It’s wonderful to be back on this beautiful campus. I’m grateful to President Kim Clark and Brother Garth Hall, who invited us. I’m also grateful to the Board of Trustees, who supports the development of this great BYU–Idaho institution.
I appreciate my wife, Verla’s testimony. She has the fire of the gospel in her bones. She is a great strength to our seven children, thirty-two grandchildren, one great grandchild and me.
Today I would like to speak of miracles.
During our lifetime, each of us will experience extraordinary circumstances and events. We will even see miracles in our personal lives. Such miracles reaffirm that our Heavenly Father lives, that Jesus is the Christ and that through the gift of the Holy Ghost we can feel His presence in our daily lives.
Too often we dismiss some of the little miracles that happen to us as merely coincidence. However, on closer examination, little miracles act as testimonies that the Savior is very much involved in our lives. Then we know we are truly children of our Heavenly Father and He can be with us. Mormon asked:
My beloved brethren, have miracles ceased because Christ hath ascended into heaven…?
Behold, I say unto you nay, for it is by faith that miracles are wrought. Wherefore, if these things have ceased, woe be unto the children of men, for it is because of unbelief…[1]
Mormon said, “Behold, I will show unto you a God of miracles and it is that same God who created the heavens and the earth and all things that in them are.”[2]
Heavenly Father is always a God of miracles because, “…God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and in him there is no variableness…”[3]
During the early days of the restoration there were many miracles; beginning with young Joseph, when he was prompted by a passage from the Epistle of James. His prayer was answered and miracles followed. They included the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and the establishment of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
As magnificent as these miracles are, personal miracles occurring in our own lives are important to us. They teach us to trust in the Lord and have faith in him. These miracles come to us when we recognize and heed the promptings of the Holy Spirit. He is a revelator, teacher and comforter. He can lift our burdens and give us courage. He can have a calming effect on us. We can be hopeful that the Spirit will “enlighten our minds and fill our souls with joy.”[4]
In fact, the Lord said, “…I will show miracles, signs and wonders unto all those who believe on my name.”[5]
May I share a personal experience about miracles? I do it humbly and not in the spirit of boasting. Perhaps, as I share this experience, you can examine your own life with new eyes and recognize your own personal miracles.
The personal miracle I speak of had its earliest beginnings with the Prophet Joseph. He introduced the concept of constructing temples where sacred ordinances and instruction could be received. You’ll remember the first temple was built at great sacrifice in Kirtland, Ohio. It was completed and dedicated in 1836.
The saints had hoped to build additional temples; but, during the next few years, circumstances prevented them from doing so. In 1839, the main body of the Church moved to a bend on the Mississippi River known as Commerce. Now it is known as Nauvoo, meaning beautiful.
Under the direction of the Prophet Joseph, the Saints drained the swampland and created one of the most prosperous and populous cities in the state of Illinois. That was a big miracle.
The following year, plans were underway to construct a temple, a sacred House of the Lord. The Prophet Joseph appointed Brother William Weeks as the architect of the temple. Yet it was the prophet who gave significant instructions regarding the design of the building: “I have seen in a vision the splendid appearance of that building”, he said, “and [I] will have it built according to the pattern shown me.”[6]
An official cornerstone laying ceremony was conducted on April 6, 1841.
In addition to their financial contributions, Church members also gave a tithe of their time – one day in ten to working on the temple. Men labored in the construction areas and women sewed clothing for the workers and provided food, as well as raiment.
Because of donated labor and the donation of many building materials, it is very difficult to accurately calculate the cost of the six-year construction project. However, some estimate that in the monetary value of the time, the temple cost in excess of $1,000,000.00. That was a very big miracle!
Portions of the temple were dedicated and used prior to its completion in the spring of 1846. The first of several public dedication services for the Nauvoo Temple took place on May 1, 1846.
An uncontrolled lawless element forced the Saints to leave Nauvoo, broken-heartedly, leaving their temple behind. In October 1848, an arsonist destroyed the interior of the temple. In May 1850, a tornado knocked down one wall of the gutted structure and weakened the other walls. They were eventually taken down.
Now move forward with me almost 100 years.
In 1937, ninety-one years after the main body of the Church left their beautiful city and headed west, the Church purchased portions of the original temple site in Nauvoo. Over the next half a century, other properties, formerly owned by the Church and its members, were purchased and restored.
One day in early 1999, at the conclusion of a regular Temple Sites Meeting, President Hinckley mentioned that he was very seriously considering rebuilding the Nauvoo Temple. He said something like, “My father wanted to rebuild it back in 1946, when he was serving as President of the Northern States mission. Father actually wrote a letter to the First Presidency and he was turned down. Now you brethren, Elder Sorensen and Bishop McMullin and your associates, need to find a way to reconstruct the temple. The plans we have in the historical department are inadequate and incomplete.”
