Hello! My name is Emily Abel, and I am from the 5th
ward, but have been attending Utah State University studying English for the
past year and a half. I am home from school now for a few weeks before I leave
to serve as a missionary in Virginia.
Two weeks ago, I, like many of you, got to celebrated
Christmas at home with my family. I love giving gifts, and thought about what I
could give each member of my family on that day. For my dad, Timothy Abel, I
purchased a small journal. But it wasn’t just any journal; in our home we have
a running joke that my dad is slowly writing the 3rd book of
Timothy, in addition to the two found in the Holy Bible, with his bits of
wisdom and life advice. So, on the front of that journal, I had Desert Book inscribe
the words “3 Timothy”. Now we have fun writing down quotes from dad, whether
they be comical, like the time he told my brother,
“I’m your dad: I will stop telling you how to drive when you
can drive a stick-shift, backwards, with a trailer, up a hill, in the snow.”
Or more sober lines regarding what he’s discovered leads to a
successful life. One phrase that Dad used to often repeat to us he borrowed
from the fourth episode of Star Wars. In the climax of the movie, a fleet of pilots
fly in to blow up the enemy planet, the Death Star. They have only one chance
to make the perfect shot. Under the tension of saving their lives and the entire
universe, one pilot repeats this simple instruction to himself: “Stay on
target. Stay on target.” My dad would often repeat this while trying to get us
to finish homework or a chore, but today I would like to apply this advice to
preparing to make covenants in the Holy Temple of
God.
True preparation for entering
the temple does not consist of a checklist of conference talks, pamphlets, or
lessons, but of living a life that “stays on target” to the temple. Just like most
things in the gospel, preparing for the temple is not a one or two-time event,
it is not doing something, but becoming something. As Elder Bednar taught, “The
issue is not going to or through the temple; rather, the issue is having in our
hearts the spirit, the covenants, and ordinances of the Lord’s house.”[1]
(close quote)
I entered the Holy
Temple for the first time less than a month ago. While I was certainly not
perfect in my preparations, the Stake Presidency asked me to express my thoughts
on the subject, and I am humbled and happy to do so. I have a personal
testimony that the Holy temple is where God wants us to be. And, it is where I
want to be.
I am sure that the pilots in Star
Wars learned to “stay on target” long before their fateful battle against the
Death Star. It must have taken months of consistent effort before they knew how
to navigate a space ship successfully. But I am sure that they did not regret a
single day of practice when their abilities were put to the test. Similarly, consistent
effort is required “stay on target” to the temple. I testify that the blessings
of the temple more than outweigh any sacrifice you must make to prepare. Let’s
leave the fictitious land of Star Wars and turn to a scriptural example of
preparation.
In Matthew 25, we read of the parable of the five wise and the five foolish virgins. It says,
“Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
“And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. …
“[They that were] wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
“While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
“And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
“Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
“And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
“But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
“And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
“Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
“But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.”
The last line of this parable gives place to one of my favorite translations Joseph Smith added to the Bible. We know that rather than saying “I know you not” to the foolish virgins the Savior says, “Ye know me not.” I love this revision because it teaches that the Savior knows us. But it also shows that we must embark diligently on a journey to know him. It is one thing to hear about the Savior and his love and enabling power in Sunday School, but it is something completely different to experience it yourself.
With that in mind, it becomes clear why the 5 wise virgins could not share their oil with the foolish. In this story the oil is not literal, but rather symbolic of spiritual preparation, and as Elder Marvin J. Ashton taught, “Spiritual Preparation cannot be shared.” (close quote) We are the only ones that can take action in preparing ourselves to enter the Holy Temple. President Spencer W. Kimball taught,
“Attendance at sacrament meetings adds oil to our lamps, drop by drop over the years. Fasting, family prayer, home teaching, control of bodily appetites, preaching the gospel, studying the scriptures—each act of dedication and obedience is a drop added to our store. Deeds of kindness, payment of offerings and tithes, chaste thoughts and actions … —these, too, contribute importantly to the oil with which we can at midnight refuel our exhausted lamps.” (close quote)
In retrospect, I can identify a few habits that added needed drops of oil to my lamp and kept me on target to the temple. First, I had a regular habit of doing baptisms for the dead. During the fall semester of school, I went to the Logan temple nearly every week. My efforts were rewarded with a personal witness of the goodness of spirit of the temple and how that goodness seeps into us when we spend time there. I began to recognize that I was more inclined to be kind, better able to resist temptation, and so full of hope after only thirty minutes in such a Holy place. I remember clearly one specific day when I paused outside the door to the baptistry. Despite the frigid Logan air, I tilted my head back and gazed up at the towering walls of the temple. At that moment, the spirit whispered to my heart, “You never need be afraid to come the temple.” I testify that the temple truly is the House of God a place of love and beauty. That spiritual witness gave me great peace and the strength to withstand worldly whirlwinds as I prepared to participate in the higher ordinances of the temple.
Another daily drop of oil I added to my lamp came through scripture study. Please don’t let the familiarity of this advice dull you to its great importance. I know that we must feast upon the words of Christ every day in order to get the spiritual nourishment we need. I developed a habit of daily scripture study during high school, and carried it with me to college. In the months leading up to my entering the temple, a common trend stood out to me in the scriptures. Such repeating trends are often an indication that Heavenly Father is trying to teach us something. What I noticed is taught in 2 Nephi 28 verse 30:
“For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more…”
Heavenly Father was beginning to teach me about receiving spiritual knowledge. While we may want to read the entire verse at once, God, in His infinite wisdom and perfect timing, gives us knowledge line by line. I saw this truth manifest through many lives in the Book of Mormon. An understanding of this principle was invaluable in beginning a life of temple worship. Understanding that I did not need to understand everything right away, enabled me to focus on the spirit of the temple and avoid feeling overwhelmed or confused. Elder Holland once called the temple, “The Lord’s University. “ (close quote) Would we expect ourselves to know as much as graduate student on our first day of freshman year? No, instead we take things one day, one class, one exam at a time. With each line of each textbook we get closer to graduating the educated student we imagined ourselves being. So to with the Holy Temple. As we come with humility, reverence, and a desire to learn we will be taught by the Spirit in the temple. Truly I was blessed for studying the scriptures.
I hope that all of us, whether or not we have yet entered the temple, will take action to “stay on target.” I know the Holy Temple is where God wants us to be. He loves us and I imagine He misses us, but in the Holy Temple we can feel close again. I promise you that there is nothing in this world that is worth sacrificing your temple recommend. The pure peace and joy within those Holy walls is irreplaceable. I love the Savior Jesus Christ, I know he lives and has a plan for you. Going to the temple is an important part of that plan. I offer my testimony of these things to you, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
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