Doctrine and Covenants 97: 18-28; Moses 7: 18

What does being pure in heart look like in your life right now?

"18 And, now, behold, if Zion do these things she shall prosper, and spread herself and become very glorious, very great, and very terrible.

19 And the nations of the earth shall honor her, and shall say: Surely Zion is the city of our God, and surely Zion cannot fall, neither be moved out of her place, for God is there, and the hand of the Lord is there;

20 And he hath sworn by the power of his might to be her salvation and her high tower.

21 Therefore, verily, thus saith the Lord, let Zion rejoice, for this is Zion—the pure in heart; therefore, let Zion rejoice, while all the wicked shall mourn.

22 For behold, and lo, vengeance cometh speedily upon the ungodly as the whirlwind; and who shall escape it?

23 The Lord’s scourge shall pass over by night and by day, and the report thereof shall vex all people; yea, it shall not be stayed until the Lord come;

24 For the indignation of the Lord is kindled against their abominations and all their wicked works.

25 Nevertheless, Zion shall escape if she observe to do all things whatsoever I have commanded her.

26 But if she observe not to do whatsoever I have commanded her, I will visit her according to all her works, with sore affliction, with pestilence, with plague, with sword, with vengeance, with devouring fire.

27 Nevertheless, let it be read this once to her ears, that I, the Lord, have accepted of her offering; and if she sin no more none of these things shall come upon her;

28 And I will bless her with blessings, and multiply a multiplicity of blessings upon her, and upon her generations forever and ever, saith the Lord your God. Amen." (Doctrine and Covenants 97: 18-28)

"18 And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them." (Moses 7: 18)

And here's the commentary entitled: "Zion is “the pure in heart.”" : 

"To the Saints in the 1830s, Zion was a place. In the revelation in section 97, the Lord expanded the definition to describe a people—“the pure in heart” (verse 21). As you read verses 18–28, you could substitute this definition when you read the word Zion. What does it mean to you to be pure in heart?

See also Moses 7:18."

The pure in heart is striving to observe all the things whatsoever the Lord has commanded. And that's how being pure in heart look like in my life right now. 

The pure in heart's offering is definitely accepted by the Lord because God is where the pure in heart is. And if the pure in heart sin no more, none of the sore affliction, with pestilence, with plague, with sword, with vengeance, with devouring fire shall come upon her. And she will be blessed by the Lord with blessings, and multiply a multiplicity of blessings upon her, and upon her generations forever and ever. 

Doctrine and Covenants 97: 8-9; Being Accepted of the Lord By Elder Erich W. Kopischke Of the Seventy

What does it mean to you to be accepted by the Lord?

"8 Verily I say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest, and are broken, and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice—yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord, shall command—they are accepted of me.

9 For I, the Lord, will cause them to bring forth as a very fruitful tree which is planted in a goodly land, by a pure stream, that yieldeth much precious fruit." (Doctrine and Covenants 97: 8-9)

"Seeking and receiving the acceptance of the Lord will lead to the knowledge that we are chosen and blessed by Him.

When I was a boy, I remember my father sometimes taking me with him to work on projects. We had a little garden a few kilometers from where we lived, and there was always so much to do to prepare the garden each season. We worked on the gazebo or built or repaired fences. In my memory this work always occurred in the freezing cold, heavy snow, or pouring rain. But I loved it. My father would teach me how to do things with patience and acceptance.

One day he invited me to tighten a screw and warned, “Remember, if you put it in too tight, it will break.” Proudly, I wanted to show him what I could do. I tightened with all my might, and, of course, I broke the screw. He made a funny comment, and we started over. Even when I “messed up,” I always felt his love and confidence in me. He passed away more than 10 years ago, but I can still hear his voice, sense his love, enjoy his encouragement, and feel his acceptance.

