by David E Bay, High Councilor

In the April 2024 General Conference, President Russell M. Nelson taught us about the blessings of serving in the House of the Lord.

Time in the temple will help you to think celestial and to catch a vision of who you really are, who you can become, and the kind of life you can have forever. Regular temple worship will enhance the way you see yourself and how you fit into God’s magnificent plan. I promise you that.
We are also promised that in the temple we may “receive a fulness of the Holy Ghost.” Imagine what that promise means in terms of having the heavens open for each earnest seeker of eternal truth.
We are instructed that all who worship in the temple will have the power of God and angels having “charge over them.” How much does it increase your confidence to know that, as an endowed woman or man armed with the power of God, you do not have to face life alone? What courage does it give you to know that angels really will help you?
Finally, we are promised that “no combination of wickedness” will prevail over those who worship in the house of the Lord.
Understanding the spiritual privileges made possible in the temple is vital to each of us today.
My dear brothers and sisters, here is my promise. Nothing will help you more to hold fast to the iron rod than worshipping in the temple as regularly as your circumstances permit. Nothing will protect you more as you encounter the world’s mists of darkness. Nothing will bolster your testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ and His Atonement or help you understand God’s magnificent plan more. Nothing will soothe your spirit more during times of pain. Nothing will open the heavens more. Nothing!

Rejoice in the Gift of Priesthood Keys by President Russell M. Nelson April 2024

One of the great ways to spend time regularly in the temple is to become a Temple Ordinance Worker or a Service Missionary serving in the temple. Besides the basic requirement of having a current temple recommend, brothers who serve as Ordinance Workers or Missionaries are required to be clean-shaven.
Over the years, the methods of being called to serve in the temple have varied somewhat. Currently, the approach is based on D&C 4:3 “Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work” If you are interested in serving either as an ordinance worker or as a service missionary, let your bishop know of your desire and he will inform the temple.

When there are openings, you will be contacted and coordinated before being officially called and set apart to perform these responsibilities.

Previously, if you wanted to serve as an ordinance worker on a weekday, Tuesday through Friday, you would be requested to serve either on both Tuesday and Wednesday or both Thursday and Friday. However, President Michael Hess, the Brigham City Temple President, has made it an option to serve on a single day if that is best for you.

Unfortunately, the Brigham City Temple finds it a little more difficult to find people willing to serve on Fridays and Saturdays than on other days of the week. I suppose that many people think that because their family activities happen occasionally on Saturdays or Fridays, they will avoid those days. What a great blessing those people are missing out on.

I cannot tell you what will work in your situation but let me share my experience of serving the Brigham City Temple as an ordinance worker since August 2014 on the Saturday evening shift. Yes, our family has activities on Saturday evenings and I choose to be with my family. It is not very difficult to find someone to substitute for me so I can do activities that are important for my family, my calling, my job, or other reasons. Usually, I will trade, so that I substitute for them when they need me and they serve on my shift for me.

I am not sure what current openings may or may not be available, often, there is a waiting list for having the blessing of serving as an Ordinance Worker or a Service Missionary in the temple. In that case, you can still make appointments to come to the House of the Lord and serve Him as a patron. I hope you will do as President Nelson encourages us.

Regular worship in the temple will help us. In the house of the Lord, we focus on Jesus Christ. We learn of Him. We make covenants to follow Him. We come to know Him. As we keep our temple covenants, we gain greater access to the Lord’s strengthening power. In the temple, we receive protection from the buffetings of the world. We experience the pure love of Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father in great abundance! We feel peace and spiritual reassurance, in contrast to the turbulence of the world.
Here is my promise to you: Every sincere seeker of Jesus Christ will find Him in the temple. You will feel His mercy. You will find answers to your most vexing questions. You will better comprehend the joy of His gospel.

The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again by President Russell M. Nelson October 2024