I went to the temple last night, just like I've sung about since I was a little girl. I made covenants with my Father, and in return I was promised eternal and beautifully powerful blessings. I feel His Spirit telling me that what I did was right, and I feel His Spirit testify that the temple is the House of the Lord. I know what I did last night was an essential step in my eternal progress. I love the Lord, and His restored gospel here on the Earth. And I am so excited to share it with the people in New Jersey! {LDS.ORG}
It was a step of faith for me to go through the temple; I did not know what exactly to expect. That is because what happens in the temple is so sacred that we do not talk about it outside of the walls of the temple. It is important that we keep the gift of the temple as sacred as the Lord intends it to be. I received what is called "the endowment," or in other words a gift. I promised Heavenly Father obedience and in return was given powerful blessings and protection in this life.
Please read the portion of the article below called "Endowed with Covenants and Blessings" written in the February 1995 Ensign, a magazine published monthly by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It talks about the endowment and what happens in the temple. If you would like to read the full article, follow this link: "Endowed with Covenants and Blessings"
"A person usually enters the temple the first time to receive what is called the endowment. After receiving the endowment, a person then is able to be married in the temple, which in temple terminology is called beingsealed.
Since Latter-day Saints do not discuss in detail the ordinances of the temple outside of the temple, how may an appropriate overview be given to interested members and friends? Fortunately, leaders who have been Presidents of the Church or who have been members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles have given perceptive, helpful summaries.
It was through the Prophet Joseph Smith in the nineteenth century that the Lord restored again to earth the holy ordinances of temple covenants and blessings. The following recollection of President George Q. Cannon of the First Presidency describes the intense interest that members of the Church had in the 1840s when the blessings of the temple were again made available to mankind:
“When the Prophet Joseph [Smith] first communicated that the Lord had revealed to him the keys of the endowment, I can remember the great desire there was on every hand to understand something about them. When the Prophet would speak about his desire to complete the temple in order that he might impart unto his fellow servants that which God had delivered to him, a thrill went through the congregation and a great desire for this filled their hearts” (Gospel Truth, Discourses and Writings of President George Q. Cannon, 2 vols., comp. Jerreld L. Newquist, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1974, 1:228)...
Another insight regarding the endowment was given by Elder John A. Widtsoe, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and a widely known university president and scientist. Elder Widtsoe wrote:
“The endowment given to members of the Church in the temples falls into several divisions. First, there is a course of instruction relative to man’s eternal journey from the dim beginning towards his possible glorious destiny. Then, conditions are set up by which that endless journey may be upward in direction. Those who receive this information covenant to obey the laws of eternal progress, and thereby give life to the knowledge received. Finally, it is made clear that a man must sometimes give an account of his deeds, and prove the possession of divine knowledge and religious works. It is a very beautiful, logical and inspiring series of ceremonies” (A Rational Theology, 7th ed., Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1965, pp. 125–26).
President Brigham Young succinctly described the endowment from a different perspective. He observed that the endowment will prove to be vital for us after we leave mortality:
“Let me give you a definition in brief. Your endowment is, to receive all those ordinances in the house of the Lord, which are necessary for you, after you have departed this life, to enable you to walk back to the presence of the Father, passing the angels who stand as sentinels, being enabled to give them the key words, the signs and tokens, pertaining to the holy Priesthood, and gain your eternal exaltation in spite of earth and hell” (Discourses of Brigham Young, comp. John A. Widtsoe, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1941, p. 416).
In temples, Latter-day Saints receive an overview of the Lord’s plan for his children. They learn of their premortal, mortal, and postmortal lives and of the blessings they can receive in the next life.
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints often speak of the influence temple covenants and ordinances have in their lives. How might one who has not been to the temple best sense this influence? Elder Joseph Fielding Smith, President of the Church in the 1970s, wrote the following:
“If we go into the temple we raise our hands and covenant that we will serve the Lord and observe his commandments and keep ourselves unspotted from the world. If we realize what we are doing, then the endowment will be a protection to us all our lives—a protection which a man who does not go to the temple does not have.
“I have heard my father say that in the hour of trial, in the hour of temptation, he would think of the promises, the covenants that he made in the House of the Lord, and they were a protection to him. … This protection is what these ceremonies are for, in part. They save us now and exalt us hereafter, if we will honor them. I know that this protection is given for I, too, have realized it, as have thousands of others who have remembered their obligations” (Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine, July 1930, p. 103)."
Ruby says it all: (Plus she's adorable!!!)
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