A Lesson from Our Temple Trip

I had a very interesting experience yesterday evening; one that reminded me how important it is to not give in to perceived adversity and how the work of the Lord goes forward even when we think the trial at hand would stop it from continuing.  Jennifer and I had the opportunity to participate in our ward's sealing assignment at the Redlands Temple.  Most of the time when we attend the temple, we usually find ourselves in the endowment session, but it is good to do different things every once in a while.  When we heard of this assignment, we thought it would be nice to make it our monthly temple visit.

 

As it turned out, Friday was also a very wet day.  Southern California was drenched by the first significant rainstorm since last November.  I had the day off from work and awoke to sound of the wind howling outside my bedroom window.  I guess it had been raining since early in the morning because as I wandered into the kitchen and looked out the sliding door into the backyard, I noticed our barbecue had been pushed into the planter area and knocked over.  It wasn't raining when I went outside to upright it, but as I tried to find a place to shield it from the wind, the rain started again and quickly began falling hard (in the end, I rolled the barbecue against the wall and ran back into the house).  By the time Jennifer came home from her substituting job, the storm was still pretty bad.  We wondered if anyone else would be joining us.  When I volunteered us for the assignment, I hadn’t heard if anyone else had signed up also and it was too early to call the high priest's group leader.  No one had called to cancel the assignment so we got the boys a pizza, jumped in the car and off we drove.  The closer we came to the temple, the worse the rain poured.  I noticed several cars off the road (some dented and smashed in various places).  Thankfully, we arrived at the temple with about twenty minutes to spare before the appointment.

 

As we arrived and pulled into the parking lot, I didn't notice anything different about the temple.  The rain had stopped, but we hurried toward the covered area of the entryway to wait for other ward members.  Just as we reached the porch, a van pulled into the driveway and we found we were to be joined in the assignment by the Allen's and Fifita's--we were happy to find that we weren't going to be by ourselves.  As we waited for Bishop Allen to park the van and return to the group, I suddenly noticed the temple was dark--no lights shone inside or outside the building!  A woman standing nearby assured us that even though the lights were out, the temple was still in session.  "I've seen people go in and none of them have come back out," she informed us.  As if to prove the validity of her statement, the front doors opened and two temple workers (flashlights in hand) invited us into the building.  The back-up generator was working, powering the emergency lights enough for patrons to see where they were going, and several temple workers roamed the halls with flashlights.  Our recommends were checked at the front desk by flashlight and we all entered our respective dressing rooms to get dressed for the sealing assignment (I will admit to putting one of my white socks on backward in the semi-dark--the heel of the sock was in front). :)

The sealing room we used had an emergency light bright enough to illuminate the room, allowing us to see what we were doing and for the temple sealer to read the names of those for whom we sealed (either as husband and wife, or children to parents).  Sometime around 6:40 or so, near the end our assignment, the lights came on with a snap.  The transition was a bit jarring, but the room was now illuminated properly.  As our session came to an end, the temple sealer took a moment to remind us that the blessings pronounced in the sealing ceremony hinge on two words: “our faithfulness.”  He pointed out that God does not expect perfection from us (although we are commanded to be perfect); all He asks is that we remain faithful to Him and our faithfulness will help to perfect us.  As Jennifer and I talked about this unique experience on our drive home, we both commented on how special it was to serve in the temple on this particular evening.  There had been several chances for us to choose not to attend the temple because of perceived adversity.  We could have decided the weather was too bad to drive in, or our lack of knowing who else would be joining us could have been sufficient to remain home, or the power outage at the temple could have stopped us from completing our assignment.  In each case, the potential adversity was overcome and we participated in the important work of the temple.

 

As I sit here writing this post, I am struck again by the words of the sealer.  The things we do in our life here on earth will not save us in our Father's kingdom (nothing we do here could come close to accomplishing such a task), but if we remain faithful to the covenants we have made with Him, faithful to His commandments, and faithful to the example of His Only Begotten Son (our Elder Brother, Jesus Christ), we will show Him that we believe on Jesus and His Atonement and our faithfulness will allow Jesus to confidently advocate for us before His throne (see D&C 45:3-5).  How grateful I am to have Jesus as my rock; to have Him as my secure anchor to weather the storms (see Matthew 7:24-25 & Helaman 5:12).  I'm also thankful to know that no matter what the adversity may be, the work goes forward.  As the Prophet Joseph Smith wrote: "Shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren [and sisters]; and on, on to the victory" (D&C 128:22)!