In April 1999, President Hinckley announced the Church would rebuild the Nauvoo Temple on the original site. He said, "The new building will stand as a memorial to those who built the first such structure."[7]
Groundbreaking ceremonies for the temple took place on October 24, 1999. "A sense of joy and spirituality returned to the Temple Lot,” wrote a newspaper columnist."[8]
Traditional cornerstone ceremonies were conducted on November 5, 2000. Under priesthood direction, prayers and talks were given on each of the four cornerstones. This tradition dated back to April 6, 1841, the original Nauvoo Temple dedication date, in the days of the Prophet, Joseph.
The dedication of the restored Nauvoo Temple commenced on June 27, 2002. It was the 158th anniversary of the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph Smith and his faithful brother, Hyrum. The limestone exterior of the restored temple is a near duplicate of the original temple, including the design elements.
The restored building has six floors, circular stairs, and is crowned with an upright statue of the Angel Moroni with the trumpet in his hand.
This is a facsimile of the original Angel Moroni that adorned the first temple until it was destroyed.
Now I want to be more specific about the miracles in our lives.
In the spring of 2001, the First Presidency invited me to dedicate a building on the beautiful campus of Southern Utah State University in Cedar City, Utah. At the time, I was puzzled as to why I would receive this assignment. I am not an educator by experience or training. I was not a graduate of that institution, nor had I any previous association with the University. Nevertheless, I went ahead with the assignment.
Sister Sorensen and I were having breakfast with Brother and Sister Bennion, who, some of you may remember, was president of this institution not so many years ago. The experience I am about to tell you was spoken of by Sister Marjorie Bennion here on this campus several years ago. I have collaborated with her and she has given me permission to make reference to some of the following incidents: While at breakfast at the Southern Utah State University, Sister Bennion said to me, “I understand you are the Executive Director of the Temple Department and there is consideration being given to rebuild the Nauvoo Temple.” Before I could answer, Sister Bennion continued, “I visit teach a less-active sister whose great grandfather was the architect of the Nauvoo Temple. His name was William Weeks. Would you be interested in talking to her? I think she could be helpful. She would very much appreciate making contact with an official from the Temple Department of the Church.
I was delighted and excited. I explained to Sister Bennion that the Church had a few limited drawings and plans from the original Nauvoo Temple. They came to the Church in a rather unusual way. Let me explain.
In 1948, Elder Vern C. Thackery and Elder Frank Gifford knocked on the door of Mr. and Mrs. Leslie Griffith in the…town of Boron, California located in the Mohave Desert. It turned out that the Griffiths were descendants of William Weeks. They were not members of the Church at the time.
Their great grandfather, Brother William Weeks, had a misunderstanding with Brigham Young regarding the design of the Salt Lake Temple. President Young insisted Brother Weeks yield to the inspiration of the President of the Church. Brother Weeks left President Young’s office – never to return again. He took the plans of the Nauvoo Temple with him.
So, going forward all those years, the missionaries tracted into the Griffiths in 1948, who happened to be descendants of Brother Weeks, and miracle of miracles, had possession of some of the original plans of the Nauvoo Temple. According to Elder Thackery, he was driving an old Ford with a rumble seat, which is a seat that can be hidden. They gave Elder Thackery the documents and he put them in the rumble seat, closed it and forgot them.
Sometime later, after the Elder was home in Heber City, Utah, he remembered the documents and delivered them to the Historical Department of the Church.
Now we turn to 2001 in Cedar City, Utah with President and Sister Bennion. Remember she said, “I am visiting teaching the great-granddaughter of William Weeks. I think she has some plans of the Nauvoo Temple. Would you please go and visit with her? Better still, why don’t I go and bring her here? You can have lunch with her.”
She promptly left to retrieve the good sister and the architectural drawing. She came right back with both of them. Sister Griffiths had in her hands the actual drawings of the Nauvoo Temple – drawings the Church did not have. We quickly made arrangements for her to go to Salt Lake City and present the last pieces of the puzzle, restoring all as it was at first.
Since the Church was driven from Nauvoo, think how many places those Nauvoo Temple drawings must have been. Think of how many old trunks and covered wagons they were in, as they crossed half a continent. Imagine them passing through the generations of the Weeks family. Finally, 100 years later, consider two missionaries knocking on a remote door in the middle of the Mohave Desert.
