How Great Was Our Joy!

This last weekend was a wonderful time for our family. We were able to enjoy a weekend of General Conference for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  What a wonderful conference it was.  One of the main reasons this was such a special weekend for us was the announcement of the new Provo Temple that will replace the old historic Provo Tabernacle that burned down last winter.  It was such a tragic event and so sad to see the inside completely gutted with only the outside still standing.  We have been attending this building for our stake conferences since we moved to Provo 9 years ago.  

We were sooo excited to hear the announcement from President Thomas S. Monson that it had been decided to turn it into the 2nd temple in Provo.  So excited.  How blessed we are to already live so close to one, and yet now we have one only a few blocks from our home.  

The second reason we were so excited and had a hard time concentrating on the following speakers was the announcement for a temple to built in Star Valley Wyoming. Star Valley is the hometown of both Beau and I.  For years we've always wondered if we would ever see a day when a temple would be built there.  Just that morning before the session started I wondered what new temples would be announced and if we would ever hear one announced for Star Valley. What a blessing it could be to my family who still lived there.  When President Monson announced it, we all gasped wondering if we heard it right.  Was it a joke?  Is it for real?  It's so hard to describe the excitement and gratitude I felt.

There are so many people in the world that live so far from a temple and do not have the opportunity to get to one frequently or at all. I can only imagine the joy that overcomes them when they hear of one being built near them. I felt some of that, but have not been denied temple blessings because it was so far away as some of them have been. Why were we so blessed to get one in Star Valley and here?  All I can think of is "Where much is given, much is required."  We were equally excited to hear about the new patron fund that we can donate to in order to help those trying to get to a temple for their first time.  What an opportunity to give and help for something of such eternal importance to another person.

We are so excited to see the process of these two temples being built near us and our families, to be able to participate in the great work there when they are finished.  There is no place on earth that I would rather be than the inside of these beautiful structures where families can be sealed for eternity and where the presence of the Lord can be felt.  The peace and understanding I receive while I am there is worth so much to me. It is also such a blessing to participate in the work for those of my family who have passed beyond this mortal life.  How wonderful is our Father in Heaven to let us be a part of his amazing work.  How grateful I have been this last weekend to rejoice in his work moving forward in such a personal way to me.