What Temples Mean to Me

October 20, 2019

What Temples Mean to Me

What up! I gave a talk in church today and thought I'd drop it here if anyone wants to read it! it reads kinda different cuz it was written to be spoken, & is probably filled with grammar errors... but whatevs enjoy!

(also if you're reading this and none of it makes sense, read my last blog called Reason to Believe before reading this)

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So I’ve been an uncle for about five years now and one thing I’ve learned is that one of the best ways to get a child’s attention is to say “once upon a time….”

Sometimes instead of telling a fairy tale, I’ll interject some modern day originals… “once upon a time, a boy named Liam picked up all his toys and ate all his vegetables. He grew up to be one of the best power rangers we have ever known….”

Occasionally Liam sees through my rouse, but I think he has come to enjoy my stories of Liam the boy wonder.

I have been going YSA wards for about 6 years now. (it's been great, though i'd rather not spend another 6 in here 😅) And something I’ve learned is we are not that much different from children. We too can be persuaded to do things we sometimes don’t like to do. We love hearing or talking about ourselves. And we are a sucker for “Once upon a time..”

I think we have been trained since childhood that these words let us know that an interesting story is about to come. And I have a few..

Once upon a time: April 3, 1836 to be exact, the Prophet Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery were in the Kirtland Temple, just a week after it was dedicated. A vision was opened unto them, and in this vision they saw the Lord Jesus Christ. Among other things, the Savior declared:

“Let the hearts of all my people rejoice, who have, with their might, built this house to my name. For behold, I have accepted this house, and my name shall be here; and I will manifest myself to my people in mercy in this house.”

Just how Christ gave his apostles the priesthood keys in Matthew 16:19, (“And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven”) the old testament prophet Elijah appeared as an angel and gave Joseph and Oliver, the keys essential for temple ordinances.

Fast forward, September 12th 2001. After recently being baptized, My Family and I entered the St George Temple, and were sealed by the Priesthood authority that has been handed down from Christ himself, to prophets of old, even until prophets today.

So, today I want to talk about what temples mean to me.

Tucson, Arizona

The first being Family. Temples are filled with symbolism. To my family, it has been a symbol of unity, love, and direction. I know that it is not universally common, even here in Utah, to have every member of a family headed in the same direction, but I am happy to think that the temple has helped mine to do just that.

To me the temple is a symbol of sacrifice. Someone who understands sacrifice better than anyone I know, said this:

“Those who understand the eternal blessings which come from the temple know that no sacrifice is too great, no price too heavy, no struggle too difficult in order to receive those blessings. There are never too many miles to travel, too many obstacles to overcome, or too much discomfort to endure. They understand that the saving ordinances received in the temple permit us to someday return to our Heavenly Father in an eternal family relationship. They understand that to be endowed with blessings and power from on high, is worth every sacrifice and every effort.” – Thomas Monson.

temples are more than stone and mortar. They are filled with faith and fasting. And so much history of the saints. They are built on trials and testimonies. They are sanctified by sacrifice and service.

The temple symbolizes a little bit of heaven on earth. A standard to follow. A goal to be made. In the Book of Mormon, King Benjamin addressed his people (Mosiah 2) and in his account he noted that “they pitched their tents round about the temple, every man having his tent with the door towards the temple.” Is the temple in your view? Let it be a goal worth working towards.

If running a marathon is your goal, wouldn't you run as often as possible? If getting married in the temple is your goal, why wouldn't you attend as often as possible? If getting to know Jesus is your goal, temple attendance should be your bread and butter. 🍞🦋

If you go to the temple often, You better understand who you are. and not just the academic knowledge – I know I'm a son of God. But rather, the best way I can describe it is you may gain a more tangible feeling of who you are. I guess that doesn’t have much meaning till you have experienced it for yourself. But I promise that the vale will get thinner and thinner as you go regularly and frequently. *Frequency makes a difference.*

Panama

I’ll be real with you and say there are plenty of times I’ve been to the temple, came home sat down and thought: did I learn anything? Truth is Sometimes you don't learn something new. You may not see extra blessings in other parts of your life you were hoping to strengthen. And you may not receive an answer you were desperately pleading to receive.

Sometimes… the only blessing you receive from attending the temple is that your very nature is changed. A little More able to control your passions and direct your desires.

Sometimes… that is all you need.

For a time in college I would go to the temple trying to take a break from the real world (my world was filled with exams, homework, minimum wage jobs, a jeep I could never get to start, and the crazy dating culture of byu Idaho.... if you know, you know)

But then a friend of mine said to me “You’re not going to the temple to escape the real world.... you’re escaping the fake things of the world and going to what’s real.” Revelation. Doctrine. Family. Covenants. Jesus Christ. These are real.

In a world of so much imitation, (social media, fake Eifel tower, I can't believe it's not butter, my savings account).... the temple is real.

Have you ever wondered why You can never get enough of the worldly things around us? I’ve never participated in a sinful action and then felt, “ya I’m satisfied”. You can never get enough of what you don’t need.. because that which you don’t need can never satisfy.

Yet in John chapter 6, Jesus Christ says “he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.”

I invite you to come to the temple and be fed. You will be blessed beyond measure. Maybe not in the ways you expect, but always in the ways you need it. As I said earlier, you better understand who you are. And with increased vision, comes increased motivation. When you truly understand the significance of being a son or daughter of God, an heir to everything He has and is… you will find a motivation stronger than anything you’ve experienced before.

Oquirrh Mountain, Utah

Okay 3rd and final thing that the temple means to me… and it would be a shame if I gave a talk about temples and failed to mention the most important one.

(this story was told to me by temple sealer a few weeks ago) One sunday, Elder Joseph B Worthlin was sitting on the stand. A man at the podium begins his talk: "the temple is all about the family ".... Elder Worthlin jumps to the stand and grabs the mic and says "the temple is all about Jesus "

Now you may think I’m contradicting myself because I just spent 5 minutes talking about families. But I tell this story because after all... the temple with all its grandeur, does not save us. Temple ordinances with all their promised blessings, do not save us. The atonement of Jesus Christ does.

All the activities and programs in the church lead to the temple. And The temple points us to Christ. It gives us a glimpse at celestial glory. “Holiness to the Lord”.

I testify that He is our savior and the temple is His house.

I invite you to See yourself in the temple. Find your heaven on earth. Understand who you are. If your family, or your ward if your ward is your family, is headed towards the temple, don’t miss the boat cuz of the fake things of this world. And if you’re headed towards the temple, don’t let your family or your ward miss the boat. Make this a family matter. You really do see each other differently in the temple. It changes your relationship.

As these temples have been prepared for us through much sacrifice, we too need to prepare for the temple.

If you have a willing mind and heart, I promise it is possible no matter your past. Do all it takes to receive and keep a temple recommend. As you make and keep temple covenants, you will qualify for eternal life, the greatest gift of God to man.10 As president Nelson said “Eternal life is more than immortality. Eternal life is exaltation in the highest heaven—the kind of life that God lives.”

My Bishop had this great idea today... Let's imagine the temple made a change to add "Once upon a time" to the beginning of the endowment and ended with us all living happily ever after. The temple is the true and living fairytale and we can all live it if we commit.

I know that these things are true, and that this is the kind of life you and I can and outta live.

The End.

also here's more cool pics of temples :)