Week #9

This week as we talked about councils it was realling interesting to me to learn about how the prohpets and apostles council. And it really hit me that this is a pattern they are setting for how our families should be running. I have always thought that marriage was more about compromising, but it was so neat to see that it really doesn't have to be. If you concil as a family and as husband and wife, how the brethren have set the pattern for, then decisions can be made that everyone agrees upon and feels good about. Recently my husband I had to make a really big decision about what to do this summer. He was offered an opportunity to do an internship in russia. This was going to be a really good opportunity for him to imrpove his russian, and to land a job a in the future. He really wanted to go. However, the downfall was that it costs a lot of money, more than we have. Which would create a huge financial stress. We also would loose out on the opportunity we would normally have this summer to work, and save up money for the next two semesters. (Since we are both off track from april -september) another downfall was that we would have to be apart for those three months he was in russia because I wasn't allowed to go with him. The decision needed to be made quickly, and we were unsure what to do. After praying about it we felt as if Heavenly Father would be okay with either decision, and that both would work out one way or the other. However, we still knew it would be very hard and potentially very stressful. As we discussed it was clear that he wanted to go and I did not want him to go. I didn't feel settled about him going to Russia and us being apart for that long. I also did not see how in the world we would survive, financially. Well, at that point it seemed as if the only option was for one of us to give in, and make the sacrifice. We spent hours discussing it, and neither of us felt good about each other's choice. We had to decide that night after weeks of trying to convince eachother of our points of view. So, it seemed one of us would have to make the sacrifice. Ultimately, I decided that I wanted my husband to be happy, and that seemed like the only way he would be happy. So he is going. As we discussed this week about a higher way of making decisions, it opened up a whole new light into a way of making decisions that all people involved in the decions can agree and feel good about it. I feel alright about the decsions now, as I have prayed for the ability to support my husband, and to feel good about the decision, but it wasn't good, and at times I still feel unsettled. However, this method of decision making we have discussed this week is truly of God, and I know that I will be sure to make sure we will be using it in all of our decisions in the future. I am so excited about it. Because it is so much better than I thought decision making in marriage and famlies was all about.