Conflict will arise.

When conflict arises in marriage one of two things will happen, either the couple will work to fix the problem with love and laughter, or they will fight and make the situation worse. The best way to solve a problem is to see the other person as Christ would, to show love and understanding while addressing the situation.

As humans we are bound to make many mistakes, often in times of conflict we are not able to think clearly and we are unable to keep that Christlike love for our spouse in our heart. In his book The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work(2015), Dr Gottman explains that with a "soft start-up"(pg, 162) couples can better their chances of successfully resolving the problem without causing defensiveness and negativity. A 'Soft Start-up' is approaching the issue with an "I don't like doing all of this housework alone. Would you please help me?" instead of a "Why don't you ever listen to me? I just want you to do what you said you would but you have to sit there like a lazy dog!!". Starting off a conversation with sensitivity and respect will help the couple stay calm and will benefit them in the long run whereas throwing negative emotions and yelling will cause the spouse to feel attacked and disrespected.

While the Lord was on the earth. He spent time with the hurt and the righteous and helped everyone in between. He did not care who was from what background because He was here to help, lift and to teach and bring those around him to the Gospel and to repentance. When we have the mindset of, 'They are learning, I need to be careful about what I say and I need to remember the love I have for him/her' we are acting in accordance with the Lord's teachings of forgiveness and love. So often the world clouds our judgement and causes us to lose sight of who we all are and the sacred and special purposes that we have in this life. Through constant prayer and an attitude of forgiveness and love we can lessen our chances of hurting others and can keep the Lord at the center of our marriage.

When we put our lives into the hands of our Father in Heaven, we are obeying the Law of Consecration. We are spending our time and efforts on the bettering of the world and are putting the Plan of Salvation at the top of our list of priorities. The Lord's work will be done by the righteous and  if we strive to serve Him in all that we do we can fulfill His commandment to love everyone and to forgive those who hurt us. Keeping Christ as the center of our marriage will bring us closer to our Father above and our spouse and we will be able to set an example for those who are watching what we do. Our children will see all of our efforts and they will learn and grow to love the Lord. If we always strive to starve the Lord and each other we will be blessed in ways incomprehensible to us. We will gain the riches of the Lord if but only do our best to always improve.