The feeling of being accepted by someone we love is a basic human need. Being accepted by good people motivates us. It increases our sense of self-worth and self-confidence. Those who cannot find acceptance from desirable sources often seek it elsewhere. They may look to people who are not interested in their well-being. They may attach themselves to false friends and do questionable things to try to receive the acknowledgment they are seeking. They may seek acceptance by wearing a particular brand of clothing to generate a feeling of belonging or status. For some, striving for a role or a position of prominence can also be a way of seeking acceptance. They may define their worth by a position they hold or status they obtain.

Even in the Church we are not always free from this type of thinking. Seeking acceptance from the wrong sources or for incorrect reasons puts us on a dangerous path—one that is likely to lead us astray and even to destruction. Instead of feeling cherished and self-confident, we will eventually feel abandoned and inferior.

Alma counseled his son Helaman, “See that ye look to God and live.” The ultimate source of empowerment and lasting acceptance is our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. They know us. They love us. They do not accept us because of our title or position. They do not look at our status. They look into our hearts. They accept us for who we are and what we are striving to become. Seeking and receiving acceptance from Them will always lift and encourage us.

I will share a simple pattern which, if applied, can help every one of us find ultimate acceptance. This pattern was given by the Lord through the Prophet Joseph Smith: “Verily I say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest, and are broken, and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice—yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord, shall command—they are accepted of me.”

This pattern consists of three simple steps:

1. Know that our hearts are honest and broken,

2. Know that our spirits are contrite, and

3. Be willing to observe our covenants by sacrifice, as commanded by the Lord.

First, we need to know that our hearts are honest and broken. How do we know that? We begin by engaging in sincere self-reflection. The heart is the center of our feelings. As we look into our hearts, we screen ourselves. What no one around us knows, we surely know. We know our motives and desires. When we engage in sincere, honest reflection, we do not rationalize or deceive ourselves.

There is also a way to judge if our hearts are broken. A broken heart is a soft, an open, and a receptive heart. When I hear the Savior say, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock,” I hear Him knocking at the door of my heart. If I open this door to Him, I am more responsive to the invitations of the Spirit, and I am more accepting of God’s will.

As we sincerely and prayerfully ponder the extent to which our hearts are honest and broken, we will be taught by the Holy Ghost. We will receive a sweet confirmation or gentle correction, inviting us to act.

Second, we have to know that our spirit is contrite. The word contrite in the Oxford dictionary is defined as “feeling or expressing remorse at the recognition that one has done wrong.” If we have a contrite spirit, we acknowledge our sins and shortcomings. We are teachable “concerning [all] things pertaining to righteousness.” We feel godly sorrow and are willing to repent. A contrite spirit is willing to listen “to the enticings of the Holy Spirit.”

A contrite spirit is manifest by our willingness and determination to act. We are willing to humble ourselves before God, willing to repent, willing to learn, and willing to change. We are willing to pray, “Not my will, but thine, be done.”

The third step to being accepted by the Lord is a conscious decision to observe our covenants through sacrifice, “yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord, shall command.” Too often we think that the word sacrifice refers to something big or hard for us to do. In certain situations this may be true, but mostly it refers to living day-to-day as a true disciple of Christ.

One way we observe our covenants by sacrifice is worthily partaking of the sacrament each week. We consciously prepare ourselves for the sacred ordinance. We renew and confirm our sacred promises to the Lord. In this way we feel His acceptance and receive His assurance that our efforts are recognized and our sins are forgiven through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. During this ordinance, the Lord promises us that as we are willing to take upon us the name of His Son and always remember Him and keep His commandments, we will always have His Spirit to be with us. Having the Holy Ghost as our constant companion is the ultimate indicator of being accepted of God.

Other ways to observe our covenants by sacrifice are as simple as accepting a calling in the Church and faithfully serving in that calling or following the invitation of our prophet, Thomas S. Monson, to reach out to those who are standing at the wayside and need to be spiritually rescued. We observe our covenants by sacrifice by giving silent service in our neighborhood or community or by finding the names of our ancestors and doing temple work for them. We observe our covenants by sacrifice by simply striving for righteousness, being open, and listening to the promptings of the Spirit as we live our daily lives. Sometimes observing our covenants means nothing more than standing firmly and faithfully when the storms of life are raging all around us.

