Okay, I
acknowledge that most of you have had unusually cold, snowy winters. My whining probably won’t move you in
sympathy – it will probably only start a “one up-manship” contest. (For my Ukrainian friends, that means a
contest of who can tell the worst story).
But wow, has it been cold here in Kiev (Kyiv)! It is
noon as I write this and it is minus 13 degrees Celsius (8 degrees Fahrenheit)
and it will be considerably colder as the day nears its end. Yesterday was colder. Now don’t get me wrong, we are not
miserable. We have a wonderful warm
apartment. It is just that getting out
and about is very, very difficult. It is
not only the cold. It is the condition
of the streets and sidewalks and steps into buildings. How I miss Utah’s state
of the art snow-clearing equipment! How
I miss snow blowers (operated by kind neighbors)! Some
of the streets are semi-cleared by old, rusty ploughs, but not all of
them. Given the depressed economy, that
they have any snow-ploughs at all is wonderful!
The snow is pushed up onto the sides of the streets (often onto the
sidewalks). When someone clears a
sidewalk, which doesn’t seem to be very often, they push the snow toward the
street. What results is a wall of dirty
snow and ice between the buildings and street – walls that are impassible for
most, and certainly impassible for Howard, who is not steady on his feet. Getting up and down snow-covered steps is
truly impossible without a strong man on each side. To top it all off, the temple has been closed
for two weeks. As a result, we feel
quite snow-bound and quite frankly, weary. The weariness has come in feeling like we
aren’t accomplishing what we came to do at the pace we desire.
Both
Howard and I have done some writing during this period of seeming inactivity
(some is included below), and we’ve been active in communicating with people
both here and back home via the internet.
These are all things that we don’t need to be in Ukraine to do. In the meantime, there are things that we
could be doing at home that would help members our family who are having
difficulties. We have wondered if
perhaps we should go home, take care of things there, including have a hernia
surgery needed by Howard, and then come back.
We could continue to do our online ministry from there. We carefully considered this option, figured
how we would accomplish it and then prayed about it. The
answer was to stay in place. We accepted
the Lord’s direction, in spite of the fact that we miss and worry about
family. And then an amazing thing
happened. We were flooded with the
Spirit, with inspiration and ideas, with a feeling of happiness and peace. I’m sure you have noticed that the Lord
blesses us so abundantly after a trial of our faith.
I wrote
all of the above about three weeks ago.
We have been so very busy ever since, that writing this blog post was
put aside. We have just recently talked
with our mission president, our bishop, our stake presidency and with our ward
mission leader. We have a revised and
improved plan for going forward and feel energized and anxious to be about the
Lord’s work. The temple has opened again
and we had marvelous spiritually uplifting days there. We often lie in bed and count our blessings
to one another and to the Lord.
All of
this reminds me of Lehi’s dream of the tree of life. Remember the mists of darkness? These are the temptations of the devil. They
really do come into every life. In ours,
discouragement is a big tool used by our adversary. The key is to push through the mists, holding
ever tightly to the word of God, sometimes for what seems to be a very long
time. But when we do, the beautiful
vision of the tree of life eventually comes fully into view. It is a beautiful vision of the pure love of
our Savior, Jesus Christ. It can also be
felt in our hearts and brings such joy!
We have
been holding small group meetings in our apartment, each consisting of a set of
young missionaries and a few members, both those who we see each week in our
Sunday meetings, and also others who have lost their way in the mists of
darkness. We invite a different group
each time. During these meetings, those
attending are encouraged to share their “dukhovny raskaz” or spiritual
journey. In other words, we share with
one another our conversion stories. We
always feel the Holy Spirit in great abundance during these times. We have seen reconversions come from this
spiritual sharing. What joy we feel
during these and when we see the results!
Another
thing that we have sought to do during our ministry here is to rekindle and
increase the Spirit of Elijah. I wrote in
a previous post of our Christmas dinner in December where we invited all of the
latter-day saints who traveled on the first three temple trips to Germany in
1992-1993. We have established a facebook group of these dear friends and post
messages in the group, as well as send messages to them via email. We have also expanded our reach to other
latter-day saints here, encouraging an increase in temple worship and family
history research. We have discussed our
desires with the stake presidency which has authorized us to give firesides in
each ward and branch on these subjects.
Since then, the stake has invited a specialist in Slavic family history to
give a fireside, the visiting high council members have given talks on the
subject and one ward (whose bishop is among the group who attended our dinner)
has held a special temple day. A short
time ago, there were days when there were more ordinance workers at the temple
than patrons. However, we have recently
seen a real increase in temple attendance and enthusiasm concerning the work of
salvation. For example, just last Saturday, every session at the temple was
full. Many people, besides us, are now
being moved by the Spirit of Elijah.
