by President Thomas S. Monson
This talk was short and sweet with a powerful message:
"As we enter through the doors of the temple, we leave behind us the distractions and confusion of the world. Inside this sacred sanctuary, we find beauty and order. There is rest for our souls and a respite from the cares of our lives.
"As we attend the temple, there can come to us a dimension of spirituality and a feeling of peace which will transcend any other feeling which could come into the human heart. . . .Such peace can permeate any heart - hearts that are troubled, hearts that are burdened down with grief, hearts that feel confusion, hearts that plead for help."
It's amazing that there are 147 operating temples (144 when this talk was given), 12 under construction, and 14 announced. That's a total of 173! My mom recently shared with me a goal her and my dad had when they were first married in 1975. Their goal was to visit all the temples in the world. They had a poster illustrating all the temples hanging in their bedroom. They planned to one day visit them all before they died - all 16 of them! Needless to say, now that there are closer to 200 temples, their plans have changed. There are 17 temples just in Utah alone!
President Monson promised us that
"As we go to the temple, as we remember the covenants we make there, we will be better able to overcome. . .temptations and to bear our trials. In the temple we can find peace."
I love the following quote from President Gordon B. Hinckley
“I hope that everyone gets to the temple on a regular basis. I hope your children over 12 years of age have the opportunity of going to the temple to be baptized for the dead. If we are a temple-going people, we will be a better people, we will be better fathers and husbands, we will be better wives and mothers. I know your lives are busy. I know that you have much to do. But I make you a promise that if you will go to the house of the Lord, you will be blessed, life will be better for you. Now, please, please, my beloved brethren and sisters, avail yourselves of the great opportunity to go to the Lord’s house and thereby partake of all of the marvelous blessings that are yours to be received there.”
I know this to be true! Satan knows how good going to the temple is for us, and for those we serve there. He will try everything in his power to persuade us and distract us from going to the temple.
We must not let him do this. A friend of mine, years ago, said she would wake up, put on a dress, and immediately leave for the temple. If she planned a time, or really put thought into it, something would always come up. This was her way of outsmarting the devil. This may not work for everyone. Some of us live too far away from a temple to do this.
I try to keep a set day and time. This works best for me.
What do you do to make time for the temple?
I know this to be true! Satan knows how good going to the temple is for us, and for those we serve there. He will try everything in his power to persuade us and distract us from going to the temple.
We must not let him do this. A friend of mine, years ago, said she would wake up, put on a dress, and immediately leave for the temple. If she planned a time, or really put thought into it, something would always come up. This was her way of outsmarting the devil. This may not work for everyone. Some of us live too far away from a temple to do this.
I try to keep a set day and time. This works best for me.
What do you do to make time for the temple?