All along Heavenly Father knew where those plans were. They weren’t lost to Him. His vigilant eye was watching over them until the time came to restore them for His great purpose of rebuilding the Nauvoo Temple in our day. In fact, his watchful eye is over all things in the earth. Remember his purpose is “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”[9]
He knows you and where you are. In the scriptures he refers to you as his sheep. He knows where all of his sheep are. You in this audience today, he knows each one of you.
He knew the young Joseph Smith. He called him by name when he appeared to him in the grove. He knows you by name, even though you may be lost or wander for a time, the Savior knows you.
He said, “I am the door of the sheep.”[10] “… My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” Some of you may wonder if you are following him as closely or as carefully as you can. But the very fact that you are in this room today tells me that you are His sheep.
His sheep, brothers, sisters and friends, were present when Jesus was hanging on the cross at Golgotha. We can imagine the anguish of those who loved Him, and were left standing afar off, as He hung there. Jesus was their very hope for salvation. Perhaps they were asking themselves, how could this be? How could He die, with Israel still not redeemed? How could this be happening? It seems that all is lost.
You will observe sooner or later, this same illusion comes to all of us in our lives. It is the horrifying illusion that all is lost. Throughout the history of Christ’s people, they have experienced a powerful type and shadow of Christ’s suffering in this way.
Yes, sometimes we feel despair; even abandonment by God. I am sure many of the early saints of Nauvoo experienced these feelings as they were forced to leave behind almost everything: their beautiful city, the martyred bodies of their beloved Prophet and Hyrum; and most of all, the magnificent temple for which they had sacrificed so much. The Temple was the symbol that breathed into them the hope of a glorious resurrection and eternal life in the world to come. Indeed, all seemed lost, and much was.
Yet, 150 years later, Sister Sorensen and I and several members of our family were at the dedication of a beautiful temple, the exact replica of what once was, in that beautiful city, Nauvoo, being led by a Prophet of God, Gordon B. Hinckley. We were now a prosperous and blessed people. His watchful eye had prevailed.
The terrible sacrifice and loss of those early saints made everything possible. In that moment, when everything seemed lost, everything was actually being won. As real as the suffering was, Heavenly Father was working in His mysterious way to bring to pass a great miracle.
When we read of the crucifixion of the Savior—the scorn, the pain, the tearing of the nails in his flesh—these are the pains of mortality. In times of spiritual chastisement, it seems we are forsaken. When in our darkest hour we feel all is lost, the Savior is still working for our good. He does work in mysterious ways.
Even if we feel forsaken for a time, we can put our trust in Him and have faith that somehow a glorious purpose will emerge bright and new, and perfect. He will bring to pass His purposes and we will behold miracles, great and small.
Now, as your new Rexburg Temple rises in splendor and majesty, listen to the words of our beloved Prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley:
I hope you use the temple constantly because you will gain the blessings that are there that you cannot gain anywhere else on the face of the whole earth. The temple stands as a monument for all to see. It stands as a statement that we as a people believe in the immortality of the human soul. Everything that occurs in the temple is of an uplifting and ennobling kind, and it speaks of life here and of life beyond the grave. It speaks of the importance of the individual as a child of God. It speaks of the importance of the family as the creation of the Almighty. It speaks of the eternity of the marriage relationship. It speaks of going on to a greater glory. It is a place of light, a place of peace, a place of love where we deal with the things of eternity.[11]
The Temple has always been associated with the presence of the Lord. “And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them…and there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee.”[12]
And inasmuch as my people build a house unto me in the name of the Lord, and do not suffer any unclean thing to come unto it, that it be not defiled, my glory shall rest upon it;
Yea, and my presence shall be there; for I will come into it.[13]
Most of you are living exemplary lives. You are our pride and joy. You are the great hope of the Church and the world. When the time is right in your life, go to the Holy Temple and claim your blessings. If there is anyone here today who is not worthy to go to the House of the Lord, who feels despair in their life, I urge you to put your life in order so that the Lord can bring to pass His great purposes for you; so that you, too, can reap the benefits of the glorious Plan of Salvation, as you enter and partake of the unique and wonderful blessings of the Temple.
For some within the sound of my voice, it may be a small miracle. To others it may be a large miracle, depending on where you are along the path toward immortality and eternal life. But it is always a miracle.
Notes
[1] Moroni 7:27, 37
[2] Mormon 9:11
[3] Mormon 9:9
[4] Doctrine and Covenants 11:13
[5] Doctrine and Covenants 35:8
[6] BYU Studies 9 [Spring 1979]: 343
[7] Ensign, May 1999, 89
[8] Church News, 30 October 1999, 6
[9] Moses 1:39
[10] John 10:7, 27
[11] Taipei Temple Fireside; Taipei, Taiwan; 1996
[12] Exodus 25: 8, 22
[13] Doctrine and Covenants 97: 15-16