After explaining the pattern of how to be accepted by Him, the Lord uses a wonderful illustration to show how we profit as individuals and families as we seek His acceptance. He said, “For I, the Lord, will cause them to bring forth as a very fruitful tree which is planted in a goodly land, by a pure stream, that yieldeth much precious fruit.”

As we are personally in tune with the Spirit of the Lord and feel His acceptance, we will be blessed above our understanding and bring forth many fruits of righteousness. We will be among those to whom He has said, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”

Seeking and receiving the acceptance of the Lord will lead to the knowledge that we are chosen and blessed by Him. We will gain increased confidence that He will lead us and direct us for good. His tender mercies will become evident in our hearts, in our lives, and in our families.

With all my heart I invite you to seek the Lord’s acceptance and enjoy His promised blessings. As we follow the simple pattern the Lord has laid out, we will come to know that we are accepted of Him, regardless of our position, status, or mortal limitations. His loving acceptance will motivate us, increase our faith, and help us deal with everything we face in life. Despite our challenges, we will be successful, prosper, and feel at peace. We will be among those to whom the Lord said:

“Fear not, little children, for you are mine, and I have overcome the world, and you are of them that my Father hath given me;

“And none of them that my Father hath given me shall be lost.”

In the name of Jesus Christ, amen." (Being Accepted of the Lord By Elder Erich W. Kopischke Of the Seventy)

And here's the commentary entitled: “They are accepted of me.” : 

"Think about a time when you were accepted—or not accepted—into a group or team. How is that similar to or different from what Doctrine and Covenants 97:8–9 teaches about what it means to be accepted of the Lord? What do you think the Lord is trying to teach you with the metaphor in verse 9?

See also Erich W. Kopischke, “Being Accepted of the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2013, 104–6."

With the metaphor in verse 9, the Lord is trying to teach me that He wants me to become like a fruitful tree, planted in a goodly land, by a pure stream, that yieldeth much precious fruit. Being a fruitful tree yielding much precious fruit to me means being able to accomplish the work of the Lord as much as I possibly can through my sacrifice of my time and energy. 

Reading Elder Kopischke talk, Being Accepted of the Lord, made me realize I can do more to be accepted of the Lord. I've been taking the names of my ancestors and doing the temple work for them regularly, but I need to put more effort doing searching of their names. And I need to put more effort in helping others so their names will be searched. So I decided to do indexing regularly rather than once in a while, and I got back to it last night. I'm grateful for my sister, Ponx (next to me) for doing a lot of searching the names of our ancestors herself. I feel inspired by her example. So I decided to get back to doing some searching myself, and I started this morning. So, now I'm back to doing family history work, and I'll do my best to be more consistent with this, just as I've been consistent with getting up at 4 AM, doing my latin dancing exercise, and writing this blog. If I can be consistent with things that are important to me, I can be consistent with doing what the Lord wants me to do so I can be more fruitful and be more accepted of the Lord. 

Hebrews 8: 5; Exodus 25: 8-9; Numbers 2: 1-2; Doctrine and Covenants 95: 13-14; 94: 1

💫 In what ways have you seen God bless your life as you’ve chosen to follow His commandments in His way—rather than following the patterns and pressures of the world?

"5 Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount." (Hebrews 8: 5)

"8 And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.

9 According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it." (Exodus 25: 8-9)

"1 And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

2 Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their father’s house: far off about the tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch." (Numbers 2: 1-2)

"13 Now here is wisdom, and the mind of the Lord—let the house be built, not after the manner of the world, for I give not unto you that ye shall live after the manner of the world;

14 Therefore, let it be built after the manner which I shall show unto three of you, whom ye shall appoint and ordain unto this power." (Doctrine and Covenants 95: 13-14)

"1 And again, verily I say unto you, my friends, a commandment I give unto you, that ye shall commence a work of laying out and preparing a beginning and foundation of the city of the stake of Zion, here in the land of Kirtland, beginning at my house." (Doctrine and Covenants 94: 1)

"On June 1, 1833, Joseph Smith received a revelation that contained a stern rebuke. “Ye have sinned against me a very grievous sin,” the Lord declared, “in that ye have not considered the great commandment in all things that I have given unto you concerning the building of mine house.” That “great commandment” had come five months earlier in a lengthy revelation Joseph called the “olive leaf” (now Doctrine and Covenants 88). It had directed the Saints to “organize [themselves]” and establish “an house of prayer, an house of fasting, an house of faith, an house of learning, an house of glory, an house of order, an house of God.”

