The Blessings of the Temple

This is a portion of a talk my twin sister wrote in 2011. Ten years ago! She said, "I’m not a betting gal, but if I were, I’d be willing to bet that just about everyone here has had some experience with hard things.  At one time or another, nearly everyone has faced or will face accidents, illness, TESTS, unemployment, death, natural disasters or other emergencies that will require us to depend on the resources we have stored away. And by resources I’m not talking about powdered milk or wheat. Though we never know when we will face a challenge, we know that the Lord, in Doctrine and Covenants 38:30 has told us “If ye are prepared ye shall not fear.” President Gordon B. Hinckley, told us “We can so live that we can call upon the Lord for his protection and guidance. I have faith that the Lord will bless us, and watch over us, and assist us if we walk in obedience to His light, His gospel and His commandments.”  One such way the Lord watches over us, and assists us, is through our prophets.

When Brother Wurz asked me to speak today on the "Blessings of the Temple, he referred me to President Nelson's October conference address entitled, "The Temple and Your Spiritual Power." 

President Nelson said, "My dear brothers and sisters, these are the latter days. If you and I are to withstand the forthcoming perils and pressures, it is imperative that we each have a firm spiritual foundation built upon the rock of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. So I ask each of you, how firm is your foundation? And what reinforcements to your testimony and understanding of the gospel are needed?

"It is now time that we each implement extraordinary measures—perhaps measures we have never taken before—to strengthen our personal spiritual foundations. Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures.

"The temple lies at the center of strengthening our faith and spiritual fortitude because the Savior and His doctrine are the very heart of the temple. Everything taught in the temple, through instruction and through the Spirit, increases our understanding of Jesus Christ. His essential ordinances bind us to Him through sacred priesthood covenants. 

"Then, as we keep our covenants, He endows us with His healing, strengthening power. And oh, how we will need His power in the days ahead."

"He is providing opportunities for each of us to bolster our spiritual foundations more effectively by centering our lives on Him and on the ordinances and covenants of His temple. When you bring your temple recommend, a contrite heart, and a seeking mind to the Lord’s house of learning, He will teach you.

"Spiritual doors will open. You will learn how to part the veil between heaven and earth, how to ask for God’s angels to attend you, and how better to receive direction from heaven. Your diligent efforts to do so will reinforce and strengthen your spiritual foundation.

"Please believe me when I say that when your spiritual foundation is built solidly upon Jesus Christ, you have no need to fear. As you are true to your covenants made in the temple, you will be strengthened by His power. Then, when spiritual earthquakes occur, you will be able to stand strong because your spiritual foundation is solid and immovable.

So when I think of the question Bro. Wurz asked, "What are the blessings of the temple?" I think of this power President Nelson described, endowed upon us by being temple worthy, temple attending, temple covenant keeping saints.

When Brother Wurz asked me to speak today on the "Blessings of the Temple," I immediately thought of my mother, as she served as matron of the Boston temple, with my father as President, for three years. In speaking with her my mother referred me to Doctrine and Covenants, section 109, which is comprised of the dedicatory prayer offered at the dedication of the Kirtland temple in 1836. In just the section heading of section 109, it states that temples are "built as a place for the Son of Man to visit," a house wherein Saints can "go forth in power." Verse 22 states that we "may go forth from this house armed with [His] power, that [His] name may be upon [us], [His] glory be round about [us], and [His] angels have charge over [us]." Verse 13 states that "all people who shall enter upon the threshold of the Lord’s house may feel [His] power."

With six boys, having power might have had a different connotation. When they were younger, my boys loved letting their super hero personas take over. Traditional superhero powers might include the ability to fly, the ability to be invisible, the ability of super speed, or strength, the ability to control the elements. What are some of the powers of the temple?

When I think of the power of invisibility, I think of someone that, while not being seen, is going about doing good, acts of service to bring comfort and peace to others. President Monson said that "As we attend the temple, there can come to us a dimension of spirituality and a feeling of peace which will transcend any other feeling which could come into the human heart. We will grasp the true meaning of the words of the Savior when He said: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. … Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” Such peace can permeate any heart... [I would repeat, any heart!] —hearts that are troubled, hearts that are burdened down with grief, hearts that feel confusion, hearts that plead for help." Peace is a super power obtained in the temple.

