Love, not Lust.

   As a missionary, I have met many people who are so very confused about what love truly means. The Bible Dictionary refers to love as "charity" and says;

"The highest, noblest, strongest kind of love, not merely affection; the pure love of Christ. It is never used to denote alms or deeds of benevolence, although it may be a prompting motive."

   Love should be the reason we honor our parents, serve out spouses, and worship our God. It is the driving motive for everything we do in this mortal existence. "God is love" and His whole purpose "is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" so that we may dwell with Him and our earthly families, after this mortal life. The spokesmen for God, a.k.a., the living prophets state in the "The Family: A Proclamation to the World";

 "We ... declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife. ... WE DECLARE the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan. ... HUSBAND AND WIFE have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. ... THE FAMILY is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. ...honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ." 

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland in the April 2010 General Conference;

"Why is lust such a deadly sin? Well, in addition to the completely Spirit-destroying impact it has upon our souls, I think it is a sin because it defiles the highest and holiest relationship God gives us in mortality—the love that a man and a woman have for each other and the desire that couple has to bring children into a family intended to be forever. Someone said once that true love must include the idea of permanence. True love endures. But lust changes as quickly as it can turn a pornographic page or glance at yet another potential object for gratification walking by, male or female. True love we are absolutely giddy about—as I am about Sister Holland; we shout it from the housetops. But lust is characterized by shame and stealth and is almost pathologically clandestine—the later and darker the hour the better, with a double-bolted door just in case. Love makes us instinctively reach out to God and other people. Lust, on the other hand, is anything but godly and celebrates self-indulgence. Love comes with open hands and open heart; lust comes with only an open appetite."

   I particularly love what I have highlighted. The "idea of permanence. True love endures." It lasts forever. It doesn't end. That's why I love the idea of families together forever. Why not? God doesn't intend for us to begin a loving relationship and then end it.
   President Spencer W. Kimball wrote;

"Many rationalize that this attraction of two unmarried people is love, and they seek thereby to justify their intimate relation. This is one of the most false of all Satan's lies. It is lust, not love, which brings men and women to fornication and adultery. No person would injure one he truly loves, and sexual sin can only result in injury."

   It runs along the same lines as covetousness. It is brought about by the natural man. An appetite that the human body feels it needs to quench.

   So how do we defeat it?

"Above all, start by separating yourself from people, materials, and circumstances that will harm you. As those battling something like alcoholism know, the pull of proximity can be fatal. So too in moral matters. Like Joseph in the presence of Potiphar’s wife, just run—run as far away as you can get from whatever or whoever it is that beguiles you. And please, when fleeing the scene of temptation, do not leave a forwarding address."

   We need to make a conscience effort to show our love for God and keep the commandments. Stay within the bounds that have been set forth - the Law of Chastity. It is there to protect us and keep us and our family and friends from harm - physically, emotionally, and spiritually.I bear testimony that Jesus Christ is there and is willing to help us when we reach out to him. Stay on the path and make an honest commitment to follow Him, and you will be guided and protected throughout your life. Amen