Taken together with instructions to “teach one another” and “seek learning even by study and also by faith,” Joseph Smith and the elders in Kirtland understood this revelation to deliver a twofold mandate. They were to “build an house of God, & establish a school for the Prophets.” Joseph Smith and the Saints in Kirtland began acting on this instruction almost immediately, but, as the June 1 revelation indicated, they still had only a dim understanding of what it would ultimately mean or of the enormous sacrifices it would require.

“Ye Have Not Considered”

Within weeks of the olive leaf revelation, the School of the Prophets was well under way, with as many as 25 men meeting in a small room above the Newel K. Whitney Store (see Nathan Waite, “A School and an Endowment: D&C 88, 90, 95, 109, 110,” on page 174 of this book). The school adjourned for the season by April 1833, and Joseph and the brethren turned their attention to the practical aspects of fulfilling the revelation. Land purchases were soon finalized, and men were appointed to oversee the various industries on those properties. On May 4, a conference of high priests met to consider “the necessity of building a school house for the purpose of accommodating the Elders who should come in to receive their education for the ministry.” Hyrum Smith, Jared Carter, and Reynolds Cahoon were appointed “a committee to obtain subscriptions [donations], for the purpose of Erecting such a building.”

Though the building would come to be known as the Kirtland Temple, the Saints in 1833 did not yet know they were building a temple. They had read of temples in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, but they still knew little about them. Two years earlier, a revelation had indicated that a temple would be built in Jackson County, Missouri. Joseph Smith himself had helped set the cornerstone in 1831, but almost no progress had been made, and further revelations gave only a faint view of what the purpose of temples was to be.

The records from the spring of 1833 show that the Saints were thinking of the Kirtland “house” primarily as a “school house,” not necessarily connecting their command with the temple in Zion. Now the June 1 revelation declared that Joseph Smith and the Saints had not sufficiently “considered” the urgency or the importance of the commandment.

That revelation (now Doctrine and Covenants 95) gave some indication of the bigger picture. It revealed that in the “house” the Lord would “endow those whom I have chosen with power from on high”—connecting the construction of the house with a promised endowment of power. It specified the interior dimensions of the building—55 feet wide by 65 feet long—and described the functions of the upper and lower floors of the “inner court,” a phrase that evoked images of the biblical temple in Jerusalem. The revelation also promised further instruction. The house was to be built “not after the manner of the world,” but “after the manner which I shall show unto three of you, whom ye shall appoint and ordain unto this power.”

Joseph Smith and his counselors, Sidney Rigdon and Frederick G. Williams, were duly appointed “to obtain a draft or construction of the inner court of the house.” Williams later described the ensuing vision. “We went upon our knees,” he remembered, “called on the Lord, and the Building appeared within viewing distance: I being the first to discover it. Then all of us viewed it together. After we had taken a good look at the exterior, the building seemed to come right over us.” The finished building, he said, “seemed to coincide with that I there saw to a minutia.”

One fundamental question settled by this vision was the matter of what materials to use in building the house. Lucy Mack Smith remembered a council meeting in which it was decided that a frame building would be too expensive; a log house was proposed instead. Joseph Smith reminded them “that they were not making a house for themselves or any other man but a house for God.” He said, “And shall we, brethren, build a house for Our God of logs? No, brethren, I have a better plan than that. I have the plan of the house of the Lord given by himself.” Lucy remembered Joseph saying that this plan would show them “the difference between our calculations and his Ideas.” The brethren were “delighted” when Joseph described the full plan, which envisioned a stone structure.

