Richard: We are happy to be here today among you amazing students. You look pretty darn good, for two in the afternoon. I guess the real test now is will you be able to stay awake after a good lunch.
Kathleen: The last time I was on this campus was for the dedication of the Hinckley Building, and I can tell you it has been sweet today to go to that building and remember that great event. President Hinckley was so pleased that day, and I think he would be pleased this day to see how that building is being used. You are an inspiring sight. You are such a great mix of people. You come from all circumstances - some come from pioneer ancestry, some are converts, some come from functional and some from dysfunctional homes. Some are rich and some are poor. But you know what? Right now it doesn't really matter because you have all found your way here. Regardless of your background, you are now all under the same umbrella. You are young people with great potential. And the Lord will use your circumstances and your challenges to teach and to develop you.
Richard: At our age, we have tasted a little bit of life. As a matter of fact, we both lost our spouses after more than 40 years of marriage and we thought life was over with. But instead it was just the close of one chapter and the beginning of another. You know that's the way the Lord works when our lives are on the right pathway. When one door closes, He opens another. And so it has been with us. Here we are just having celebrated, three days ago, our fifth wedding anniversary. But I have to tell you I had a very different life growing up. My father died when I was just a few days short of my one year old birthday. My mother was 30 years old at the time, and she never remarried. She lived as a widow for 64 years and just died about seven years ago. Although I trusted her and loved her and idolized her, I grew up with a real chip on my shoulder. I thought Heavenly Father must not have loved me or why would he have taken my father when I needed him so badly? Fortunately I had a dear friend, an older man who was serving in the military. He spent a lot of time with me. One day I was out in his pigeon coop with him and we were talking. Suddenly he turned to me and said words to this effect: "Richard, when I look at you, there are times when I'd like to kick your rear end right up around your neck." I was stunned. I said, "Why would you say that to me?" He said, "Because I have watched you, and you have this big chip on your shoulder. You think the Lord has done you a big disservice. The trouble is that this is limiting your life and until you get rid of the chip you will never be happy. You have endless potential, and if you will shake this and get rid of this chip, there is nothing in life that you can't have." This was so hard to hear. I shed a lot of tears but I finally began to realize he was right. It was a struggle, but when it finally over came this, my whole life changed.
Kathleen: Compared to his, my life was rather uneventful. But it was good. I grew up in a home with a mother and father who loved the Lord, who loved each other, and who loved us. It was not a perfect home. But it was a home that provided security and structure. I felt valued and trusted as a child and really normal. Years have taught me that the Lord works with us regardless of our background and to the extent that we cooperate he can make something pretty magnificent out of each one of us. You are going the right direction. You have gathered on this campus with a common mission - to get an education. In addition you are developing life skills that will carry you into the world and enable you to meet the challenges that lie ahead.
Richard: As you well know, secular education costs a lot of money. It means if you want to be successful, you must go to class, take notes, go to labs, study the material, take tests, write papers and pass the course. And hopefully at the end of the road you end up with a degree and a job. I went to law school after I was married and had three children. It was not easy. I was working to support my family, I was the elder's quorum president, and I was studying every spare minute I had. There were times when I wanted to give up. There were times when I was tempted to miss class or blow off a paper because I was too tired. It took much sacrifice, time, and money. But in the end, I earned a Juris Doctorate of Law. And it has been worth it. It has blessed my life in remarkable ways. But there is another kind of education that not only is important, but is imperative to our spiritual exaltation. That education takes place in the House of the Lord, the temple, which Brigham Young referred to as the Lord's spiritual university on earth. It is that education that we would like to speak of today.
Kathleen: When we were called to the temple three years ago, I was clueless. I had always been a regular temple patron. I loved the temple and had had some sweet experiences associated with temple worship, but I must admit there were many times when I would struggle to stay awake, or I would look at my watch and wonder if I was going to make it to the next appointment. Sometimes I went because it was on my "to do" list and I like checking things off my list. But when we began our three-year service, new vistas opened to me and I began to see and feel temple worship in a new way.
