re not dating,” they say, “we are just going steady.”  “We aren’t dating, we just meet up and hold hands and kiss.”  Huh?  When you are going steady or meeting up or holding hands or kissing, guess what you are doing?  Yep, that is called dating.  The Strength of Youth pamphlet says that this “can lead to immorality, limit the number of other young people you meet, and deprive you of experiences that will help you choose an eternal partner.”  You don’t want to take those risks!  Remember, The Strength of Youth pamphlet is like a lighthouse on a rocky beach that could shred and sink all ships that venture too close.  The lighthouse isn’t the problem, the rocks are the problem; the lighthouse is there to help!  

Date Only those with High Standards

    Did you know there are only 3 people in the scriptures that had their birth announced by angels?  You can probably name two easily: John the Baptist and Jesus Christ.  Who was the third?  Samson.  That’s right, Samson.  In Judges 13, an angel appears to Manoah’s wife and tells her that she will have a son who will deliver Israel.  But wait, Samson’s life ended tragically, he didn’t triumph like John the Baptist and the Savior did.  Why?  Samson dated the wrong girls.  He didn’t date girls with high standards and he definitely wasn’t faithful to his future spouse with complete fidelity. As a result, he lived an unhappy life and died tragically.   Don’t allow what happened to Samson to happen to you.  The Strength of Youth pamphlet says to “Date only those who have high standards and in whose company you can maintain your standards.”  Some teenagers like to think the “and” in that statement is an “or”, but it isn’t.  Unfortunately, this statement is going to exclude some members of the Church from your dating possibilities.  It is sad, but true.  Be courageous enough to say ‘no’ to dates that don’t meet the standard and ‘yes’ to those that do.  

Treat the Opposite Sex with Respect

   

Girls, listen up.

President Hinckley referred to men as our Heavenly Father’s “crowning creation.”  President Monson has referred to priesthood holders as our Heavenly Father’s “representatives on the earth.”  Do you treat them that way?  Do you talk about them that way?  Treating boys and talking about boys with respect is one way for a young woman to be faithful to her future spouse with complete fidelity.  

Boys, how about you?

President Hinckley referred to women as our Heavenly Father’s “final creation, the grand summation of all.”  In fact, did you know that a woman is a walking, talking, moving symbol of Christ?  She is one that can give life through her own blood, just like Christ does.  Is it any wonder that Satan seeks to demean and disgrace women through immodesty and pornography?  By degrading women he can degrade the Savior because they are symbols of Christ.  Boys, do you treat girls that way?  Do you talk about them that way?  A boy who entirely avoids immodestly dressed girls and any form of pornography is being faithful to his future spouse with complete fidelity.  

Will you do something for me?

Will you take the following quote from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland and tape it up on your bathroom mirror or on your bedroom wall or on your school locker?  Let it serve as a reminder to you to be faithful to your future spouse with complete fidelity.  

“On your wedding day, the very best gift you can give your eternal companion is your very best self.  Clean and pure and worthy of such purity in return.”

 

Perhaps you’ve been able to avoid serious sin so far in your life.

Good for you!  Recommit yourself to staying on that path.  Or perhaps, like Braydee, you’ve made serious mistakes.  Today, you need to commit yourself to turning things around through the Atonement.  Either way, from this day forward, you can live the life that leads to deep and lasting happiness for your future family, the life committed to complete fidelity!    

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Remember to visit the other blogs hosting this celebration!

They have great things going on each day!  Montserrat from Chocolate on My Cranium,  Jocelyn from We Talk of Christ,  and Jaime from Welcome to the Madness.  Be sure to visit each blog every day!

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And here are today’s Giveaways! We are doubling up so you have twice the chance to win!

Hank Smith, the guest blogger at The Red Headed Hostess today, is also giving away 3 copies of his CD, The Do’s and Don’ts of Dating. Drawing on some hilarious experiences from his own dating years, poignant stories of others, and the wise counsel of the prophets and other Church leaders, Brother Smith shares an important message that youth will relate to and appreciate.

And

FreshlyPainted is sponsoring this completely original painting of the Salt Lake Temple Doorknob with the words, “Holiness to the Lord”. Have you ever spent time to look at the doorknobs at the Temple? They are very beautiful and unique. One can’t help but think of the early pioneers and the dedication and love they had for the Salt Lake Temple when you look at all the beautiful details all over.  This magnet measures 2.5” x 3.5”. Visit FreshlyPainted for more original freshly painted works of art!

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