A Plan for a “City of the Stake of Zion”

These events expanded the vision of Joseph Smith and the Saints regarding the physical appearance of the house of the Lord to be built in Kirtland; other revelations contributed to an understanding of Zion and its geography. In June, three weeks after the presidency received their assignment to obtain the Lord’s will regarding the design of the house of the Lord in Kirtland, they produced a plat map for the proposed city of Zion in Missouri that placed the temple at the center and included a sketch of its size, form, and dimensions. The presidency directed Missouri leaders to build according to these patterns “immediately in Zion.”

Meanwhile, a revelation of June 4, 1833 (now Doctrine and Covenants 96), instructed that Bishop Newel K. Whitney take charge of the property on which the house of the Lord was to be built in Kirtland. Kirtland would be the “city of the stake of Zion”—a secondary gathering place patterned after the center place in Missouri. As directed in a revelation dated August 2, 1833 (now Doctrine and Covenants 94), it would be laid out similar to the plan for Missouri, with the house of the Lord at the center, much as the temple was the focus of the envisioned city of Zion. The revelation also called for the construction of two additional buildings—a “house” for the presidency and another for a printing operation—to be built alongside the temple in the city’s center. Also on August 2, a revelation (Doctrine and Covenants 97) reiterated the command that a “house” be built in Zion (Missouri), “like unto the pattern which I have given you.” It was to be “built speedily” for a place of thanksgiving and instruction.

Guided by the revelations, the presidency drew a Kirtland plat map and revised the plat for the city of Zion in Missouri. They sent the revised plans and copies of the revelations to leaders in Missouri, but by the time the letter arrived, mob violence had broken out. Within months, Church members were forced to vacate Jackson County and put on hold any plans to build a temple there.

Joseph Smith’s efforts at city planning were not unique in 19th-century America. They have been called “one flake in a blizzard of town plans” during that era of rapid westward expansion and urban development. The plans for the city of Zion also appeared similar to those of many other towns—drawn up in a grid pattern and carefully laid out in the cardinal directions, with wide streets and spacious lots. But there was a crucial difference: Zion was centered on temples, not markets. It was a place of gathering, where converts came to live in sacred space and from which missionaries fanned out to preach the gospel—which led more people to gather. This spiritual and geographical pattern established in the summer of 1833 would shape Latter-day Saint communities for the rest of the century and beyond.

“One Mainspring to All Our Thoughts”

After the violence in Missouri, efforts to build the house of the Lord in Kirtland began to accelerate. Responding to the aforementioned revelations, the previously appointed committee of Hyrum Smith, Reynolds Cahoon, and Jared Carter was now called the “building committee,” and its mandate was expanded from fundraising to construction. They were to “proceed immediately to commence building the House or obtaining materials, Stone Brick Lumber &c.” On June 7, Hyrum Smith recorded in his diary, “This day commenced making preparations for the Building of the House of the Lord.”

Building the temple would be a huge challenge for the Saints. In the summer of 1833, there were only 150 members of the Church living in the area. None of them had the traditional qualifications to oversee such an ambitious construction project—there was not a single architect or engineer among them, or even an experienced draftsman to draw up the plans. Money was already tight, and the construction of the large, distinguished building, at an estimated cost of $40,000, stretched the Church’s financial resources beyond capacity over the next three years.

While the building’s dimensions and functions and some aspects of its appearance were specified by revelation, other elements were left up to the leaders and workers on the site. The building’s design shows that they drew on their own experience and assumptions about what a church building should look like. Its shape reflects the popular Greek Revival style. Like many builders of the time, they also borrowed an eclectic mix of features from standard building manuals. The Gothic windows were widely associated with religious buildings, and the tower and steeple had become iconic features of New England churches.

By that fall, stone foundation walls were in place, but construction soon ground to a halt. Workers at the Church-owned brickyard had not been able to produce enough bricks of sufficient quality for use in construction. A decision was made to “discontinue the building of the temple for the winter for want of materials and to prepare and get all things ready to recommence it early in the spring.”

