Temples

Let me start off by saying that I really like temples. I have only been able to go to two so far, Palmyra and Boston, but they are awesome. I truly agree with the statement that temples are places where heaven and earth meet. They are sacred, holy places. I have definitely felt God's presence so much stronger whenever I do work there.

But, what exactly do I mean by work? Plain and simple, it's helping those who have passed on with ordinance work. Okay, so what's an ordinance? Ordinances include: baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, endowments, and sealings. Since I have only been a member for a relatively short period of time, I can currently do baptisms and confirmations. I can be baptized in the place of women who have lived before me and have since died. The temples normally have a bunch of names submitted from family members who can't do all the ordinance work themselves.

To best explain it, I will use excerpts from my diary from December 1, 2012:

Let me just say, Palmyra is beautiful...The temple was more on the small size. It's a pristine, white stone building with stained glass windows and an angel on the top. On the building it says, "Holiness to the Lord." I was unprepared for what I was going to witness inside. We stepped in (wearing church clothes), and we are immediately greeted by a figure in white. In fact, everyone in the temple wears long white clothing. Plus, it's pretty quiet. We were directed to where we could could until it was our turn to use the baptismal fount. We were given white jumpsuits...to put on. Then we sat and waited as a female youth group came in. In the baptistry, there were paintings on the wall of Jesus getting baptized and person (maybe Joseph Smith) having hands laid on his head to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Once everyone was changed, the President of the Temple came forward and explained how things would work and the significance of it all. Of how, those who died have another chance for missionaries to come to them to teach and be converted. the work that we do in the temple we do as proxies.

Then we sat down by the fount to wait to do baptisms. The fount is a large size and is supported by 12 white oxen, representing the 12 tribes of Israel...I just remember feeling such peace and joy wash over me as I was dunked. I know Heavenly Father was smiling down on me. Then I got out of the fount to be confirmed...I am so thankful that I went. It was then surreal to change out of the white jumpsuits into normal clothing. I felt so at home in the temple. Once there, I didn't want to leave.

Diane and I outside of the Palmyra Temple in Palmyra, NY.

I later had the great opportunity to join the local missionaries in Nashua, NH to go do baptisms in the Boston Temple. It was so much fun, and such a great experience. I was baptized for 27 people that night.

Me outside of the Boston Temple in Boston, MA.

This summer, I am planning on going temple hopping. I'm going to see how many different temples I can visit and do work in. I will also be doing actual paying work as well, but the temple trips will be a good refresher, a way for me to plug back in to the Spirit. And I know that I most definitely want to be married in the temple. Temple marriages offer so much more, and are complete, and everlasting, that there is no way I would miss out on that opportunity. I encourage those that hold temple recommends to go do work in the temple, and to do it frequently. Your lives will definitely be blessed. I know that mine has.