SISTER JAGGI: When Elder Jaggi and I were dating and then married, we spent many days in the hills and mountains above Salt Lake City walking, biking, and enjoying nature together. We often visited an old family cabin near Brighton Ski Resort up Big Cottonwood Canyon and hiked the steep mountains. The mountain air was fresh, clean, and energizing. We thought about our ancestors in the Alps of Germany and Switzerland. We resonated with their love of the mountains.
ELDER JAGGI: We have loved hiking and climbing many different mountains. The red-rock canyons of Capital Reef, Bryce Canyon, and Zion National Parks in Utah have proved especially satisfying but difficult for us. With sheer surfaces, narrow crevices, and sliding rocks, some mountains are just hard to climb! Years ago, we hiked the famous Subway in Zion National Park. We scaled a mountain down to the base of the canyon, waded through deep water, lost a sandal or two, tripped and fell several times, scraped our knees and elbows, then scaled back up another mountain! Nine hours later, we made it to our destination. Climbing mountains is symbolic of our sometimes overwhelming, yet joyful journey towards Deity. With its many stones, unpaved trails, foliage, and potential obstacles—not to mention the taxing nature of the incline on our bodies—mountains represent challenges we all experience in life. No one is immune to the vicissitudes of life. A line in my patriarchal blessing reads, “Jeremy, difficulties do come to all people.”
SISTER JAGGI: Doesn’t it seem fitting that President Russell M. Nelson in his general conference talk this past Easter would discuss the mountain of challenges we face in life and how to remove them? He said, “My dear brothers and sisters, my call to you this Easter morning is to start today to increase your faith. Through your faith, Jesus Christ will increase your ability to move the mountains in your life, even though your personal challenges may loom as large as Mount Everest.” [1] Removing mountains, overcoming mountains, and climbing mountains all seem like fitting symbols for our mortal sojourn here on earth.
ELDER JAGGI: The scriptures are replete with references to prophetic visits to mountains. One of Moses’s first interactions with God in a mountain goes like this:
And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.
And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. [2]
Another of Moses’s interactions on a mountain later in Exodus says, “And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel.” [3]
SISTER JAGGI: The brother of Jared also had a beautiful experience in the mountain. “And it came to pass that the brother of Jared . . . went forth unto the mount, which they called the mount Shelem, because of its exceeding height, and did molten out of a rock sixteen small stones; and they were white and clear, even as transparent glass; and he did carry them in his hands upon the top of the mount, and cried again unto the Lord.” [4] He had prepared stones through a process of moltening rock that may be symbolic of our own spiritual work and refining before going up to the mountain to commune with God.
ELDER JAGGI: Like Moses and the brother of Jared before him, Nephi was commanded, “Arise, and get thee into the mountain.” [5] At the time of this commandment, Nephi was enjoying the fruits of Bountiful near a beautiful beach after an eight-year excursion in the wilderness. We are likewise commanded to “get thee into the mountain,” even our modern-day mountain, the temple. In his first public address after being sustained and ordained President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Russell M. Nelson spoke from the Salt Lake Temple foyer and taught the importance of this magnificent mountain, the temple of God.
As a First Presidency, we want to begin with the end in mind. For this reason, we are speaking to you today from a temple. The end for which each of us strives is to be endowed with power in a house of the Lord, sealed as families, faithful to covenants made in a temple that qualify us for the greatest gift of God, that of eternal life. The ordinances of the temple and the covenants you make there are key to strengthening your life, your marriage and family, and your ability to resist the attacks of the adversary. Your worship in the temple and your service there for your ancestors will bless you with increased personal revelation and peace and will fortify your commitment to stay on the covenant path. [6]
I love those words. I can say after having visited with President Nelson recently, that he hasn’t aged a day since January 16, 2018. As President Nelson communicates regularly with the peoples of the world, we can’t help but feel deepening love and devotion to the prophet and to the Savior of the world whom he represents. His guidance to begin with the end in mind leads us to the crowning ordinances that can only be found in the temple.
SISTER JAGGI: A few years ago, my mother had some difficult health challenges. She had also been navigating the distressing ebb and flow of heartbreak over the unexpected passing of her beloved husband, my father, nearly 10 years earlier. For our family, this mountain of a challenge seemed like an impossible peak. On-going counseling as siblings, individual and collective prayer, study, and fasting brought forth the guidance to a support team of healthcare professionals. While they were very helpful, we could feel that more help was still needed.
