"Man and WIFE man and WIFE"-Prince Humperdink

Prince Humperdink seemed to have the right idea...it's about a man and wife. It's like trying to have chocolate chip cookies without the chocolate chips. Or Cupcakes with no frosting. Or Disneyland without Mickey Mouse. I'm sure you get my point. President Hinckley said, "In His grand design, when God first created man, He created a duality of the sexes. The ennobling expression of that duality is found in marriage. One individual is complementary to the other. As Paul stated, “Neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord” (1 Cor. 11:11)."

      Elder Ballard gives a phenomenal talk on men and women and Priesthood power. It's called, "Men, Women, and Priesthood Power." Check out this picture he uses throughout his talk to make his point:

I really like the way he puts this. Men and women are equal, balancing each other. We are similar, all children of God, but we have our different purposes and characteristics. Elder Ballard says, "Let us never forget that we are the sons and daughters of God, equal in His sight with differing responsibilities and capabilities assigned by Him and given access to His priesthood power."

    I like that. We all have access to Priesthood Power. But let's take a step back first. 

    The first thing we have to understand is that we are created in the image of God. All of us. "But isn't God a man?" you might ask. Well, yes. But He is Heavenly Father. And where there is a Heavenly Father, there must be a Heavenly Mother, right? Let's check out some quotes by some general authorities (aka leaders of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints called of God). 

“God made man in his own image and certainly he made woman in the image of his wife-partner…You [women] are daughter of God. You are precious. You are made in the image of our heavenly Mother.” -President Spencer W. Kimball

“The fact that there is no reference to a mother in heaven either in the Bible, Book of Mormon or Doctrine and Covenants, is not sufficient proof that no such thing as a mother did exist there. If we had a Father, which we did, for all of these records speak of him, then does not good common sense tell us that we must have had a mother there also?”-President Joseph Fielding Smith

Women shouldn't feel like they are inferior to men or even that they are greater than men. We are just as important and loved as men. Don't let anyone tell you differently. We all have a role to play and a path to take. We are who we were back in Heaven even before the world was. 

“Every girl was feminine and female in spirit long before her mortal birth.”-Sister Nadauld

And then Elder Holland throws down with truth and powerful love:

“First of all, I want you to be proud you are a woman. I want you to feel the reality of what that means, to know who you truly are. You are literally a spirit daughter of heavenly parents with a divine nature and eternal destiny. That surpassing truth should be fixed deep in your soul and be fundamental to every decision you make.” -Elder Holland

Just in case you didn't know that women are important, I thought I'd remind you. And even more still, Elder Christofferson says:

“In large measure, true manhood is defined in our relationship to women.”

Powerful stuff. It's also true. A man and a woman. God created us both. It was how He finished creation-with women. 

Moses 3:18, 21-23: “18 And I, the Lord God, said unto mine Only Begotten, that it was not good that the man should be alone; wherefore, I will make an help meet for him. 21 And I, the Lord God, caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and he slept, and I took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in the stead thereof;

 22 And the rib which I, the Lord God, had taken from man, made I a woman, and brought her unto the man. 23 And Adam said: This I know now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of man."

I like to think that the world wasn't actually complete until Eve was made. There needed to be a whole unit, not just half a unit. And it would have been the same if Eve was created first. The world would have been incomplete until Adam was made. 

    And I really like this quote which says that, “Women was made of a rib out of the side of Adam; not out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be loved.” -Matthew Henry. God doesn't do anything on accident or by coincidence. Everything He makes and how He makes it has purpose and a plan. And while God has a plan, you better believe that Satan has a plan. Satan is and always has tried to separate the man and woman. Why? Why would he want to separate the whole unit that works better together, that is stronger together? Okay so I kind of answered the question in the question. But really-that's why he does it. He wants us to feel power for ourselves, to fill our minds with pride above the other (or sometimes below-yes, that is still pride). It's how he tares about the family, which is central to God's plan. Interestingly enough, Satan’s first attack on marriage was to get Adam and/or Eve to make a decision without the other. He first approached Adam alone, without Eve, and Eve alone without Adam. “It is important that he was able to find them both alone.” -Prof Hugh Nibley. It's the contract marriage-the one where husband and wife only give each other 50%. But in a covenant marriage, each gives 100% to each other. Which sounds like more-50, or 100? They are STRONGER TOGETHER. I believe that a very big point of doctrine Satan tries to separate us on is the Priesthood. When really, the purpose of the Priesthood is to bless the lives of the family. Check out this super solid quote by Sister Julie B. Beck: 

“I've learned through studying the history of Relief Society that we have and live with inseparable connection to the priesthood. No one need confuse the idea of those who hold the priesthood with the gifts, blessings, and privileges associated with the priesthood. The priesthood is God's power. It is His power to create, to bless, to lead, to serve as He does. The priesthood duty of every righteous man is to qualify to hold the priesthood so he can bless his family, while the priesthood duty of sisters is to create life, nurture God's children, and prepare them to make covenants with the Lord. Don't confuse the power of the priesthood with the keys and offices of the priesthood. The power is limitless and is shared with those who make and keep covenants. Too much is said and misunderstood about what brothers have and sister's don't. This is Satan's way of confusing men and women so that neither understands what they really have.”

    This a woman called of God. It doesn't say she just sort of hoped that what she believed was maybe probably true, she studied it out! She lived her life listening to the Lord and to His spirit. THAT is how you will find your answer. That is where understanding comes from. The Lord. Not the Media (which let's face it, most certainly does NOT know more than the all powerful God) or your friend Tim from school who's dad is a politician, but God. So get down on your knees and pray and find out the answers from the one who knows you and loves you most.