Till Death Do Us Part

The morning after the joyous wedding, Carter came in to breakfast and said: "[Groom's Name] won't be married any more after he dies." 

I was a little taken aback because I didn't know where this came from. I asked him for clarification, and he explained that they are married, but when they are dead, they are single.

But after I thought about it, I realized he was right. He made a promise to his wife to love her and cherish her, to help her do the dirty dishes and wipe messy faces. He promised that he would stand by her side in sickness and in health - as long as they both lived on this earth.

Carter, even at 5 picked up on that. Why did they have to set an end date on their relationship?

I know that our Heavenly Father gave the sealing power to his prophets in the Bible. What they sealed on earth was sealed in heaven - Matthew 16:19, Matthew 18:18, Ephesians 1:13. And I know that we have a prophet on the earth today who has been given the sealing power.

Russell M. Nelson - a modern day apostle of the Lord said this:

"When a family is sealed in the temple, that family may become as eternal as the kingdom of God itself. Such a reward requires more than a hopeful wish. On occasion, I read in a newspaper obituary of an expectation that a recent death has reunited that person with a deceased spouse, when, in fact, they did not choose the eternal option. Instead, they opted for a marriage that was valid only as long as they both should live. Heavenly Father had offered them a supernal gift, but they refused it. And in rejecting the gift, they rejected the Giver of the gift."

Dallin H. Oaks, also one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ told this story:
"Just before Christmas one year, our bishop asked me, as a deacon, to help him deliver Christmas baskets to the widows of the ward. I carried a basket to each door with his greetings. When he drove me home, there was one basket remaining. He handed it to me and said it was for my mother. As he drove away, I stood in the falling snow wondering why there was a basket for my mother. She never referred to herself as a widow, and it had never occurred to me that she was. To a 12-year-old boy, she wasn’t a widow. She had a husband, and we had a father. He was just away for a while."

At twelve years old, he knew that his family was eternal. He knew his father was waiting for him. He never doubted. I want my children to know that they will always have a loving family, even when we are apart.

My husband and I were sealed for time and all eternity, and we can be a family together after we die. It gives us comfort that this is not the end.