When I think of the ability of controlling the elements, I think of Elder Packer who declared, "We need [saints] who understand the power of the temple endowment, and know how to call upon the powers of heaven." Last January Australia made international news due to its burning bushfires which have ravaged the country, burning around over million acres of land and causing the deaths of then 24 people and nearly 480 million animals. The Pacific Area Presidency invited local saints to join  them in a fast for the country. On Sunday at the conclusion of the fast, the Area Presidency wrote a letter thanking those who participated in the fast. It read, “As this Fast Sunday draws to an end for the Pacific Area we are heartened as an Area Presidency to hear reports of just how many members joined with the Pacific Area Presidency in dedicating a portion of their fast to petition the Lord for relief from the bushfires and drought conditions in Australia. We hope you are heartened to learn that Saints from around the world, including Texas, including Hood County, at their own volition, joined in the fast with you. We thank all who participated for this physical demonstration of their faith in Christ and their love and compassion for their fellow Saints.” The rain came a few days after the fast was held in Australia. This power is collectively cultivated in the temple.

President Nelson says, "We have been promised that “if [we] are prepared [we] shall not fear.” This assurance has profound implications today. The Lord has declared that despite today’s unprecedented challenges, those who build their foundations upon Jesus Christ, and have learned how to draw upon His power, need not succumb to the unique anxieties [and fear] of this era." The power of not being fearful is found in the temple.

What are some other super powers? Elder Christofferson, who recently helped with the dedication of a new temple said, "The covenants we make through temple ordinances permit Him to let His divine influence flow into our souls. This brings power in the priesthood, power to declare the word of God, power to gather scattered Israel, and power to offer redemption to the dead. It is the power to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent. in other words, it is the power to lay hold of eternal life. It is the power to resist temptation and overcome evil. No combination of wickedness shall have power to rise up and prevail over [us]" (DC 109:26). Super powers indeed.

The Bible dictionary states that "A temple is literally a house of the Lord. A place where the Lord may come, it is the most holy of any place of worship on the earth. Only the home can compare with the temple in sacredness. Sacredness in our homes is indeed power in today's world.

Often when I am asked about my church, or if I want to volunteer information about this church, I tell them that one of the things I love most about my church is that my church teaches and practices the principle of sacrifice. We are a lay ministry, meaning our leaders receive no compensation for their service. Our children attend seminary. Our children go on missions for two years at their own expense. When President Monson was asked why so many Church members are willing to give so much in order to receive the blessings of the temple, he stated, “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,” he explained. “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 that permit us to someday return to our Heavenly Father in an eternal family relationship and to be endowed with blessings and power from on high are worth every sacrifice and every effort.” And I would also add the sacrifice of paying a full tithe. The significance of altars, indicating sacrifice, being in every room of the temple, is not a coincidence. Sacrifice is necessary on our behalf to claim the powers from on high found in the temple.

When Nephi was told by his father Lehi that the Lord commanded him "that thou and thy brothers should go unto the house of Laban, and seek the records," Nephi accepted his father's revelation. He committed to the task, traveled about 14 days each way to the city of Jerusalem, which is about 180 miles, and "did consult one with another." Their first attempt in retrieving the plates, when they "cast lots," was left to chance. Their second attempt to retrieve the plates, when they gathered their "gold and silver and precious things" to trade for the plates, was the more worldly, material approach. When they went back for the third attempt to retrieve the plates, Nephi "was led by the spirit, not knowing before hand the things which [he] should do." Although Nephi was instructed not to go to the Lord's house, but Laban's house, he was successful because he didn't rely on chance, or worldly, material methods, but relied on the Lord and made the necessary sacrifices.

In 2015 then President Monson stated, "The building of temples is a very clear indication of the growth of the Church." In 2015 there were 149 temples in operation worldwide, and 13 more under construction, for a total of 162!!! In 2021 there are a total of 265!! In a six year period there are one hundred additional temples, including one coming to Fort Worth!

What are we willing to sacrifice to be able to go to the temple? To go to the temple in our own backyard? What blessings do we want upon us, our family members, and our home by making the necessary sacrifices to be a temple attending people? 

President Nelson said, “I promise you that the Lord will bring the miracles(and I would add powers) He knows you need as you make sacrifices to serve and worship in His temples.”

May we make the necessary changes to our lives, and our selves, to bring ourselves to the temple. To have a desire to cultivate the super powers found only in the temple, offered as a protection and a peace to us in these latter-days.