The avoidance of later difficulty includes not carrying into a marriage unrepented-of sins, causing spouses to start off "unequally yoked together" (2 Cor. 6:14). Likewise, husbands and wives can deliberately avoid drifting apart by refusing to relax their loyalties and by not being caught in the strong currents leading to the waterfalls. Equally to be avoided is the stagnant swamp of self-pity. Therein, individuals can easily rationalize any remaining sense of accountability by pushing aside the restraints of both conscience and covenants, seeking to "justify [themselves] before men" for that which is an "abomination [before] God" (Luke 16:15).


Neal A. Maxwell, “The Seventh Commandment: A Shield,” Ensign, Nov. 2001, 78