Having a unit all on the temple is nice; you can talk about several different aspects of the temple and/or build on lessons throughout the month.
For this lesson, I would (as always!) recommend using the links on the sidebar at the new lds.org manual page. Though the lesson outline is old, the sidebar links come from March/April 2011, 2010, 2008, etc.
We had a discussion recently here at Beginnings New on marriage, and some of that might be interesting to revisit:
Teaching YW about marriage: http://beginningsnew.blogspot.com/2011/04/marriage-question-continued.html
Thoughts on why more people aren't getting married, or if this is really a myth, and other thoughts: http://beginningsnew.blogspot.com/2011/04/why-arent-people-getting-married.html
And last but not least, the link to jeans' notes from 2008:
And, if I may, I'll also quote SilverRain's comment from 2008:
"One thing I have come to realize is that when we are married in the Temple, we promise our spouses nothing. All our covenants and promises are made with God. Therefore, the absolute most important relationship to work on is God's, and then find someone to marry who has done the same. If you can do that, lots of problems in marriage will be healed."Totally agree.
I think telling single people that they just need to find another righteous person to marry is simplistic and often bad advice. A romantic marital relationship as we expect these days takes more compatibility than that.
ReplyDeleteYou begin to question yourself when things go bad even if it is not your fault. I think confusing your spirituality with your marital relationship makes people try to stick it out when it is healthier to move on. And it makes them feel guilt and doubt when they make the tough decision to divorce.
And one more thing I think this mentality produces is an invitation of God into the bedroom. The sexual relationship that is essential to most marriages is quit awkward when a third party joins in. This often smothers the romance because frankly most people are less passionate when they think someone might be watching.