Framework

They have been doing construction at my work for the past couple of months.  Removing the old cubes and offices to make room for newer ones (I won't say improved, because I liked the old ones better, but I digress).

We were given plenty of notice when they were about to begin the first set of construction.  Still, I was surprised when I came in on a Monday morning to see a wooden wall blocking off the entrance to the section they were working on.  I was more surprised when I checked from another side, and found that the entire area had been gutted.  I had walked through the area on the previous Friday, and everything was normal, as I remembered it.  I was amazed at how quickly they could take everything down.

Building up the new area took the better part of a month.  I have actually moved into the new area temporarily, until they finish my final location.  The construction company has subsequently finished the second area, and moved on to the third.  I took a quick glance at the third construction area the other day, and saw that it was in the freshly gutted stage.  All of the cubicles, offices, and even the carpets are gone.  But the area is not entirely bare.  There are a handful of thick metal beams going from floor to ceiling, which support the level above.  These beams (I don't know the official construction term) form the framework upon which the new offices and cubicles will be built, and are an essential part of the structural integrity of the building.

In a previous post, I talked about the foundation on which marital and personal healing should be built.  Today, I want to talk a little bit more about where we go after we get a firm foundation.  As always, the Lord has given us direction on this through His holy prophets.  I will be taking my comments from the Family Proclamation:

"Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded on 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." -The Family: A Proclamation to the World

If you have not yet read this inspired document, you can read the entire proclamation here.

Any of these principles could fill several blog posts.  Perhaps I will do a series on them at some point.  But for now, I wish to focus on two things:

1) These principles are based on the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ is our foundation.  The teachings and principles that He gives to us are the framework.  Once we have our foundation, we need a strong and solid framework on which to build the rest of our marriage or personal life.  The teachings of the Master provide us with this framework.

2) Since these are principles, they are unchanging by their nature.

One of the great comforts I find in the Gospel is its unchanging nature.  Life changes and moves at an ever increasing pace.  Philosophies and teachings change almost as often as the weather.  Things that were once accepted by the greater community are being challenged, derided, and even sometimes discarded.  In the midst of all of this chaos, it is comforting to know that what the Lord has given us is unchanging and eternal.  A principle that is true today was true yesterday, and will be true tomorrow.  Thus, we can build our framework without fear of it becoming outdated.


Although I have focused my comments today on building and healing a marriage, these same principles will also do wonders in personal healing.

Take a moment or two today and review this list of principles.  Pick one that speaks to you, and strive to make it a bigger part of your life.  I promise that the Lord will bless you as you do so.