One night, feeling broken, I remember a desperate, tearful, and pleading prayer on her behalf: “Heavenly Father, I don’t know how I can best help her. Please help me; teach me. I will do anything.” The Spirit simply whispered, “Bring her to me so I can heal her.” Over the next few days and weeks, I studied many of the ways that I could help her better access the healing power of Jesus Christ and His Atonement. Some of the ways she appeared to be accessing His power were through scripture study, prayer, the ordinance of the sacrament, and attending church. I was led to understand with clarity that this season of illness had eclipsed her once-regular temple attendance and interest and participation in family history work.
During that time, we had been enjoying a weekly Thursday ski date together. We decided to begin rotating our outing together with “temple Tuesday” dates. In time, this became our cherished weekly appointment together with the Lord. We protected this special time.
I will never forget our visit to the Ogden, Utah FamilySearch Center where we made an appointment to receive help as mom wanted to find ancestors on her father’s line. The very capable Sister Linda Dursteler serving there helped my mom find Minnie Coleman. We could feel her joy of being found. We cheered, and Mom thanked Sister Dursteler for helping her get back in the saddle. We took a picture to remember this experience. On that sweet day, we felt a parting of the veil. My mom took her angel ancestor Minnie to the temple that week with many more ancestors’ names to follow.
We cannot refute the healing that resulted by degrees, week after week, for both of us in mind, body, and spirit as we spent cherished time in the temple participating in the initiatory, endowment, and sealing ordinances in proxy for our ancestors. The Spirit prompted me each week to take a temple selfie with Mom along the way. This will be cherished one day. I had no idea that several months later, at the end of March 2020, our weekly temples dates would end as temples temporarily close due to the worldwide pandemic. My mother shared that weekly attendance at the temple helped her memorize the doctrine, beautiful words, and promises from the Lord given in each covenant and ordinance. The temple was truly going through her, bringing the Savior’s healing that is ongoing from the inside out. The temple selfies became happy memories we would turn to during the pandemic for remembering until we could once again be in the house of the Lord together.
In her book Covenant Keepers, Wendy Watson Nelson beautifully describes how we felt about our experience.
Imagine what can happen as we make a sacrifice of time to the Lord by doing two things we know that He really cares about, family history and temple work. As we live up to our covenants, the angels will not be able to be restrained from being our associates. So, could you use a little more help in your life? If so, keep your covenants with more exactness than you ever had before! And then ask for angels, a.k.a. your ancestors and other loved ones, to help you with whatever you need. Or ask them to be dispatched to help those you love! [7]
ELDER JAGGI: The temple is a sanctuary of healing and a haven of rejoicing. Our son Stewart was born on November 5, 2001, in Henderson, Nevada. He lived just a few minutes. As Sister Jaggi and I prepared our little one in white clothes, placed him in his casket, and prepared for his transportation to his resting place on a family plot in Salt Lake City, our souls were ailing.
Sister Jaggi and I yearned for spirit and light. While I waited, she went into the St. George Utah Temple, needing additional power that only the Savior can provide. She was able to participate in an initiatory session. President Boyd K. Packer taught, “The ordinances of washing and anointing are referred to often in the temple as initiatory ordinances [because they begin the endowment]. . . . Associated with the endowment are washings and anointings—mostly symbolic in nature, but promising definite, immediate blessings as well as future blessings.” [8] She experienced definite and immediate blessings that day. We rejoiced together as she came out of the temple renewed, edified, and strengthened.
SISTER JAGGI: As we prepare to receive the gift of power found in the temple ordinances, the Lord confirms the temple is a place of holiness. As we prepare, we may experience more abundant peace. In late spring 2007, we stood outside the Salt Lake City Temple with our four children, family, and friends who anxiously awaited the exit of Aunt Emily and Uncle Brian who had just been sealed inside. Sometimes the waiting outside the temple can feel long, especially for little ones. I remember looking towards the north side of the temple at ground level seeing our nine-year-old, Mackenzie, wearing her white baptismal dress, peering into the stained-glass window.