In
essence, we are beginning to realize that we are making a
difference. We can already see the
blessings that are resulting in the lives of these choice people whom we love
so very much. Yes, it is easy to become
weary (maybe that’s why the Lord addressed it, do you think?). We, too, have experienced it, but we can
testify that as we press forward with faith in Christ, we will come to feel the
love and approval of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This is especially true as we seek to serve
His children, but it is also true in our individual lives as we are faithful to
the covenants we have made, in spite of set-backs and discouragement. Let us not be weary in well doing. We are promised that if we press forward in
faith, we will receive eternal life.
I now
attach messages that Howard and I have written to members here to encourage
temple and family history service:
“A Voice of Gladness
for the Living and the Dead”
By HOWARD L. BIDDULPH
A temple is
literally a house of the Lord, a holy sanctuary in which sacred ceremonies and
ordinances of the gospel are performed by and for the living and also in behalf
of the dead. A temple is a place where
the Lord may come, and in fact is the most holy of any place of worship on the
earth. Whenever the Lord has had a
people on the earth who will obey His word, they have been commanded to build
temples in which the ordinances of the gospel and other spiritual manifestations
that pertain to eternal life may be administered. Examples of temple worship are found in The Holy Bible, The Book of Mormon, Doctrine
and Covenants. (See Bible Dictionary).
Those
Latter-day Saints who have the “Spirit of
Elijah” have “planted in their hearts the promises (of salvation) made to
the fathers (their ancestors) and the hearts of the children shall turn to
their fathers.” (D.&C. 2:2). Those Latter-day Saints who enjoy the “Spirit of Elijah” not only desire the
temple blessings and covenants of eternal life for themselves, but deeply
desire these same blessings for their relatives who wait in the Spirit World
for their descendants to perform the temple ordinances on the earth that will
grant them eternal life together with their families. This is the meaning of Malachi’s promise that
Elijah would be sent in the latter days to “turn the hearts of the fathers to
their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers.” (Malachi:
4:5-6). These keys were given to the Prophet Joseph Smith by the Prophet Elijah
on April 3, 1836 in the Kirtland Ohio Temple. (D&C 110:13-16). The Prophet Joseph referred to the Spirit of
Elijah as “a voice of gladness for the living and the dead.” (D&C 128:19).
The first
three excursions of Latter-day Saints from Kyiv to the temple in Freiberg
Germany in 1992-1993, were not only the first from Ukraine to do so, but the
first organized LDS groups from Eastern Europe and Eurasia to conduct a
“spiritual pilgrimage” to the “House of The Lord.” Many of you brothers and sisters who were
part of that great pilgrimage are honored today in the History of the Church as
Pioneers of Temple Service. We honor you first, for the great sacrifices
you made to inaugurate this high and holy work of salvation for the living and
for the dead. Your sacrifices are a
great inspiration to us. Second, your
spiritual pilgrimage inspired your fellow Latter-day Saints in Kyiv, in
Donetsk, in Kharkov, in Odessa, in Simfiropol, in L’viv, and other places in
Ukraine, as well as in Russia, Belarus, and other countries of Eastern Europe
and Eurasia with the Spirit of Elijah. This
spirit has inspired them to unite
their families and ancestors in the sacred ordinances of salvation found in the
temple. Your spiritual pilgrimage pioneered temple worship in this entire
geographical region as other Latter-day Saints followed your example.
This
resulted in the erection of the first Temple of the Lord in Kyiv, as prophesied
by an apostle of God Boyd K. Packer in his dedication of Ukraine in 1991. On August 29, 2010, the Prophet of God,
President Thomas S. Monson, dedicated the Kyiv Temple to serve the Latter-day
Saints of nine countries in Eastern Europe and Eurasia: Ukraine, Russia,
Belarus, Moldova, Bulgaria, Romania, Armenia, Georgia, and Kazakhstan. As Pioneers
of Temple Service it is the special responsibility of Kyiv Latter-day
Saints to lead the way in sharing with others the Spirit of Elijah, through encouraging members of the Church to hold
valid temple recommends, to increase significantly their own family history
research of the names of their kindred dead, and to increase their temple
attendance to perform ordinances for those who wait in the Spirit World for
salvation.
