• About us
  • The Church of Jesus Christ
  • The Family
  • The Living Christ

4 brothers blog

4 brothers blog

Category Archives: Marriage

Crowns

07 Thursday May 2015

Posted by Colby Alexander in Marriage, Temples

≈ Leave a comment

A few days ago, my sister was sealed in the Salt Lake City Temple. During the ceremony, the sealer mentioned something that made me think. He said that the ceremony that we were all attending that day was the “crowning” ordinance of the gospel.

When we think of “crowning” in this sense, we might think of it as the pinnacle, or the peak, the top, or the maximum goal achieved. While all of these may be the case, in that moment, I thought of it in a slightly different way.

When he said, “the crowning ordinance” , I thought of it in a much more literal way.  Almost like my sister, and her new husband were there to be “crowned”, or to receive their crown and become a king and a queen. In a way, isn’t that exactly what happened?

Having experienced 15 years of marriage to my queen, I know that is exactly what happened.

If we look at the sealing ceremony as a “crowning” ordinance in this context, it is slightly different as far as its place on our life’s timeline.

Rather than being at the end, achieving the ultimate goal, and reaching the top or pinnacle, we are, instead, just beginning.  A king or a queen, when “crowned” are merely starting their reign. They have their whole life in front of them.  Decisions to make, a family to create, and a personal kingdom to build and rule over.

We learn a lot of things in the temple, and a lot of things that are taught are so unbelievably amazing that they are hard to believe. But, they are true. And if we listen and believe the blessings that are promised us there, the reality of the “crowning” ordinance is made abundantly clear. We are all kings and queens. Or, at least we can be. We just need to live up to our potential. We need to follow the example of our Heavenly King. He has demonstrated the perfect way to be.  We need to listen, learn, and believe the words we hear in the temple. Because if we do, our potential is limitless.

“Keep my commandments continually, and a crown of righteousness thou shalt receive…”

-D&C 25:15

“And if thou art faithful unto the end thou shalt have a crown of immortality, and eternal life in the mansions which I have prepared in the house of my Father. “

-D&C 81:6

“And again, verily I say unto you, I command you again to build a house to my name, even in this place, that you may prove yourselves unto me that ye are faithful in all things whatsoever I command you, that I may bless you, and crown you with honor, immortality, and eternal life.”

-D&C 124:55 

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Print
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...

Hidden Kingdom

21 Friday Nov 2014

Posted by Colby Alexander in Love, Marriage, Poems

≈ Leave a comment


Thursday was my 15th anniversary and so this post will veer from my usual fare…Its a little something I came up with for my wife.

Hidden Kingdom

Her Hidden Kingdom few can see,
because they fail to look.
To blinded eyes, her status hides,
Concealed, as is a book.



Her hidden kingdom thrives within
The walls of divine make,
Protecting, loving, nurturing,
Partnering to create.

Her hidden kingdom strengthens all,
Who pass within its sphere.
Who feel the power of her love,
That quells the fire of fear.



Her hidden kingdom grows in glory,
Each year that passes by,
More light, more love,
truth from above,
Received from Him on high.

Her queenly crown rests on her head
The symbol of her reign.
It shows to all who’s eyes are clear
The glory she’s obtained.

Upon her crown four golden spires
Reach upward nigh to God,
Like tender plants whose roots are deep,
In nutritious gospel sod.

Each spire unique and beautiful,
Each different – yet the same,
Each one reflects the light they’re giv’n
Each one, from God they came.



And in these spires of golden make
Rest diamonds all therein,
Reflecting 15 shades of bright,
Revealing what’s within-



Her heart, is where she shines the most,
And with each passing year,
The shades of bright intensify,
And seem to draw more near-



To God himself, who sits on high,
Directing us below,
She is a queen, she is MY queen,
And with her- I will go.



Until her hidden kingdom,
No longer shielded from outside,
Gives light and glory endlessly,
No longer veiled inside.

A kingdom open, fair, and bright,
For all to see and praise-
Her princes, and her princesses,
In truth and light did raise.


