Russel M. Nelson pleas with us to spend more time in the temple!
“My dear brothers and sisters, the assaults of the adversary are increasing exponentially, in intensity and in variety. Our need to be in the temple on a regular basis has never been greater. I plead with you to take a prayerful look at how you spend your time. Invest time in your future and in that of your family. If you have reasonable access to a temple, I urge you to find a way to make an appointment regularly with the Lord–to be in His holy house–then keep that appointment with exactness and joy. I promise you that the Lord will bring the miracles He knows you need as you make sacrifices to serve and worship in His temples.”
I would like to share my testimony of the temple!
Especially since there has been a strong “temple” presence on the blog lately. I’m going to take a wild guess and say that it’s because WE ALL NEED TO FOUCUS MORE ON TEMPLE WORK! But I can for sure say…THAT IT HAS GIVEN ME THE ENCOURAGEMENT AND EXCITEMENT I HAVE BEEN NEEDING TO GET TO THE TEMPLE MORE!
So thank you to my fellow comrades listening to the Holy Ghost of what I needed to hear! 🙂
My testimony is that the temple is beautifully and perfectly the refuge from the storm and the strengthener of home and family.
I was married 20 years before I was able to go to the temple! My husband is not a member, and the church encourages full support from the nonmember spouse…for the exact reason I listed above. The temple is to strengthen our marriages and families …not create a wedge. So I took the temple classes many times, prayed hard, and lived temple worthy….waiting for my turn. The entire time, Mark was supportive, but apprehensive, which I understood and so with the wise counsel of my bishops, I waited.
My turn finally came! It had been extremely long, and I had offered countless prayers! That I was beyond excited! However, I love Mark so dearly that I too was a bit nervous, for what if the temple created a wedge? What if it made me feel alone, and sad that I wasn’t able to be with Mark in the temple. What if it created sadness due to the fact that my number one Dream is to have an eternal family. I was filled with worry and doubt…but I knew it was time to go and Mark was excited for me and fully supportive.
My parents came from Arizona to go with me and my sister, Kimberly got a babysitter to come as well. We all made the 3 hour drive together and I loved that I was able to be with my family for this special moment. We had the best car ride…talking, laughing, and eating pastries from our local bakery.
As I walked into the temple and handed them my temple recommend I felt an overwhelming love for my Heavenly Father and grateful for his constant guidance in my life! And my favorite song rang in my ears! “I AM A CHILD OF GOD!” I can honestly tell you that all the worries, thoughts, and concerns from my outside life were completely gone. I didn’t recognize it until I walked back out and then life came rushing back…as if there was a pause button.
How often do you wish you could pause life for just a moment of peace? You can in the temple! 🙂
The best part was that the entire time I was in the temple I felt a stronger commitment to Mark, I felt closer to him. I felt an overwhelming understanding of how wonderful Mark is. This strength has stayed with me every minute of everyday.
I finally understood that the temple strengthens ALL families. It binds all families through eternity. The temple is a place on Earth were we can feel the love of the Savior’s embrace and where we can go to build inner strength and strengthen our families.
As I went back ….I was able to feel the same excitement and joy for those whom I was able to do their work for them. I knew from my own experience that they were excited to have their own families strengthened through the binding of eternities.
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I love pausing life! Well said Sherri, keep up the good work. I'm sure your situation is not always easy, but if it's important, you'll find a way, and it seems like you are finding a way! Well done!
Spelled Your Wrong!
I mean, I Spelled your wrong