Not Your Ordinary Temple Session

I love going to the temple after not going for awhile. Chad and I finally got back to the temple this week after several weeks of being lazy. It was such a wonderful session. It was a very reflective session for both of us. We came out of the temple feeling so blessed. I love that feeling!

Through the first part of the session, I was able to reflect on those covenants I made for myself last October. I was able to see how I, personally, and how Chad and I, as a couple, have been blessed for keeping those covenants. Just as Adam and Abraham of old sacrificed the first-lings of their flocks, the first thing Chad and I do with each paycheck is pull out tithing so that money is not spent before we can hand it to a member of the bishopric. Paying tithing has never been hard for us. It seems like such a small act while we are doing it but that small act has produced numerous blessings for us. That is just one example. It is such a wonderful thing to be able to reflect on the things you are doing right and the blessings that come from that. It has given me more motivation to be better in the areas that I lack. I love the Gospel. :)

I was also able to reflect on the wonderful Plan of Salvation and the blessings we receive through the Atonement of Christ. We have such a loving Heavenly Father who wants nothing more than for His children to be able to return to live with Him. He knew we would fall terribly short of that mark so He sent His Only Begotten Son to this earth to pay the price.

The agony Christ suffered in Gethsemane is incomprehensible for any human to image. It goes beyond just pain. He suffered ALL pain. This painting was created by one of my favorite artists, Liz Lemon Swindle. I was very touched by her comment on this painting. She said, "When I started this painting, I believed that Gethsemane was about the suffering of Christ. About the agony so intense that He trembled because of pain and bled from every pore. By the time I finished, I saw that the miracle of Gethsemane went beyond the suffering. The miracle was the love that brought Him there."

He loved each one of us so much that he would suffer everything for us so that we had someone to turn to in times of loneliness, distress, and grief. He suffered all and died for us so that we could return to our Heavenly Father's presence.

And He was resurrected after His death. He lives! He stands before us with His arms opened. He is always there for us. He is there to carry us when our load is too heavy to bear and He is there to lead us back to the right path when we have fallen away. His Atonement and Resurrection are infinite. His love for us is infinite. How wonderful is it to have a Father and a Brother who have set up such a wonderful plan for us so we can return to live with them. I love My Father in Heaven. I love Christ. I know that He lives. And I know that He blesses me and my little family beyond what we could've even imagined. What a wonderful life I have!

Painting: 'Gethsemane' by Liz Lemon Swindle
Photo: Taken of me before the Christus, May 2008