And A Little Child Shall Lead Them

Not able to resist posting my granddaughter, I thought of a theme. Yesterday, early in the morning sun, she crawled over to the picture of the Temple. Of course she crawls to anything at floor level, but she did seem genuinely interested. 

The Temple is a family place. It's where we seal our families, living and dead, into family units to last the eternities based on keeping sacred covenants only possible by the great Atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Our faith system doesn't keep people out of heaven just for being of a different church or religion. But the sealing power has to be performed by the Lord's authorized priesthood and is still available even for all those others, again, living or dead.

The other evening as my daughter was preparing to leave for the Temple to receive her preparatory priesthood power from on high, I had a chance for a few words of counsel. I reminded her not to get caught up in all the symbolism of the Temple but to search for the deeper meaning. I asked her to pay attention to see that the Atonement of Christ was at the base of all the symbolic ceremony of initiation into God's presence. I was surprised to hear that same counsel heard in the prayer at the Temple. 

As customary with Mormon weddings, as sealing rooms are small and only the endowed, adult, close family and friends are allowed to the sealing by invitation, there is a lot of picture-taking after outside the Temple with extended family and friends. It was a hot day last Friday and the sun was  beating down.

Still, it was a surprise for most to see the east side - symbolic and ultimate entrance to the Bountiful Temple - as the regular entrance is on the south side. The golden letters and angel glowed in the purifying fire of the sun. 

"Holiness to the LORD - The House of the LORD"

East side of the Bountiful Temple in the just-before-mid-day sun