The House of the Lord

This post was written August 23, 2009

Kevin Nash

Friday Kent and I had the opportunity to go to the temple with the ward members. It was so nice to be in the temple and feel the peace that it brings. During the session there were a few interruptions as patrons had to use the restroom. During one of those pauses a man got up and walked to the back of the room and talked with one of the workers. Then after a moment he returned to his seat. Later as we entered the celestial room I was informed by a friend it had been Richard G. Scott one of the twelve apostles of the Lord. It impressed me greatly how wonderful the temple is that the attire makes everyone equal. Equal to the extent that I was on a temple session with an apostle and never even noticed him or recognized him. Where in the entire world do you truly find a place where everyone is equal and happy? I myself cannot think of a place other than the temple.

This morning as I attended the Oquirrh Mountain Temple dedication we were reminded again of how contrasting the temple is to the world. The equality was brought up and I delighted in the reminder. At the beginning of the services I was reminded of thoughts I had received at the Draper Temple dedication. I have had the privilege of getting to know the grand daughter of President Monson. In the opportunity I have learned a lot about the men God calls as prophets. Mainly that they are just that, men. They have families who are not unlike my own family. Just because you're related to a prophet it doesn't make you perfect. It doesn't necessarily make you a scriptorian and in some cases it doesn't automatically make you believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

As I sat there looking at the men of the first presidency conduct the service of the Draper Temple it hit me. That man is just my friends grandpa. Yes he is the prophet and yes he is a great man, but I too have descended from great people who served the Lord with all their hearts. Their callings were just more simple and much less demanding. In the temple (and in the sight of the Lord) my grandparents are no less than my friends grandfather. As I thought about it I felt as if the spirit confirmed to me that all my grandparents did live worthy of a celestial life and if I follow their example and do all I can to keep my temple covenants and follow the prophets I too can live worthy of a celestial life.

Another thought that was stated in the dedication this morning was that our families and the Saviors gospel are the only things that matter on this earth. This morning President Monson said he was enjoying watching President Uchdof's grandson. As I listened to the interaction and thought of my friend I realized that in the eternities those who will be most important to us will be our families and the prophets will be an extension of God's eternal family. While they enjoy the blessings of their service they still love their earthly families more than anything else they have been blessed with.

During the dedication as President Bednar compared the temple with the world I enjoyed his thought that in the temple where everyone is equally dressed in white that our individual spirits shine through. One time I was thinking about the clothing we wear and wondered if there was a reason that the only skin that you see is the hands and faces of the patrons. This is not doctrine but I thought that perhaps it was because of the importance of the work and service we can do with our hands. I thought perhaps the face was seen because it is the part of our bodies where our spirits shine through. Scientific knowledge would even point to that. An article I read the other day said that scientists measured the invisible light our bodies emit and they found that, "faces glowed more than the rest of the body." They attributed this to the fact that our faces are more tan, but as I read it I disagreed. I believe it is because our spirits are seen through our faces. I would be interested to see them conduct that same test with a question of how much more light our bodies give off when we have just come from the temple. I think they may find some interesting answers.

Richard Ivan Kunz

One idea that has been going through my mind from Elder Bednar's talk is that the temple is a light that cannot be hid in darkness. I am so thankful to know that if I will continue to focus myself upon the temple I can always have that light touching my soul. It's an amazing sight to see the temples always lit at night. In Persident Uchdorf's talk he taught us that every temple dedicated lessens Satan's power and strengthens God's power. The temple helps us better recognize Satan.

I feel that I have been blessed this month to focus on many lessons the temple can bring into my life. It is my desire that I can raise Braxton (and any other children I am blessed with) to grow to love the temple and desire to be worthy to enter there. I hope and pray that as I work hard to focus on my relationship with my Father in Heaven that my posterity will also grow to love God and see His hand in their lives as I do.

Kevin Nash