The next major phase of construction began with the arrival in April 1834 of Artemus Millet, a convert and experienced masonry builder from Canada. Millet’s crucial contribution was the suggestion to use a rubblework-and-stucco building technique instead of the more expensive brick construction. Following his counsel, the Saints built the walls of rough stone, hauled in from the nearby sandstone quarry, which was then faced with stucco to give it a finished look.

The spring and summer of 1834 were difficult seasons for construction on the temple because most of the men in the community went with Joseph Smith to Missouri in the Camp of Israel, hoping to aid the Saints who had been driven by mob violence from their homes. With the men gone, women carried on the labor. Some did masonry, others drove cattle and hauled rock, and still others sewed, spun, and knit to make clothing for workers.

The return of Joseph Smith and most of the men from the Camp of Israel meant constructing the temple once again became the primary focus of activity in Kirtland. Joseph himself “acted as foreman in the temple stone quarry” and labored on the building “when other duties would permit.” By February 1835, the walls were in place and work had begun on the roof. A meeting was held on March 7, 1835, at which Joseph Smith expressed appreciation to those “who had distinguished themselves Thus far by consecrating to the upbuilding of said house as well as laboring [on its construction].” Sidney Rigdon then gave blessings to 120 individuals who had assisted in building the house of the Lord through their work and consecration.

By that fall, there was even greater urgency to finish the temple. Lucy Mack Smith expressed the dedication of Church members to the effort. “There was but one main spring to all our thoughts,” she said, “and that was building the Lords house.” Truman Angell, a carpenter’s apprentice from Providence, Rhode Island, took the lead on the carpentry work in the upper level. Brigham Young and his brother Joseph employed their expert craftsmanship to build and install the windows. Another Young brother, Lorenzo, worked with Artemus Millet on the exterior stucco, a challenging job in the cold winter weather. The plastering of the interior was overseen by Jacob Bump, a skilled carpenter who had also built the pulpits and crafted the beautiful woodwork in the lower court. Stoves were strategically placed to warm the interior and aid in the drying of the plaster.

Women worked on the veils that would be hung from the ceiling to subdivide the lower hall and made other furnishings for the temple. Joseph Smith later “pronounced a blessing upon the Sisters for the liberality in giving their servises so cheerfully to make the veil for the Lord’s house.” Children even helped by gathering broken dishes and glassware, which were added to the stucco to help it glisten in the sun.

“A Place to Manifest Himself”

The interior of the temple was completed in stages, and as rooms were completed, Church leaders and members began to use them for various purposes. Meanwhile, Joseph Smith labored relentlessly to prepare the Saints spiritually for the manifestations promised in the revelations. “I returned to my house being weary with continual anxiety & labour in puting all the Authorities in [order] & in striving to purify them for the solemn assembly according to the commandment of the Lord,” he recorded in his journal on January 30, 1836. Just a few days earlier, in the midst of such preparations, Joseph had received a vision of the celestial kingdom (Doctrine and Covenants 137); other spiritual outpourings during this period offered a glimpse of even greater experiences to come.

The dedication of the house of the Lord was a moment of celebration and satisfaction for the early Saints. The revelations of three years earlier had taken shape through immeasurable sacrifices of labor and resources. In the dedicatory prayer, now found in Doctrine and Covenants 109, Joseph Smith pleaded, “We ask thee, O Lord, to accept of this house, the workmanship of the hands of us, thy servants, which thou didst command us to build; for thou knowest that we have done this work through great tribulation: and out of our poverty we have given of our substance to build a house to thy name, that the Son of Man might have a place to manifest himself to his people.”

The promised manifestations did come. The Savior appeared and declared his acceptance of the temple, and other heavenly beings committed priesthood keys to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. Those manifestations opened the way for future temple revelations and ordinances. Having shown their willingness to build the Lord a house, the Latter-day Saints had only just begun to learn the purpose of temples."(“A House for Our God” D&C 88, 94, 95, 96, 97, 109, 110, 137 Lisa Olsen Tait and Brent Rogers)

And here's the introductory commentary for this week's reading assignment: "September 1–7: “For the Salvation of Zion” Doctrine and Covenants 94–97"

"Anciently, the Lord commanded Moses to build a tabernacle “according to the pattern shewed to [him] in the mount” (Hebrews 8:5; see also Exodus 25:8–9). The tabernacle was to be the center of Israel’s wilderness camp (see Numbers 2:1–2).

