Great Blessings Are Offered To Those Who Attend the Temple

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Brigham Young University, Idaho *

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250

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Religion

Date

Oct 30, 2023

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pdf

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Uploaded by CorporalRiver11768

Great Blessings Are Offered to Those Who Attend the Temple I was born in Uganda and grew up in the far western part of the country, a town called Fort Portal. In this part of Uganda, there is no meetinghouse or missionaries of the Church. In 2017 I was adopted by an American family who lived in Chicago and are members of the Church. In Chicago, my new parents taught me about the gospel of Jesus Christ and I decided to get baptized. After my baptism, I went to the temple for the first time with my family. It was a very new experience and, even though I was taught by my parents and the missionaries, it was still a lot to process. I remember we were all dressed in white, and my mother and father knelt at the altar, there were large mirrors on both sides and a lot of people in the room. I also remember it was so quiet and peaceful, and the white clothes everyone wore made me feel like the temple was a place where we could be made pure and holy. I have learned that one of the most important truths taught in the temple is that families are forever. This truth is expressed beautifully with the mirrors that face each other in the sealing room. The mirrors reflect images back and forth into eternity, and between the mirrors is an altar where a husband and wife are sealed, and where children are sealed to their parents. I love the song written by Janice Kapp Perry: I love to see the temple. I’m going there someday To feel the Holy Spirit, To listen and to pray. For the temple is a house of God, A place of love and beauty. I’ll prepare myself while I am young; This is my sacred duty. The temple is the “House of the Lord.” Personally, it is a place where I find peace during difficult and trying times. It is a place where we can be comforted when we feel burdened or in grief. In the temple, we are blessed with the Holy Spirit which strengthens our testimony and makes us closer to our Heavenly Father. We are also blessed and protected by His power. In the dedicatory prayer of the Kirtland Temple, the prophet Joseph Smith prayed that the Saints “may go forth from this house [the temple] armed with thy power and that thy

name be upon them, and thy glory round about them, and thine angels have charge over them.” Joseph Smith also prayed that we can take what we learn from the temple and go and teach others with the power of truth: “And from this place they may bear exceedingly great and glorious tidings, in truth, unto the ends of the earth, that they may know that this is thy work, and that thou hast put forth thy hand, to fulfil that which thou hast spoken by the mouths of the prophets, concerning the last days.” In the temple, we can perform ordinances not only for ourselves but also for others, such as our ancestors. These ordinances include baptism and confirmation, washings and anointings, the endowment, and the marriage sealing ceremony. These ordinances are necessary for eternal life with our Heavenly Father and are available in the temple. This blessing of the temple shows God’s love and desire for all of us to be together as a family in heaven, and also shows divine justice by giving everyone the opportunity they may not have received on earth. I am grateful for what I have learned about the gospel of Jesus Christ, and for the blessing of going to the temple to be sealed to my parents. I am also hopeful that the blessings of the gospel and the temple can be felt around the world, to those who don’t yet have that opportunity. I am grateful for the peace that I feel here, that it makes me feel closer to Heavenly Father. I am grateful to serve others in the temple, to give them the opportunity to be baptized when they were unable to do this on earth. I know that by serving humbly in the temple, we can invite the Holy Spirit to guide us and protect us every moment. I also know that by following Heavenly Father’s commandments He will bless us with happiness in this life and the next. I say these things with in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.

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