To soon be kings and queens themselves,
With crowns of Godly light,
To grow in strength and power
and,
Shed weakness, toil, and plight.

Then all shall wonder, and shall see,
The queen she’s grown to be,
No longer hid inside, book closed,
But plain, praised openly.



Then all will comprehend her place,
What glory, love and grace,
The light reflecting in her crown,
Is light from God’s own face.

For all God’s light, and truth, and love,
Within her all shall see,
And wonder praise and glory give,
Queen of MY family.

She is my queen, She is my life,
For her I hope to be,
A worthy king, Her worthy king,
Throughout eternity.

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Print
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...

Comforters and Companions

08 Wednesday Oct 2014

Posted by Tyson Alexander in Holy Ghost, Marriage

≈ Leave a comment

When my wife Amanda is away from our home (even if it’s for 5 minutes) – everyone goes completely wild.  It’s almost like she takes the well-mannered and calm parts of our brains and most of our sensibilities with her because while she is away the house gets turned upside down, and all the children (I include myself with the children) start acting like cavemen and/or wild animals.  I am convinced that there is some type of chemical reaction that occurs in each of us when the mother of our home is absent.  In fact, I know this is true, because the minute she walks in the door, everything is back to normal.  The house might still be a mess (it’s hard for that to rectify itself), but all of us feel the difference when Amanda is home.

There is a comforting power (yes, it is a power) that my wife has, that we cannot live without – at least not very long.  If we were left to our own devices (without her loving influence), we would quickly slip into ‘a state of nature…. in the gall of bitterness…being without [mom] in our world, and therefore we would be in a state contrary to the nature of happiness’. 1 This is not an over-dramatization – we would literally destroy ourselves due to lack of Amanda because we would be in a ‘state contrary to the nature of happiness’.

For us to be ‘in a state consistent to the nature of happiness’ my children need a mother and I need a wife.  By myself, I just can’t do it.  I need a best friend who is also my helpmeet.  I need someone who is every sense of the word superior to me, greater than me, better than me, smarter than me, more loving than me, more patient than me, more caring than me, more thoughtful than me, more giving than me, more understanding than me, more patient than me, and much more naturally spiritual than me who can lift me up to be more than I currently am.  I need someone who can comfort me even when she wants to kick me.  I need someone who can give me soft advice and hard advice (and someone who knows the difference).  I need someone who can pick me up when I am down, and I need someone who is strong enough to carry the weight of being a righteous mother.  I need someone who knows and understands that a righteous mother with a strong influence over her family makes Satan tremble.  I need her to make me whole.   I need someone who has my back even when, or rather especially when, I deserve it the least.  I need someone who will always be there.  I need Amanda.

My wife is my favorite person in the whole world.  She makes me happy.  She makes me laugh.  I just like to be around her.   Even if we aren’t actively communicating – I just like to be close to her.  When we read, I like to be in the same room as her – just because.  When she cooks dinner – I like to just stand in the kitchen and watch (sometimes I help) because I just like to be near her.  I like the way she makes me feel.  She makes me feel wanted and important and special and she makes me feel worth.  In short – she makes me feel love.  She has a powerful effect on me that no other human has because of how I feel around her and because of how I feel for her.

Even when we aren’t in the same room – we are still together.  We are united.  We are a true companionship.  My thoughts can be her thoughts and our goals are the same.  Our hopes, dreams, intents, and happiness can all be shared – completely.  She is a true companion, and she is constant (unrelenting awesomeness and never-ending source of power and love) and she brings me comfort.   Her presence and power is the opposite of the chaos that we feel when she is away.  The peace and calm knowledge that we have when ‘mom is home’ cannot be replaced.

