The following was written by Lisa Montague and is excerpted from Third Hour. To read the full article, CLICK HERE.

Marriage and families are central doctrines in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As Elder Boyd K. Packer taught,

The ultimate purpose of every teaching, every activity in the Church is that parents and their children are happy at home, sealed in an eternal marriage, and linked to their generations.

But for some people, this is not their present reality. Maybe a spouse has broken his or her temple covenants in some way. What now? What happens to the spouse who is remaining faithful? And what happens to their children? These situations can be confusing or heartbreaking for those involved. Especially because church leaders often speak in terms of the ideal. 

But Heavenly Father knew that mortal life would provide many challenges—including those relating to marriage. God knows and loves each one of us and sees our potential. He knows that each of us makes mistakes and falls short of the ideal. He knows that we will be impacted, sometimes negatively, by the choices of others. And His plan has taken all of these factors into account. While a temple sealing with partners faithful to their covenants is the ideal, we need not worry that all is lost if we don’t have the ideal right now. We just need to have faith in our Heavenly Father and His plan for us. Let me explain.

We live in a fallen world with imperfect people who will make mistakes. Because of the Savior’s Atonement, we can repent and be forgiven. We also can be healed when we are hurt by the mistakes of others. Even the mistakes that adversely affect marriages and temple covenants. Sometimes, however, the marriage can’t survive when one spouse is unfaithful to his or her covenants. What does that mean for the spouse who has remained faithful? President Nelson explained,

If you are married to a companion who has broken his or her covenants, your willingness to let God prevail in your life will allow your covenants with God to remain intact. The Savior will heal your broken heart. The heavens will open as you seek to know how to move forward. You do not need to wander or wonder.

Those who remain faithful to their covenants will receive the promised blessings.

To read the full article, CLICK HERE.