Richard: You have in this community a beautiful new temple - the Rexburg Temple. We were there this morning and went through it. What a gorgeous temple this is. I am told that many of you go there often - some of you serve in the temple, many more attend the temple. I would suspect that all of you have driven by, looked at it, and marveled at its beauty. I ask you though, is that enough? Clearly it is not. Education in the Lord's spiritual university means we not only have to go, but we have to go prepared to learn. This requires continuous preparation, dedication, time, study, pondering and prayer. I have often thought, "What if during my law school years, I had decided it was just too tough and too time consuming and so I would just drive by the law school two or three times a week and look at it, admire its beauty, and then occasionally I would even walk inside and look in the halls, maybe drop into the library and look at all those books, and now and then go to a class. I would do this for 3 years and then ask the dean for a degree. You know what would happen. I wouldn't have a chance of succeeding. On this campus there are hundreds maybe even thousands of things you could learn if you took the class, studied the material, searched and then pondered what you learn. In the temple there are an equal or greater number of things to be learned. But we have to "take the class" as it were, studied the material, and searched and pondered and prayed.
Kathleen: Today we will give you just a glimpse of what is available to you as you search the principles that are taught in the House of the Lord. We hope this will whet your appetite for more. In doing so we use a little formula that we call The Principle, the Savior and Me. Richard: It's a bit like a "connect the dots puzzle."
Kathleen: It is very simple; it is just this: When you sit in the temple, any part of temple including the baptistery, listen carefully for the doctrinal principles that are being taught. You will find that almost every sentence of the ordinances offered, teaches a principle.
Richard: Once you have identified the doctrinal principle, then ask yourself, "How does it relate to the Savior?" - remembering that everything in the temple relates to the Savior, his divinity and his atonement.
Kathleen: And then you ask yourself, "What does this mean to me and how do I use it in my life?" Now you have the three parts of the puzzle: the Principle, the Savior and Me!
Richard: Now let's give you a couple of simple examples. Remember first of all you identify the principle. Identify it with a sentence not just a word like faith or repentance, but a complete sentence.
The Principle
There is a fundamental principle that we all learn at an early age. It is taught in the first Primary song we learn to sing. You all know what it is: "I Am a Child of God and I am individually important to my Heavenly Father." This principle is taught both in the temple and in the scriptures. Think of the baptistery, which I understand you load, beginning at 6:00 a.m. every morning. When you do baptisms for the dead, wouldn't it be far more efficient and time saving if, when you stood in the water, the officiator read off 10 names or 50 or a 100, and then immersed you in the water one time for all those people? Last year in the Salt Lake Temple there were 447,000 baptisms done for the dead. We could have done those so much faster and with greater efficiency with such a program. But that is not the Lord's way. Those baptisms, indeed every ordinance in the temple, is done for one person at a time. What does that tell you? It tells me that I am important to Heavenly Father and that he loves me as an individual. He does not see me as part of the masses. He sees me as an individual child of God.
The Savior
Kathleen: OK, now we know what the principle is. So now we ask ourselves, "How does this principle relate to the Savior?" The Savior so loved us as individuals that he was willing to suffer and die and atone for our sins in order that we might return to our Father in Heaven.
Richard: I am convinced that the Savior's love for every individual is so great, that if somehow his atonement had missed me or had missed one of you, he would come back and do it all over again just for me or for you, because He loves us so deeply and we are so important to him.
And Me
Kathleen: Now, How does this apply to me and how do I use this in my life? It tells me that the Lord knows me and considers me a child of great worth, and I need to live my life in accordance with his teachings.
Men and Women Are Created Differently, by Design.