She tilted her head and angled her body, studying out a hopeful view to anything she could possibly see inside. We were moved as she returned to us with enthusiastic anticipation. She expressed she just wanted to go inside the temple! It was not yet her time.
A photographer friend nearby captured this tender moment of connection and later painted this scene. It hangs in our bedroom now as a precious memory that teaches us much. Throughout her childhood, the Primary song “I Love to See the Temple” was one of her favorites and had secured its place in her bedtime medley of lullabies we would sing her and subsequent children night after night. Reflecting back, I see that the truths of this song served as a daily affirmation of her love for and preparation to enter the house of the Lord on her birthday as a 12-year-old in the Los Angeles California Temple baptistry.
ELDER JAGGI: On several occasions, we visited the temple grounds with our children so they could feel of the power of the temple and prepare for the ordinances and covenants therein. In this picture, they are all holding a copy of the Los Angeles Temple schedule in their hands. As Sister Jaggi mentioned, before each of our children were born and for the first several years of each of their lives, Sister Jaggi and I sang a medley of songs to them which included “I Am a Child of God,” “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,” “I Often Go Walking,” “I’m Trying to Be like Jesus,” “A Child’s Prayer,” and “I Love to See the Temple.” From their earliest years, our children have learned that temple attendance has a profound influence for good on our minds, bodies, and spirits. We calculate we must have sung “I Love to See the Temple” over 22,000 times during their childhood. Preparation to get into the mountain is critical.
Though this picture only shows one mountain climber, we have indications that support from others is present. The ropes, clips, and other equipment provide safety, security, and strength in our upward climb. The belayer, the one who controls the safety rope of the climber, may be the best security while climbing. Climbing with a trusted partner is a key safety tenet of our ascent up the mountain. Who is your trusted partner, friend, or family member in your preparation to “get into the mountain?” If you are missing a trusted friend and climbing companion, seek out good friends and/or family members through fervent prayer and faithful action. I promise, the Lord “will not leave you comfortless: [He] will come to you.” [9] And remember, the Holy Ghost is our constant companion—as Christ taught his disciples, “the Comforter . . . whom the Father will send in my name.” [10] The Holy Ghost is the greatest belayer in our climb up the mountain.
SISTER JAGGI: In the Book of Mormon, a promise is given through Ammon in the book of Alma. Speaking of members gathering into the garners, or temples of the Lord, he said:
Yea, they shall not be beaten down by the storm at the last day; yea, neither shall they be harrowed up by the whirlwinds; but when the storm cometh they shall be gathered together in their place, that the storm cannot penetrate to them; yea, neither shall they be driven with fierce winds whithersover the enemy listeth to carry them. [11]
When we gather with trusted friends and family, the Lord blesses us to overcome our storms and whirlwinds while climbing our mountains.
Over the last fifteen months, we have found ourselves gathering in our homes and apartments in new and different ways. Each Sunday our family gathers on Zoom with our extended family and friends to study the most recent Come Follow Me lesson. One of our friends, Benjamin, before he was baptized last October, heard us often reflect on gathering in and around the temple. He decided he would have a temple experience.
Benjamin posted this last fall. He felt power and anticipation while he was on the temple grounds.
ELDER JAGGI: Several years ago, a popular periodical encouraged us to make our homes a sacred space. “Whether you’re religious, non-religious, or anything in between, a sacred space can help you pause, unplug, and reflect on the only work that really matters: loving the world, practicing gratitude, and being kind to yourself.” [12]
Said better by Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “Our purpose is to balance the Church and the home experiences in a way that will greatly increase faith and spirituality and deepen conversion.” [13]
During the pandemic, we found ourselves in our homes engaging with each other more frequently over Whatsapp, Facetime, texts, and Facebook Messenger and videos. Many of you found outlets in TikTok, Netflix, Snapchat, and “the Gram.” Our virtual gatherings may be healthy and can bring laughter, entertainment, and diversion from the monotonous; however, when our online engagement becomes excessive, overindulgent, and distracting from our climb up the mountain, we may lose our beloved belayer companion, the Holy Ghost. He cannot dwell in dark places. President Nelson invited us before the April 2020 general conference— before the pandemic began—to consider how we hear the voice of the Lord and to “immerse yourself in the glorious light of the restoration.” [14] At that general conference, he invited us to hear, hearken, and heed the voice of the Lord. In general conference in October 2020, he invited us to “let God prevail.” [15] And then in April 2021 general conference, he invited us to consider the gains and the losses we have experienced over the last year and to remove the debris from our lives. [16] President Nelson’s teachings tie to the temple. What debris is diminishing our ability to hear the Holy Ghost? What is decreasing our light so we may not be worthy of the temple recommend we hold or desire to hold? Is there debris in our lives that is filling up our days with things that we can let go of so that we can schedule a regular appointment with the Lord in his house? Remember President Nelson’s bold declaration. “In the coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.” [17]
Home can indeed “be a heaven on earth when we are filled with love.” [18] A primary lesson learned during the pandemic is that our homes and apartments can become temple-like.
