A few weeks ago, I had a very
mediocre temple visit. I was stressed about all of the things on my “to do”
list, and had a nasty headache, so needless to say, by the time I went inside,
I felt frazzled. I drummed my fingers impatiently on my armrest, and when the
session ended, zipped out as fast as I could. It wasn’t until I was in my car
driving home that the remorse set in and I realized that I had spiritually
wasted my trip.
I’ve tried to make a habit of going
to the temple weekly, but every once in a while, I’ll have a week when my visit
feels lackluster. I’ve realized that attending the temple is a lot like
fasting, in that being inside and involved requires us to make certain
sacrifices. Instead of giving up food, we give up time, which can sometimes be
difficult. Also like fasting, attending the temple can be less fulfilling when
we have the wrong attitude about it. Temple attendance, however, can be an
edifying experience that blesses both the person doing the ordinances and the person
we are doing them for.
In order to truly appreciate the
spirit of the temple as well as the covenants we make there, we need to go into
it prepared and, while inside, be more involved with the experience. With a
greater effort on our part, our temple trips can be more consistently
inspiring. Here are a few things you can do to improve your temple experience.
1. Clear your schedule of as many things as possible before going.
Though many of us try to make the
temple a priority, sometimes we can go to the temple haphazardly, throwing it
into our already busy schedules as if it’s merely a task to be done instead of
a chance to give ourselves to the Lord. Sandwiched between things we need to
accomplish, our temple trips can be made with too much haste, and we can be too
distracted while inside.
One thing that helps me focus better
in the temple is completing as many errands as possible before going in, even
if it puts my temple opportunity at the end of the day. Without the weight of
everything I have to do on my mind, I can truly put the Lord first while in His
house.
Sometimes squeezing a temple trip
into a busy day really is the only way to get ourselves there. If so, we should
consciously decide to leave our mental “to do” lists outside so as to get a
more focused and gratifying experience inside.
2. Take a family name.
I once had an Institute teacher tell
me that going to the temple without taking your own family name is a lot like
getting baptized without the gift of confirmation. Your experience will still
be a great one, but it will be missing a key element that really completes it.
That comment has really stuck with me, and I’ve found it to be true for my own
temple experience.
Ask your relatives if they have
names that you can take, or learn how to find one yourself on familysearch.org.
Taking a family name, particularly one that I’ve found myself, gives me an
increased awareness and feeling of the Spirit of Elijah. It really personalizes
each ordinance when I realize that I’m connecting members of my family to the
rest of my family for eternity. It also helps me to remember the “why” of the
temple.
Taking family names has changed my
temple experience, and I know it will do the same for you. You’ll feel an
increased love for your own family and an increased gratitude for the Plan of
Salvation and your part in it.
3. Pray beforehand and with purpose.
It makes so much sense to pray
before attending the temple, but we often don’t even think to do it. The truth
is that without prayer, our temple experience may not have a whole lot of
direction, and direction is a key component of fulfillment.
Before going to the temple, pray
that the person who you are standing proxy for will accept the work you do for
them. It’s easy to forget that even though we’re doing proxy work for other
people, they still have the agency to say no. Let Heavenly Father know that you
care about their spiritual well-being. When you pray for them, just like when
you pray for friends and neighbors, you’ll come to love them and appreciate
being there to do ordinances for them.
Also pray also for answers to life’s
questions or for strength when you’re struggling. Around the time I was
endowed, I was battling severe and crippling anxiety. I had never dealt with
anything like it before, and I was terrified. I distinctly remember preparing
to go to the temple a second time and pleading with Heavenly Father for comfort
to know that I was making the right decisions in my life and that I would get
over my anxiety. As I sat through that second session, I was overcome by the
sweetest peace I have ever felt. In the midst of all of my heartache and pain,
I felt joy. You will be okay,
kept running through my mind, and I believed it. It took me a while longer to
really feel okay, but I got my answer in the temple that day. Since then I’ve
gone to the temple with a purpose and a prayer—and both always leave me feeling
better about my temple visit.
4. Take care of your physical needs prior to attending.
Attending the temple is a commitment,
and just like any other commitment, it’s best made when we are at our best.
That means that we should prepare both spiritually and physically before going
inside.
If you’re like me and you sometimes
get headaches at random or have other physical issues, prepare yourself with
proper medication so you’re not hurting during a session. Make sure to drink
lots of water and eat good foods before going inside if you become weak without
those things. Try exercising (when possible) before going inside so that your
mind is refreshed and invigorated. Even making sure to use the restroom before
you enter a session can make a big difference in helping you stay focused on
the ordinances you are participating in. Being physically healthy and prepared
beforehand will make your temple experience more comfortable and will prepare
your mind for revelation Heavenly Father might want to bestow upon you.
5. Read scriptures at the end of your time in the temple.
Chances are that no matter which
temple you attend, there are lots of copies of the scriptures available to you
before you begin doing ordinances and also when you are finished. I’ve read
scriptures while waiting for a session to start, and it’s a great way to pass
the time. What I didn’t think to do until recently was read scriptures after my
session. Wow, was that an incredible experience.
After completing a temple ordinance,
our minds are naturally more receptive to the Spirit and insights we might not
have had before. When we read our scriptures after we finish the ordinances
instead of before, we read them with increased spiritual sensitivity and a
unique focus. The temple is one of the best places we can be spiritually in
tune to receive insight and revelation, but too often we walk out of the temple
without even touching the scriptures.
Try reading them! See what answers
and insights flow into your mind after making sacred covenants. You might get
the exact inspiration you need in your life just by opening them.
6. Remember.
After my lackluster trip to the
temple, I was talking with my mom about how long it felt, how repetitive it
was, and how awful I felt for thinking that. What she told me really humbled
me. She said, “Remember that the person you are there doing work for has not
experienced temple ordinances before, and they’ve been waiting an even longer
time to have them.” It’s both a true and remarkable thought.
Many of us have gotten into the
habit of attending the temple regularly, which is a great thing, but sometimes
we allow it to become just a habit, something we do all the time, like brushing
our teeth. We risk growing complacent with our temple experience and covenants
rather than being excited to be there every time. When we remember that it is a
new experience for someone else, we can recognize the beauty and power of the
temple, the remarkable gift of covenants, and that temple attendance is much
more about becoming than it is about doing.
Our temple experience is further
enriched when we always remember how we felt the first time we went through,
how remarkable the promises were to us, how serious we took them and how
careful we were to live up to them afterward. If we always remember those
things, attending the temple will always be rewarding.
And, as my mom said, if we ever get
a bit selfish with our time and impatient about our temple experience
because our schedules just seem too busy, we should remember that some of our
brothers and sisters have been waiting dozens to hundreds of years for someone
to spend two hours doing their work for them. In those two hours,
eternity is made possible for every one of us. It would be a shame for us
to not recognize the gift that is.
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