Part of the Spirit of Elijah involves learning about
our kindred dead. Ukrainian Latter-day
Saints have a noble heritage. Your
Patriarchal Blessings will identify each of you with one of the Twelve Tribes
of Israel, Ten Tribes of which were led to the “lands to the North” of ancient
Israel. Almost all of these choice
Tribes have been identified in the Patriarchal Blessings of Ukrainian
Latter-day Saints. Some of your
ancestors founded ancient Kyiv, the political, cultural, religious and economic
center of the first Eastern Slavic country of Rus,’ that ruled the territories
that would later become Ukraine, Belarus, and European Russia.
Your
ancestors faced terrible afflictions and suffering at the hands of the Mongols,
the Turks, the Russians, the Austro-Hungarian and Polish Kingdoms, Stalin’s
Holodymyr, Hitler’s Babiy Yar and the many millions who perished in the World
Wars. Many of your ancestors have sat in
darkness of the Spirit Prison, waiting through centuries for the promised Great
Light of the gospel to break forth in their homeland, waiting for you, their
beloved descendants, to accept the covenants of eternal life, and then in a
wonderful Temple of God in Kyiv to perform the saving ordinances that would
liberate them from the Prison House! Can
you imagine how they are rejoicing in you, how they love you?!!
It was
wonderful to host you at the special dinner for Temple Pioneers on December
19. Thank you for coming! Thank you for accepting our invitation to go
together on another Temple Excursion, this time to the Kyiv Temple on Saturday, August 12, 2017. Remember that you must see your Bishop right
away to prepare for a temple recommend, unless you already have a recommend
that will still be valid on August 12. If you already have a valid recommend
please start increasing your temple attendance now, but plan to be with us on
August 12 also.
Second,
start praying to decide who among your kindred dead you should do the baptism,
endowment, and marriage sealing for on August 12. Ask Heavenly Father to reveal to you the name
of a spiritual ancestor who has prepared himself or herself for the temple ordinances
of eternal life. That person will become
very close to you as you both prepare for the temple.
Third, we
will soon announce a special course for you at the Rustaveli Family History
Library to help you find ancestors and prepare them for Temple ordinances. You are asked to learn all you can about
their lives and to share brief biographies with us and other temple pioneers.
Finally,
each of us as Temple Pioneers should
make some special sacrifices of time to increase our temple attendance, and the
work of the temple will grow to wonderful proportions. I promise you that you will be personally
blessed, temporally and spiritually for your increased temple service. Ukraine, as a country, is presently facing
critically serious national and international problems. I believe that Heavenly Father will bless,
prosper, and protect this land through the great work we do in the Temple of
God for our own salvation and that of our kindred dead. There will be a great legion of our ancestors
from the Unseen World to help us.
“A Beacon of Peace”
By LAUREL C. BIDDULPH
The temple is a beacon of peace in a troubled world. During
the time of one particularly devastating adversity in my own life, the temple
was the source of peace, stability and comfort for me. My world had been rocked completely off its
axis. I wasn’t sure that I could
function properly so devastating was what had been thrust upon me. Work was impossible; sleep elusive. Bouts of anguished sobbing engulfed me. My only peace could be found in the
temple. There I felt a loving Father’s
arms surround me; there I received revelation; there my heart found
solace. I would emerge strengthened and
fortified, ready to face for a few more days a reality drastically
altered. And then, my strength again
spent, I needed to return to my Father’s house.
I returned once a week, sometimes more often, until I was healed and
whole again - Stronger - Wiser -
Ready to forgive - Ready to serve
more compassionately - Remolded more closely in my Savior’s image. (I am still working on that image).
President Monson said, “As I think of temples, my thoughts
turn to the many blessings we receive therein.
As we enter through the doors of the temple, we leave behind us the
distractions and confusion of the world.
Inside this sacred sanctuary, we find beauty and order. There is rest for our souls and a respite
from the cares of our lives. As we attend the temple, there can come to us a dimension
of spirituality and a feeling of peace which will transcend any other feeling
which could come into the human heart.
We will grasp the true meaning of the words of the Savior when He said
‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you … Let not your heart be
troubled, neither let it be afraid.’
Such peace can permeate any heart – hearts that are troubled, hearts
that are burdened down with grief, hearts that feel confusion, hearts that
plead for help.”
I testify that the words of our prophet are true, for I have
experienced that peace for myself. I
have experienced it every time I enter the sacred doors of the temple. I have experienced it in times of trouble and
in times of great joy. What I beautiful
blessing is the temple in our lives!
The Lord pleads with His children to come to His holy house and meet Him
there so that He can bless us with peace.