The Principle
Here is another example: There is a principle taught both in the temple and in the scriptures that is: Men and women are created differently, by design. Remember the story of Adam and Eve being tempted by Lucifer. Lucifer knew of their differences and used this to serve his purposes. Richard: Do you remember when he approached Adam? He appealed to his intellect - he said "Here, it will make you wise." And Adam flatly refused.
Kathleen: When he approached Eve he used words that appealed to her sensitivities as a woman. Words such as delicious and desirable. It is recorded in Moses:
When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it became pleasant to the eyes and a tree to be desired to make her wise, she took of the fruit and did eat.[1]
Eve had those nurturing qualities and remembered they had been commanded to multiply and replenish the earth. Her understanding led her to partake and the law of the Lord was fulfilled.
The Savior
Richard: All right, now ask yourself: "How does this relate to the Savior?" The fall was necessary to "bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." That difference between Adam and Eve brought forth the need for a redeemer and Savior and put into place, the entire Plan of Salvation.
And Me
Kathleen: Now the hard part: How does that apply to me? Instead of resisting these differences, we ought to embrace them, use them and rejoice in them. They have been given to us for a purpose. When we put them together they make a whole. Remember when Adam and Eve left the garden they went hand in hand, side by side. She was not saying, "Oh, Adam, I'm so sorry! I didn't know what to do!"
Richard: And he was not saying "Honestly, woman! But for you I could be luxuriating in the Garden. Instead, here I am digging rocks and pulling weeds!"
Kathleen: You women - have you noticed that men don't respond the way you think they are supposed to? You drop every kind of hint that your birthday is coming up - even telling them the date and what you want. And the birthday comes, and nothing.
Richard: And then men, have you noticed that when you forget, she cries?
Kathleen: I don't know how many of you heard the little ad on the radio that aired just before Christmas. It was for a jewelry store. There is this couple, and she is opening her Christmas present. They have a little exchange that goes something like this. She says:
Oh, diamond earrings. They are just what I wanted! How did you know! Oh, I love them! Thank you!
Richard: And then his response...
Now wait a minute, wait a minute. You took us to the store.You picked them out. You paid for them. You brought them home. You wrapped them. You put them under the tree!
Kathleen: Don't spoil this moment!
Richard: These are really light and inconsequential examples, unless you choose to let the differences turn into a war. But when you use these differences to complement one another, you can accomplish things you cannot do on your own.
Kathleen: This is a principle that is not only true in a marriage, but in any relationship. It works on a committee, in a ward council, in your home, in the work place, in a social setting. It even happened to us the other night when we were reading the scriptures: We were reading D&C, section 109:22.
And we ask thee Holy Father, that thy servants may go forth from this house armed with thy power and that thy name may be upon them, and thy glory be round about them, and thine angels have charge over them.
I love this scripture because it is so visual. It paints a picture in my mind. I see myself floating out of the temple, dressed in white, with angels floating over me, protecting me.
Richard: Not me. I picture myself leaving the temple in a full coat of armor with breastplate and shield in hand and with the name of Christ emblazoned across my chest.
Kathleen: Viva la difference!
Richard: So again: What does this principle mean in our lives? It means in order for us to succeed, we must learn to embrace the differences, rejoice in the differences, learn from the differences, use the differences in accomplishing common purposes. We have shared just two little examples, but we would challenge you to begin your quest in search of what you can personally learn from your temple experience. Remember, look for the principle; ask how it relates to the Savior and then how it relates to me. And then apply it. The Principle, the Savior and Me!
The House of the Lord
Richard: There is inscribed on every temple, including the Rexburg Temple, this statement: "Holiness to the Lord, The House of the Lord."President Hinckley has said that it might say, "Holiness is the House of the Lord." This means exactly what it says. Because of this, there is nothing that happens in the temple by chance. It is a place of exactness and of personal revelation.
