The Nature of our Eternal Family

 When you describe your family to others, how do you describe them? Many of us do not have children. Some of those do not have siblings. For some of us this is harder to see. However, the sociality that exists in most cultures allows even they, who have no children or siblings, to observe the family dynamic among those who do. This dynamic varies based on culture, experience, economic class and one often very important factor - the number of children involved. Sure there are large families among the rich and poor but add one more individual to the mix and the family changes forever. Now imagine a family of countless children. Billions upon billions. That is our Eternal Family. As individuals we are not and were not automatons. We each have our own personalities and senses of humor, (or lack thereof) Some are very expressive, some are quite reserved. Think of all the different little factors that make up an individual and their character then array those factors out in their combinations and that too becomes a puzzle of billions and billions of unique individuals. 

Here in life we see many of those individuals whose tendencies gravitate toward one extreme or the other. Some, like Mother Teresa tend toward the benevolent. Some like Adolf Hitler and other evil individuals tend toward the malevolent. Each of us have our own appetites, desires, and interests. Some of us are fairly ordinary, while others are extreme examples of ability, wisdom, intelligence, and skills. 
I would suggest that all of these elements existed with us to varying degrees in the pre-mortal realm. Sure we are all spirit children of a Heavenly Father and Mother but like children here born of the same parents, we are all different mixes of factors there too. 
This is discussed in part, in the book of Abraham Chapter 3, verses 18-19, 21 partially quoted below: 
"... if there be two spirits, and one shall be more intelligent than the other, yet these two spirits, notwithstanding one is more intelligent than the other, have no beginning; they existed before, they shall have no end, they shall exist after, for they are gnolaum, or eternal.
19 And the Lord said unto me: These two facts do exist, that there are two spirits, one being more intelligent than the other; there shall be another more intelligent than they; I am the Lord thy God, I am more intelligent than they all.
21 I dwell in the midst of them all; I now, therefore, have come down unto thee to declare unto thee the works which my hands have made, wherein my wisdom excelleth them all, for I rule in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath, in all wisdom and prudence, over all the intelligences thine eyes have seen from the beginning; I came down in the beginning in the midst of all the intelligences thou hast seen. Source
Our Heavenly Parents created Their children. The mechanism thereof we do not know, but they did it together and these spirits were all different, not carbon copy cutouts of each other. They being Exalted, inhabited a plane of "intelligence" that transcended them all. They rule, as would any parents in their home and hold dominion over their realm. 
As a family, they grow and did grow from one level of intelligence unto another. Like in an earthly family young children need looking after and guidance. As parents they taught us and we learned in this pre-mortal sphere of existence. 
Another scriptural source talks about this as well. Doctrine and Covenants, Section 138, verse 56
"Even before they were born, they, with many others, received their first lessons in the world of spirits..." Source
We learned. We grew just as children do in this life. However just like children in this life, we had limitations about what we could learn, with the tools we had. We were spirits and we did not have bodies of our own. Heavenly Father had a body. Heavenly Mother did too. There were certain things that they could experience that we could not. 
The creativity of the human mind have often come up with stories and have been very good at it too, of men and women who have been conscious but without the ability to touch or feel. Ghosts, as they are often described. Spirits are yet another appellation for this kind of existence. One common thread through many of these stories is the frustration on the part of many of them at not being able to touch, lift, grasp, etc. the objects, things, and even people around them. 
Now imagine the experience of a being who had never yet had the experience of touch, maybe even taste, Maybe we could see and be seen but imagine not being able to touch anything physical! Much of this is speculation as I really don't know to what degree we were able to perceive. Imagine the limits about what we were able to do or even NOT do without this ability. Again, I do not know, but I imagine in my mind what the differences would be. 
Whatever the limitation, it is certainly a reasonable assumption that we lacked certain things. A divide in learning and experience existed between us and our Heavenly Parents. There was certain things they knew and experienced that we could not. Not without physical bodies and it must seem that for a time, our progress began to slow and maybe even stopped as we had learned about all we could have learned without bodies of our own. 
As this discussion draws to a close, I wanted to tie the two main ideas of this conversation together. We as individuals, were as different from each other as family members are in this life. Made of the same eternal stuff that our Eternal Parents had at hand, whatever it was, and however it came to be, we were all different. Then all of those children, being different were taught the pre-mortal lessons of life and, like our earthly selves took different things from it. We became even more different and however countless the eons of learning were we learned. Some took lessons and improved. Others maybe took disparate elements and came to different conclusions. in any case, we were broadly and diversely experienced in all that we could learn as we approached the pre-mortal "wall" of learning. 
Our parents seeing this and knowing about this knew this. Like any parents, they wanted their children to grow farther and become like them. Fully-functioning beings with the wisdom and knowledge that comes from beings living an Eternal life. After all, aren't we trying to raise up children here to go the way of adults and parents that they may have families of their own? 
That is what our Heavenly Father and Mother want for us. They know the way and they know the method. It is at this point where a new step needed to be taken. 

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. Mark W. Gardner