By KERI WILCOX
The home is traditionally a refuge and a sanctuary, but it is being threatened and challenged more today than ever before, warned Elder Eran A. Call of the Quorum of the Seventy.
'Today less than half the children born in the United States, and in many other countries in the world, will spend their entire childhood in an intact family,' he said.
Births outside of marriage and divorce have risen dramatically over the last 30 years, Elder Call said, and 'as church members, we are not free from these sinful practices.'
But as Latter-day Saints, our homes can be and should be, a refuge and a sanctuary from the troubled world we live in.
'As the homes and families are, so will be the community, city, state and nation,' Elder Call said. 'As Latter-day Saints, we have been given much and much is expected of us.'
Elder Call offered advice to husbands and wives on how to avoid the pitfalls and temptations of the world. These suggestions include keeping basic commandments -- such as attending church meetings, paying tithing and reading the scriptures together -- along with advice to communicate regularly with family members, to avoid unnecessary debt and to never make a major purchase or decision without prayer and a mutual agreement from both spouses.
'Our First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, whom we sustain as prophets, seers and revelators, two years ago solemnly proclaimed to the world our beliefs concerning marriage, parents and the family,' Elder Call said.
'I challenge each of you to read, study and live by this inspired proclamation.'