Kathleen: One day when I was in the temple, a woman stopped me and said, "Oh, Sister Walker, it must be wonderful to spend so much time in the temple. I bet you have had lots of visions!" This caught me a little off guard. I have never had a vision, in the context of great visions. But as I thought about it, it occured to me that I don't seek a vision nor do I need a vision because every day that I was in the temple I had feelings that came to my heart and thoughts that came into my mind that testified to me of the divinity of the Lord's work. In the 8th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord is teaching Oliver Cowdery and the Prophet Joseph the process of personal revelation. He says:
Behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart. Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation...[2]
Very often people go to the temple seeking refuge, help, peace, and personal revelation. The temple is a place where the Lord can communicate with us in individual ways if our hearts are prepared to receive. About a year ago I had a letter from a woman who related this story. She said that she had married a man who was not a member of the Church. Together they had had five children, and they had had a good life. But recently their oldest daughter had come to them and said she was in love with a member of a polygamist family and she wanted to marry him. As a result, she was going to pull away from her own family and her religion. This mother was devastated. She said, "I didn't know what to say, I didn't know what to do, I didn't know how to handle this."It was her stake temple day that week and so she decided to go and spend the entire day in the temple. She started in the baptistery that morning. She said,
I just began with a prayer in my heart and felt somehow the Lord would be mindful of my need and help me with this terrible problem.
Early in the day, a thought came into her mind, and she heard herself say these words to her daughter, "It will be very sad for us when someday we go to the temple as a family and you are not with us." But she immediately brushed it aside thinking, "There is no way I can make such a promise. My husband is not even a member of the Church." She spent the day doing some endowment sessions, and that thought continued to come to her. But each time this thought came, she discounted it. Late in the day while participating in an ordinance she said,
I was just overcome with this sweet sense of gratitude. I knew that the Lord knew that we were having a problem. I didn't know what to do, but I knew the Lord knew and He would help me.
And so it was in the ensuing weeks she had an opportunity to visit with her daughter. She said,
In the course of the conversation, I heard myself saying the very words that had come to me that day in the temple. "It will be very sad for us when we go to be sealed as a family and you are not with us."
The remarkable thing is, the daughter responded. She found the courage to break up the relationship. And she subsequently met and they are planning a temple marriage. She then added this postscript:
Last week after nearly a year of learning the gospel through the love and patience of eight dedicated sister missionary, my husband has finally arrived at a baptismal date.
This is a woman who paid attention to the thoughts that came into her mind and the feelings that came into her heart that day when she was in the temple. She then took those feelings and thoughts into her home, and she saved a daughter. Nothing in the temple happens by chance. Pay attention when you are there. Listen to your heart and your thoughts and the Lord will school you and help you.
Richard: Think what the Lord has promised each of us, to you and to me: In the 97th section of the Doctrine and Covenants the Lord said this:
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 into 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, and all the pure in heart that shall come into it shall see God.[3]
I know that you can witness the Lord's presence in the temple and as you purify your heart you will come to know God through spiritual eyes. Sometimes you hear talk of how thin the veil is in the temple. Let me tell you. A short time ago in the Salt Lake Temple, we had such an experience. A young couple came to the temple. They had come from Sri Lanka to have their family sealed in the temple. They were a beautiful young couple with two beautiful children. The wife was to receive her own endowment, and then the family would be sealed. Before the endowment, the temple president and matron give instructions to those who are there for the first time. We did that on this day. It was so beautiful. We were both touched by young couple. With tears in their eyes, they expressed deep gratitude for the privilege of being in Salt Lake City in the Salt Lake Temple. This had always been a far off dream. Following the instruction period, Sister Walker said to me, "Do you have any idea who is performing the sealing today?" I said, "I really don't." She said, "Why don't you call upstairs and ask?" So I did. I was told that no one had yet been assigned. And then Sister Walker said to me, "Why don't you go do it?" Now brethren, this is evidence of the fact that some of our greatest inspiration