Why does God give us romantic feelings so early compared to the time of life when marriage is appropriate?

Feelings of attraction are, of course, not bad in and of themselves and ultimately serve a divine purpose in marriage. But why do we have these feelings for so many years before we can appropriately act on them?

Well, this life is a test of obedience, and the law of chastity is one of the most important laws to obey. The test gets tougher after puberty, when hormones (and a permissive culture) are telling us, “Go, go, go,” but the Light of Christ and the Holy Ghost (as well as the scriptures, prophets, parents, and leaders) are telling us, “Wait, wait, wait.” As we heed the latter message, we prove our worthiness and show our maturity and moral discipline, which is “the consistent exercise of agency to choose the right because it is right, even when it is hard” (D. Todd Christofferson, “Moral Discipline,” Ensign, Nov. 2009, 105).

As with so many tests in life, this one allows us to prove ourselves worthy of the greater blessings to come—including temple sealing for time and all eternity.