Not long ago I had a dream where my life all but revolved around my temple attendance. It seemed as if everything else I did was a kind of appendage to it. In this dream I was attending three times a week. It brought joy, peace and comfort into my life. When I woke up, I was intrigued by the idea, but unsure about it. I had already been attending once a week, and thought that this was surely is enough.
But as the days went on, I continued to think about attending more often. After all, what was I doing with my free time after work? Not much. Also, the temple was only a ten minute drive away. One day I began to think about something that President Nelson said about temples: “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…”(1)
Well I definitely had “reasonable access” and the time “to make an appointment regularly,” so I said why not. I’ll try it for a month and see what happens.
It was at this time I decided that I would make a schedule for myself, since schedules make the autistic part of my brain happy. I wanted to try to go and do the same ordinances (2) at about the same times every week. The first ordnance I chose to do was sealings (3). The five year anniversary of me being sealed to my parents just happened to be on Wednesday of that week. I couldn’t think of a better way of starting out my new temple schedule. So sealings would be done on Wednesdays. I then chose initiatories (4) for Thursday and Endowments (5) for Friday. My schedule was set.
During my first week of going three times in a row, I felt a bit odd. Part of my didn’t want to stick something else into my schedule. Was it really necessary to go that often? But as I was pondering this, a memory came to mind. I had done something similar before. Several years ago, during a difficult part of my life, I went twice a week with a couple of my friends. I remembered how happy and energized I felt, even with everything going on. And I could feel that way again. In fact, by the end of the week, I was already beginning to feel better physical, mentally and emotionally. I worried less about little things and felt that I was enjoying life more fully. I also felt that I chose my words more carefully when speaking and even thinking. I tried to make choices that would keep the Spirit that I felt in the temple near me rather than driving it away. Things like being more careful about the media I chose to watch.
By week two I was starting to feel better about my decision. As I went to the temple more, I always had plenty of time to do the necessary things in my life. It also felt like less of my time was wasted. I saw that I not only wanted to go, but wanted to go back. That Sunday I also noticed that I was more willing to observe the day as a time for rest and giving back to God. I had observed the Sabbath before, but without much enthusiasm. Now I started to enjoy it a bit more.
During week three, part of my temple time included going to the Red Cliffs Temple open house. I had gone to the St. George Temple open house only weeks before and loved seeing the temple redecorated to look like it did when it was first established. The Red Cliffs Temple was just as wonderful. The temple was beautiful inside and out. I particularly enjoyed the reflecting pools at the temple’s entrance. The temple itself was decorated in shades of purple and pale green with accents of rose and cream. The sparkling chandeliers and elegant furnishings gave it a feeling of grandeur. But the most incredible part of it was the feeling of peace and joy that being inside gave me.
I was allowed to take the day off of work to go visit the temple. When I returned to work the next day, my boss asked me how it went, I told her it was wonderful. When she asked me to explain further I said, “It’s just the feeling of wanting to go back.”
Going to the temple the three days in week four seemed natural for me. From the time that I entered each day to the time that I left, I felt like I really belonged there. By then I was enveloped in the need to return. In those four weeks, I had developed a greater appreciation and love for the temple. I was amazed at how temple attendance had affected me personally as well. In a short period of time, I had gone from feeling unsure about my new venture to enjoying every moment of it. I’m truly glad I decided to increase my temple attendance. It has truly become the best part of my week.
1. “Becoming Exemplary Latter-day Saints” Russell M. Nelson
2. Ordnance - An action preformed under priesthood authority which draws one closer to God. Ordnances within The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints include baptism and priesthood blessings as well as activities that take place in the temple.
3. Sealing - An ordnance preformed within a temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that binds a married couple together forever or a child to their parents forever.
4. Initiatory - An ordnance preformed in a temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The initiatory ordnance prepares the person receiving it for further blessings within the temple. Within the initiatory, blessings are given regarding their "heritage and potential."
5. Endowment - An ordnance preformed in a temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. During the endowment, a person makes sacred covenants with God to live by His standards and obey His will. Participants watch a video were they learn about the creation of the earth and follow the journey of Adam and Eve.
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