will come from the women in our lives. When the time came, we went upstairs to the sealing rooms. They brought this beautiful young couple in and with tears running down their cheeks they received the eternal ordinance that joined them together forever. Then they brought the little four year old boy in. He was dressed in white, and was the picture of reverence. His arms were folded and he didn't make a peep. We had to have him step up and stand on the cushion at the side of the altar so he could put his little hand on top of his parents while the sealing took place. And then they brought his little sister in, eight months old, screaming at the top of her lungs. She had been away from her mother for more than two hours, and even her mother could not console her. She continued to scream, and so we proceeded by sitting her on the altar with her back turned to me. Her grandmother forcibly held her little hand on top of her brother's hand so that I could perform the sealing. This little girl continued to scream until I came to the point where I said, "And I seal you," (naming her), "to your father," (naming him), "and to your mother" (naming her). Instantly she stopped crying. She turned around and stared at me with big beautiful dark eyes. She remained completely silent until I said "amen" and then a huge smile came across her face. You know, I am convinced that that little girl physically had no idea what was happening in her life. She was too young. But spiritually, she knew. The Lord had taught her. Is it any wonder why He says unless you become as a little child, ye cannot enter the kingdom of God.[4] Her heart was pure and the Lord had granted her a kind of understanding that transcends our mortal knowledge. Glimpse of eternity. So also in the temple, the veil will become very thin. I testify that each of you can and will be taught by the Spirit if you will go there worthily and with your hearts prepared. Now your formal education at this institution will at some point end.
Kathleen: Believe it or not.
Richard: But the education you can achieve in the temple, in the House of the Lord, will never end. It will require a lifetime of study, hard work, prayer, pondering and applying what you learn in the temple, to obtain the promised blessings.Your formal education has the potential of awarding you a degree in your chosen field. But your spiritual education in temple has the potential of awarding you happiness in life and eternal exaltation in the presence of God. President Hinckley has said that the work of the temples is absolutely essential to our happiness. He also added:
I am satisfied that every man or woman who goes to the temple in a spirit of sincerity and faith leaves the House of the Lord a better man and better woman.[5]
Testimonies
Kathleen: The blessings of the temple are real. I would plead with you wonderful young people, don't deprive yourself of these blessings. Go to the temple with inquiring minds. Search for the principles that are being taught. Listen to your heart and your mind. I look at you today; and frankly, I wonder what you have ever done to deserve what you have: an education at this great institution, a temple almost next door. I don't know what you have done, but you must have done something spectacular. Surely you are a chosen generation and the Lord is preparing you for great things. Don't blow it! He will bless you. He will magnify you. He will make something of you, and then He will use you to further his work. My temple experience has been life changing. I would pray that yours may be the same. I know without question a temple is the House of the Lord and His spirit is always there. May you come to understand that in a very personal way, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Richard: May I just conclude with reminding you of two brief things. The Prophet Nephi taught:
And because of the righteousness of his people, Satan has no power;...for he hath no power over the hearts of the people, for they dwell in righteousness...[6]
So also is it in the House of the Lord. Satan has no power there. He cannot go there-unless you take him in. If you are there in righteousness, you are out of his reach. Now the Lord has given great promises to his faithful saints as contained in the 124th section of the Doctrine and Covenants. Listen to what He promises:
I command you again to build a house to my name, even in this place, that you may prove yourselves unto me that you are faithful in all things whatsoever I command you, that I may bless you, and crown you with honor, immortality, and eternal life.[7]
I bear you my solemn witness that I know beyond question that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, our Savior, our Redeemer. This building standing on the hill is literally His Holy House. And I testify to you that He teaches there daily to those who come with hearts prepared to be taught of the spirit. May that be your blessing. May you recognize that your happiness in life is tied to the House of the Lord. May God bless you to that end. May His choicest blessings rest upon you, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] Moses 4:12
[2] D&C 8:2-3
[3] D&C 97:15-16, emphasis added
[4] 3 Nephi 11:38
[5] Ensign, Nov. 1995, 53
[6] 1 Nephi 22:26
[7] D&C 124:55