In 1833, the Lord commanded Joseph Smith to build temples “not after the manner of the world” but rather “after the manner which I shall show” (Doctrine and Covenants 95:13–14; see also 97:10). Like the tabernacle in the wilderness, the temple was meant to be a central feature in Kirtland (see Doctrine and Covenants 94:1).

Today, temples are found around the world. Even if they aren’t at the center of our cities, they point us to Christ, who should be the center of our lives. Though each temple differs in appearance, within them we learn the same divine pattern—a heavenly plan to bring us back into the presence of God. Sacred ordinances and covenants connect us to Christ and strengthen our families “not after the manner of the world” but after the pattern God shows us.

See Saints, 1:169–70; “A House for Our God,” in Revelations in Context, 165–73."    

Just as the saints obeyed the Lord's commandment to build His house after the Lord's pattern even though they were in poverty, my husband and I obeyed the Lord's commandment to get married in the Lord's house and started building our lives together as husband and wife, even we were in poverty. I'm grateful that my husband wanted to start our lives together according to the Lord's will, "not after the manner of the world". The sacred ordinance of temple marriage and the covenants associated with it was more important to him, not the fancy kind of wedding reception. I wanted to wait a little bit more to be able to have more money to spend for our wedding reception and honeymoon. And yet my husband was firm on his stand that obeying the Lord's commandment at the time we're both ready spiritually was the right time to go for it already. The wedding reception and stuff didn't have to be big. I was the one who wanted a bit more fancy kind of wedding. I wanted a perfect wedding gown. Wanted to be the most beautiful bride that I could be wearing a lovely, and bit fancy wedding gown. Got my wedding gown made for myself here in Thailand. And then I was not able to wear it during the wedding because it got lost, and it was found when the wedding was already over. The Lord taught me then through such difficult experience that the ordinance inside His house and the covenant I was about to make is more important than my lovely wedding dress.

The Lord knew that the saints needed the blessings that would be poured to them in His house. That's why He commanded them to build it even though it was not convenient for them. The Lord knew that my husband and I needed the blessings that would be poured out to us as we obey His will to enter into the new and everlasting covenant with Him. He wanted to bless us far more than we could imagine. He wanted us to center our lives on Christ more than we ever did before, so He could pour out His blessings to us more abundantly. He didn't want us to wait any longer to be able to pour His precious blessings to us. 

I'm so grateful for the faith of my husband. He told me, "Help will come, so there's nothing to worry about." I grew up with the pride that I can take care of all my needs without asking any help from others, even from my own family members and friends. My self-reliance had become arrogance. I'm grateful for my husband's natural desire to ask for help. For the longest time since I was a little kid (5 years old), I wouldn't want to ask for help. I'd rather help others than get help from others. "It's better to give than to receive." I didn't know how to receive gracefully. While my husband has that as his natural tendency. His example did touch my heart and pulled down my pride. I think the Lord truly wanted me to remember that obeying His commandment according to His will is what He prefers, rather than obeying His commandment and at the same time adding to it the ways of the world.

The Lord has truly been pouring blessings on us abundantly than ever before. I've been able to draw closer to Him more consistently because of seeing the quiet leadership of my husband. I've become more consistent with my good habits. I've been able to focus more on things that matter most than ever before. I've been progressing in all the different areas of life, line upon line, precept upon precept. My progression is according to the Lord's will, not after the manner of the world. There's balance in my growth. I've been getting more consistent in my habits of taking care of myself both spiritually and physically. I've been able to put God first in my life more than ever before. And now everything is falling in its proper order.  I'm grateful I didn't wait until everything was perfect by the world's standard before I moved forward with the decision to get married to the right person the Lord has provided for me to marry my husband, my helpmeet, and eternal companion.