Consecration in Marriage

H. Wallace Goddard, a Professor and Family Life Specialist said, 

"Marriage provides glorious opportunities to practice consecration.  Just as Isaac was willing to give his life as the ultimate expression of commitment to God, so we are invited to dedicate our lives, our talents, our weekends, and our weaknesses to the sacred enterprise of sanctifying our marriages and ultimately perfecting our souls."

This week, I have been pondering the idea of consecration in marriage. Those of us who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints often hear the word consecration in our meetings. But what does it mean? 

In the Guide to the Scriptures, a reference book used by Latter-Day saints, consecration means to dedicate, to make holy, or to become righteous. The law of consecration is a divine principle whereby men and women voluntarily dedicate their time, talents, and material wealth to the establishment and building up of God's kingdom.  

It may seem that the principle of consecration and eternal marriage are not related, but as we take a closer look we can see that they are actually intertwined. 

Marriage is the training ground by which we can truly learn to consecrate ourselves. When we join in that eternal bond with our companion, we promise to always love and cherish them, to sacrifice for them, and to put their needs above our own. We go from being an individual with personal goals, to being a couple, with united goals. Most married couples must learn to share all that they have.  This can be as small as sharing a bank account or as large as sharing their lives. 

For those of us who have grown up with siblings, we may have a small idea of what this means. We were probably taught when we were kids to share the remote with our siblings or to always have their back. Marriage is like that, but much more intense, and also with someone of our choosing! In marriage, we get to choose our companion, so shouldn't we be more loving and accepting of their flaws?

When I think of consecration, I can't help but think of my grandparents.  They've been married now for over fifty years and they still do everything together. I never hear them complain or argue with one another. They have really become one and are united in all things. Their love for each other is stronger than any love I have seen. 

The wonderful thing about consecration is that the more we give up, the more we receive.  As we learn to give more of ourselves to our spouses, we will be more happy and our relationships will thrive. I love that Dr. Goddard said that this consecration leads to the perfecting of our souls.  This is because as we become more consecrated, we being more selfless, and therefore more like Christ.  Christ was always consecrating his time, talents and efforts to the building of the kingdom of God. When we consecrate ourselves to our spouses and our eternal families, we are indeed building the kingdom of God, for the kingdom of God is built by families.