It's been a good week here in the Philippines! Sunny still, so that's nice. Sometimes it doesn't feel quite like Christmas without the snow, but I don't really love the cold so it's alright that it's warm still. The other day it got down to 60 ish and that felt pretty chilly. But still no snow. This week I have been reading a little about the temple, and the importance of it. We are trying to prepare a couple of families in our branch for the stake temple trip this April, and as I have pondered the blessings of the temple I have really come to realize how incredible of a blessing the temple is for us. The temple is literally the house of the Lord, and he has promised many blessings from it. He has promised us that thousands will rejoice in the blessings of the temple, and that He will appear to His servants there. (D&C 110:8-9) The temple is a place where we can go to receive solace and guidance and relief in this crazy out of control world. The temple is a place where we can go and forget about all of the things of the world, and just focus on the things of the Lord, the things that matter most in life. One family that we are helping to prepare to enter the temple is the Marcos family. They are a returning less active family, and they are some of the nicest people. They have a great desire to become better, and be sealed as a family for eternity. One of their daughters, Hashley was able to go to the temple this last week to perform baptisms for the dead. They went for three days, and were able to just spend time at the temple with some of the youth from the stake. When she came back from that experience, she was a different person. Me and my companion were talking to her mother and she said that before Hashley went to the temple, she wasn't always willing to do chores, she spent a lot of time just texting, and she wasn't always consistent at reading the scriptures. When she came back though, she had changed. She became more willing and diligent to help out around the home. She no longer cared that much about the phone, but more about the people she was with, and she could often be found just sitting and reading the scriptures. As sister Marcos related the story of her daughter's change to us, I couldn't help but be grateful for the blessings of the temple. Before I left on my mission I took the temple for granted far to often. It was only fifteen minutes away, and I could go whenever I wanted, and because of that, I never felt a strong desire to attend. When I did attend, I many times took the whole experience for granted. I never allowed the temple to change me in the ways that it could have. So, that is my challenge to all of you this week. Go to the Temple of the Lord. As soon as possible. Spend some time there just thinking about your blessings you have received, all that you are grateful for, and any problems that you may need help with. Spend some time to just become closer to God. Forget about all worldly cares for that time, and just focus on things that matter most. I promise all of you, that if you do this, you will be uplifted. You will be able to become closer to God. You will receive more of the Spirit in your life. You will be happier. That is my promise to you, and that is the Lord's promise to you. I love you all, and have a wonderful week.
Elder Childs
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