There is another power that brings the same comforting and calming affect and we have been told that we have access to it.  This is good news for you women because us men just cannot compare with your awesomeness – and this power is so good at it, they actually just named him ‘The Comforter’.  This comforting power has a similar affect on us – bringing peace, assurance, patience, and love while it is with us and as expected when this comforter leaves, we immediately turn into wild dogs and crazy people with no sensibility and/or reason.  We might be able to fend for ourselves for a few minutes – but eventually we will slip (not so gracefully) into ‘a state of nature…. in the gall of bitterness…being without God in the world, and therefore we would be in a state contrary to the nature of happiness’. 1

For us to be ‘in this state consistent to the nature of happiness’ we need help.  We need someone who is bigger, better, stronger, wiser, kinder, more patient, more loving, more understanding, more eager, and more awesome as our companion.  We need a best friend who is also our jumpstart.  We need someone who is every sense of the word superior to us, (in this case – perfect) who can lift us up to be more than we currently are.  We need someone who can comfort us even when he wants to kick us.  We need someone who can give us soft advice and hard advice depending on the situation we’re in.  We need someone who can pick us up when we are down, encourage us to continue onward and upward2 and we need someone who is strong enough to carry the weight of being a comforter to the whole entire world. We need someone who knows and understands that we have power within us that we haven’t even tapped into yet.  We need his half (let’s be honest – his half is essentially a whole) to make us as whole as we can be.   We need someone who has our back even when, or rather especially when, we deserve it the least.  We need someone who will always be there.  We need the comfort of the Holy Ghost.

The spirit (and its comforting power) is my favorite thing in the whole world.  It makes me happy.  It makes me cry like a baby and I love it.  I just like to feel it.   Even if we aren’t actively communicating – I just like to be close to it.  When I read, I like it to be with me – just because.  When I ride my bike (or insert any daily activity here) – I like to pay attention because he will help me and lead me and guide me.  I like the way it makes me feel.  He makes me feel wanted and important and special and he makes me feel worth.  In short – he makes me feel love.  The spirit has a powerful effect on me that no other force can has because of how I feel because of it.

Even when we aren’t in the same room – we can still be together.  We are united.  We have the promise of a true companionship.  My thoughts can be his thoughts and our goals should be the same.  Our hopes, dreams, intents, and happiness can all be shared – completely.  He is a true companion, and He is constant (unrelenting awesomeness and never-ending source of power and love) and he brings us comfort.   His presence and power is the opposite of the chaos that we feel when he is away.  The peace and calm knowledge that we have when ‘the spirit is felt’ cannot be replaced.

Let us seek this companion, who has promised to be our ‘constant companion’3 if we meet follow his rules for companionship.  Let us realize that the peace that he promises is far beyond ‘peace’ as we can define it or as it can be imagined by earthly minds.  It is ‘His peace that he gives us, not as the world gives’.4  That is real comfort and that is real joy.  Let us live ‘in a state consistent with the manner of happiness’

1 See Alma 41:11

2 There have been many people and sources for this phrase, but I choose to cite C. S. Lewis from the Chronicles of Narnia (The Horse and His Boy) – since he is my favorite.

3 See D&C 121 (the whole section)

4 See John 14:27

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Print
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Follow 4 brothers blog on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 191 other subscribers

Recent Posts

  • The Big Box Paradox and the Fable the Labels Enable
  • Stranger Things Have Happened
  • The Real Gift of Christmas
  • Killer Butterflies, and the Best Day Ever.
  • Listen, Prepare, and Live

Blog Stats

  • 15,314 hits

Instagram

No Instagram images were found.

4 Brothers Blog

4 Brothers Blog

Follow us on Twitter

My Tweets

Blogs I Follow

  • The Christensen Six
  • A Cop's Thoughts
  • Gena Standing Out
  • Feast Upon the Words of Christ
  • anthology78
  • 4 brothers blog

Blog at WordPress.com.

The Christensen Six

A blog about family, faith and fun

A Cop's Thoughts

Life after a shooting

Gena Standing Out

Inspirations and musings of a woman used to standing out from the crowd

Feast Upon the Words of Christ

An invitation to learn from my personal "feast upon the words of Christ" (2 Nephi 32:3)

anthology78

4 brothers blog

  • Follow Following
    • 4 brothers blog
    • Join 59 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • 4 brothers blog
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
%d bloggers like this: