General Conference Analysis

Our Homes and Families Need Reforming

M. Russell Ballard, a member of the Quorum of the 12, was the second Speaker in the Sunday afternoon session of the 2012 April General Conference. The main topic he focused on was how our homes and families need to be reformed. He talked about how the priorities in homes today have changed throughout the years. For example, he explained how more and more families have two working parents, and how family values are being degraded. He said, “It is our homes and families that need reforming in this increasing materialistic and secular world.” He also talked about how there is an ever growing gap between the rich and poor, thus causing troubling trends to increase, such as: inequality in schooling, health care, the work force, etc. He brought up the issue that more than half of all marriages in the United States end in divorce. He noted that when families attend church, keep gospel doctrines and show more love towards those around them, divorce rates will decrease. He emphasized how we need strong families who will stick together through thick and thin. He said, “Society at large is strengthened as families grow stronger. Commitments to family and values are the basic cause, nearly everything else is effect.” He then listed four points about how we can strengthen our homes and families. First: give your children responsibilities in the home. Don’t force your children to do things; give them the responsibility to do their own work so the power rests in their hands. Second: we need to do things in the right order. He specifically mentioned how we need to marry first before we start a family. By doing that, families will be happy and healthy. If you have children before you are married, complications may arise, involving if you plan on marrying your partner and if not, who will keep the child, and so on. Third: husbands and wives are equal partners. Both the husband and wife have equal responsibilities to fulfill when starting and raising a family. Fourth: use the family resources of the church. He said that the church is the scaffolding with which we build families. We will always have a spirit guiding and directing us. He talked about the liahona and how it was used to guide and direct those in the olden times, but it only worked if those who wished to use it were righteous. He closed his talk by talking about how through the Savior and His atoning sacrifice we can return back to our heavenly home, which ultimately is the greatest illustration of a righteous, loving home. He said, “Brothers and Sisters, the most important cause of our lifetime is our families. If we will devote ourselves to this cause, we will improve every other aspect of our lives, and will become as a people and as a church, an example and a beacon for all peoples of the earth.”