The House of the Lord

"For behold, I have prepared a great endowment and blessing to be poured out upon them, inasmuch as they are faithful and continue in humility before me." -Doctrine & Covenants 105:12

Today I was able to take part of a great blessing the Lord has prepared us. I was able to go through the Birmingham Temple and make very solemn and sacred promises with the Lord, from which I will receive great and wonderful blessings. Needless to say, it was a very special experience to me. An experience where I could not control my emotions. I don't want to cheapen the experience with my words, or inability to express it eloquently enough. So I will post some pictures and let the visuals speak for themselves.

Dad and I prior to going in. 

Me after going through. 

Mom and I prior to going in. 

Ashley and I prior to going in.

Together Forever

Today I had a great experience with a co-worker. This experience came after I read and pondered over a talk given by Jeffery R. Holland called "We are Enlisted." In that talk, which I recommend reading, Elder Holland challenges us to be more bold, more courageous, and more devoted to the gospel. He dares us to live at a higher standard of morality and, if need be, repent of past mistakes and sins. We must devote ourselves to the Lord if we truly wish to do the Lord's work or live worthy of His support. There can be no fence-sitters. We can't play for both sides, Christ or Satan, and expect to bring others to righteousness.

After pondering this, I knew that I have not been vocal enough. I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ with all of my heart, so why should I hold back when an opportunity presents itself? Or better yet, why don't I seek for these opportunities?

So with these thoughts spinning in my mind, I saw an opportunity with a good friend. This friend is a single parent with a 2 year old little boy and she frequently speaks of him with just as much love and fondness as any mother would. Knowing of this love, I felt that she should know of the great blessings that the temple of God brings. I told her that I would soon be attending the temple to partake in a very special and sacred ceremony that members of our church can experience. I clearly relayed at how special this ceremony would mean to me since it would be my first time. I then bore my testimony and shared my gratitude of the blessings that come from the temple. Namely, the sealing of families for time and eternity.

This is a precious truth that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints brings to the world. With the authority to act in the name of Jesus Christ, we can seal husband and wife together for eternity, not just til death. We can seal families together forever so that these precious relationships can be perpetuated beyond the grave. I know this blessing is real and I am eternally grateful for it.

Needles!

Mission prep is a work out, but it also generates some pretty funny experiences. Probably the broadest facet of mission prep is the medical side. Latter-day Saint missionaries are encouraged (if not required) to get their wisdom teeth removed, get corrective surgeries if they will inhibit the missionary's ability to work, get various vaccinations, etc.... Well, I don't need any corrective surgeries and I had my wisdom teeth removed two years ago. Also, up until a couple of weeks ago, I believed that I had received all of my vaccinations. I was very glad of this, because I hate needles.

I scheduled an appointment at my doctor's office to get a physical. I thought it would be a quick, in-and-out experience. I got all the procedural things done: weight, eyes, ears, so on. And as the nurse was looking over my sheet, she asks, "Have you ever received your 4th Hepititis A vaccine?" "Uh, yeah. I think so." I didn't even know there were 4 Hepititis A vaccines. But really, who remembers that kind of thing? Nurse says, "Well we don't have that noted on your sheet. Nor do we have the Hepititis B booster, the chicken pox booster...." Long story short, I had to get four vaccinations and a TB test. Two in each arm and the TB test in my forearm. (it was negative, by the way.)

So that definitely was unexpected on my part but after the fact it was pretty funny, too.