SISTER JAGGI: One day, several months ago, as I was feeling the fatigue of the pandemic, but with my efforts to “count it all joy,” [19] I had a distinct question come to mind: “Amy, what are the gifts that you unwrapped in 2020 and now 2021?” I think about the temple ordinances as a gift that we are able to unwrap again and again as we prepare for going back or going for the first time to the temple. More and more temples are opening for proxy work. When we return to that holy ground, what will our relationship with this gift given from God mean to us now? How can we better examine, utilize, and access the many facets of the gift that the temple is? I testify of the power of the Savior and in turn, the power of the temple to heal us. Jesus Christ is the great physician. He leads this church. He is “the author and finisher of our faith.” [20]
ELDER JAGGI: President Henry B. Eyring spoke about his love for the temple this past April. His own story reflects our responsibility and commitment, even before the world was, to be in holy temples.
I looked up at a high white ceiling that made the room so light it seemed almost as if it were open to the sky. And in that moment, the thought came into my mind in these clear words: “I have been in this lighted place before.” But then immediately there came into my mind, not in my own voice, these words: “No, you have never been here before. You are remembering a moment before you were born. You were in a sacred place like this.” [21]
He followed up those precious comments with this: “I know that temples of the Lord are holy places. My purpose today in speaking of temples is to increase your desire and mine to be worthy and ready for the increased opportunities for temple experiences that are coming for us.” [22] He is encouraging us to get thee into the mountain. We testify of the sanctifying and redeeming power of the Savior and His Atonement. We testify Jesus is the living Christ and that the temples are dotted inside and out with symbols of His great atoning sacrifice. The endowment in sacred temples provides power only the Savior can provide. With Him, we plead with you, our brothers and sisters, to arise and get thee into the mountain. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] Russell M. Nelson, “Christ Is Risen; Faith in Him Will Move Mountains,” Ensign, May 2021.
[2] Exodus 3:2–5.
[3] Exodus 19:3.
[4] Ether 3:1.
[5] 1 Nephi 17:7.
[6] Russell M. Nelson, “A Message from the First Presidency,” Jan. 16, 2018.
[7] Wendy Watson Nelson, Covenant Keepers: Unlocking the Miracles God Wants for You, Deseret Book, Mar. 29, 2016.
[8] Boyd K. Packer, Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple, 2002, 32.
[9] John 14:18.
[10] John 14:26.
[11] Alma 26:6.
[12] Carol Kuruvilla, “How to Create a Sacred Space in Your Home,” Huffington Post, Mar. 4, 2016.
[13] Quentin L. Cook, “Deep and Lasting Conversion to Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,” Ensign, Nov. 2018.
[14] Russell M. Nelson, “Closing Remarks,” Ensign, Nov. 2019.
[15] Russell M. Nelson, “Let God Prevail,” Ensign, Nov. 2020.
[16] see Russell M. Nelson, “Welcome Message,” Ensign, May 2021; Russell M. Nelson, “What We Are Learning and Will Never Forget,” Ensign, May 2021.
[17] Russell M. Nelson, “Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives,” Ensign, May 2018.
[18] “Home Can Be a Heaven on Earth,” Hymns, no. 298.
[19] James 1:2.
[20] Hebrews 12:2.
[21] Henry B. Eyring, “I Love to See the Temple,” Ensign, May 2021.
[22] Ibid.