Blessings of the Temple

I have always known that God was out there and that He listened to our prayers. Some people struggle with faith and have issues praying to any God. But I have always looked at the life around me and known that there had to be a divine Creator. The probability that all that has happened and continues to happen in our world or even within our own bodies, we still struggle to understand, but just because we don't understand doesn't mean that the miracle that is life isn't all around us. I was raised a Christian and was taught how to pray. Still, learning is typically an experience-based process and it wasn't until I really tried, had a real purpose to pray, that I was able to understand that prayer is a form of communication and not just worship.

When we pray there is a process. It is being willing to really want what you are praying for. It is studying it out, meditating on all the possibilities, and then once you have made a decision, be willing when you pray to be open to whatever answer you receive. Even if that answer is a no. Then when you pray, like you do in any conversation where you are asking for direction, you explain yourself, you ask, and then you listen. God speaks but in the most interesting ways. I have had experiences where He answers through the scriptures, so have them handy. You might find a specific verse that answers so clearly your question that you will remember the experience forever. Other times, you have ideas or thoughts or questions come into your mind that might be so subtle that you might not recognize as coming from God but you might mistake them as your own. Then there is the burning in the bosom. I have never felt a fire in my chest so that isn't what I think God was talking about. It is a sense of confidence, love, peace, and assurity that feels so right and good that it is indescribable.

Sometimes the answers aren't so clear. God isn't going to answer our every question. Sometimes there isn't one good answer so He allows us to grow but making our own decision. And sometimes the answer is a no and that comes by when we pray that we have an absence of mind. Sometimes He allows us to head just far enough down another path so that we can realize that it was the wrong one. He does this because then we won't question our decision later. It is an interesting process like I said and it takes a lifetime to learn. But once you have had a spiritual experience by receiving those answers, then you know. You know that He is there and that He answers prayers because those experiences will stay with you forever.

The reason this post is called the blessings of the temple is because temples are special and sacred places for us as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The temple is a place that we go to worship and make sacred covenants, sacred promises to God, to live a life that is in accordance to His will. In response we are blessed with a life of purpose, knowledge, and we receive an added portion of the Spirit and special blessings that will last for eternity. One of these blessings is the ability to have an eternal family. When most people are married we say that they are married "until death do they part." This is pretty much a signed seal of divorcement when we pass from this life to the next. In our religion we believe in a life after death and that if we are married by the proper authority, by the priesthood which is the power of God given to Man to bless us and act in His name, then we can married and sealed for time and all eternity. The purpose of the gospel is to become like God by following the example of the Savior. And to become like our Savior we need to learn more about Him and about Our Heavenly Father. We do this at the temple. In essence the temple is the House of God, where we learn and receive special blessings so that we can learn to become more like God because we are His children. We are all a child of God.

I have been able in the last few months to spend a lot of time visiting the temple both by myself and with Tatiana. It has been a huge blessing for the both of us. We learned more about ourselves, about our relationship with God, our relationship with each other, and what we need to do in our futures. I have been able to receive so many answers for what I need to do in last few weeks. It helps me realize that no matter what, God wants to bless us, He has a plan, and if we are willing to live righteously, He will reveal this plan to us. Miracles really do happen in our day. God reveals miracles to us only after the trial of our faith. He does not reveal himself through miracles, He only confirms himself to those that believe. Those answers that I was waiting for... They came. God is good.