Making the Most of This Issue

Helps for Family Home Evening

• Want your family to be stronger? More united? More loving? President Faust offers practical reasons for using one of the most powerful family-building tools available. See “Enriching Our Lives through Family Home Evening,” page 2.

• Is planning the hardest part of your family home evening? Families from all over the world sent us their tips for making FHE successful. See “Successful Family Home Evenings,” page 7.

• How is a family like a car? It may look great on the outside, but if the engine isn’t running smoothly, it’s just a shell of unrealized potential. Elder M. Russell Ballard and his wife, Barbara, tell how family councils work and how they help a family run on all cylinders. See “Family Councils,” page 14.

• Hints for preparing family home evenings—you’ll find them with several articles in this issue. See “Ideas for Home Teachers,” page 6, and “Let’s Talk about It,” pages 13, 28, and 67.

Strengthening Your Marriage

• Today, too many relationships don’t even last a lifetime. An eternal marriage must be built on solid gospel principles. Author Brent Barlow tells us what some of those principles are and how to apply them in “A Rock-Solid Foundation for Marriage,” page 44.

• Keeping courtship alive is vital for a healthy marriage. Here are 32 creative, inexpensive ways to nurture your relationship. See “Questions and Answers,” page 50.

His Words from the Cross

The Savior’s last mortal words, spoken in agony on the cross, were relatively few. But they tell us much about our Redeemer and His great love. See “On the Cross,” page 32.

Empty Arms, Aching Hearts

For years they had yearned for children. Now, after his wife’s pregnancy ended in disappointment, a father stands beside a tiny grave. Would the promises ever be fulfilled? See “Our Struggle to ‘Be Fruitful,’” page 52.

Singular Happiness

Being single doesn’t automatically bring unhappiness, any more than being married automatically brings joy. In “Singular Living,” unmarried Latter-day Saints share their experiences and tell of the ways they have found happiness and fulfillment. See page 56.

Even My Lipstick

The line from Shakespeare’s Othello “Who steals my purse steals … nothing” might apply to this story of miraculous protection from a thief. See “He Took My Purse,” page 70.

Read It on the Web

The Ensign can be found on the Internet at www.lds.org. Click on “Gospel Library.”

Violence Hurts

Repelled by all of the sexual content in the media? Maybe you should be just as worried about the effects of viewing violence. See “It’s ‘Only’ Violence,” page 62.

Where There’s a Will

Depending on your situation, a will may be important to your family’s future. To understand some of the whys and hows, see page 72.

Did You Know?

Every Ensign staff member has the usual allotment of eyes and ears—two of each. But that’s not enough. We need yours. If you are aware of a newsworthy local event or story, or if you have a faith-promoting experience to share, please contact us by writing to Ensign Editorial, Room 2420, 50 E. North Temple Street, Salt Lake City UT 84150-3220, USA. Or e-mail us at ensign@ldschurch.org.