Draper Temple Dedication

Casey and I got to go to one of the Draper Temple dedications on Saturday and it was a day that I will never forget!
Our stake got tickets to attend a dedication on Saturday but because both of our parents are in the same stake we got tickets from Casey’s dad (who is a bishop) and were able to go with our parents and my little sister to a Saturday morning session.
It was such a pretty day on Saturday and there was nothing more that I would have rather done than be able to be part of that momentous occasion. I had never been to a Temple dedication before and actually learned quite a bit that day. Before the dedication actually took place, the 1st counselor in the Temple Presidency, the assistant to the matron, Elder Christopherson of the quorum of the 12 , Elder Casto (not sure how to spell his name) from the seventy and Elder Eyring all spoke. It felt like a mini General Conference full of Temple stories and humor! Seriously, both Elder Eyring and President Monson were telling funny stories and cracking jokes – it was hilarious! Elder Eyring has always been my favorite apostle, I know I shouldn’t have favorites, but when it comes to the spirit – no matter what he is talking about, I feel it EVERYTIME! I seriously yearn for his talks come Conference time and to feel of his sweet spirit and love for our Savior radiate through him. He spoke on the perfection of each and every Temple and how he learned HOW important absolute perfection was while he was serving with President Hinckley. After the completion of each Temple he would follow President Hinckley as he would inspect each one, President Hinckley would stop at every door frame, feel around its edges and make sure nothing was poking out, or just not quite perfect. If something was wrong, he didn’t have to say word, the contractors knew by his facial expression that something wasn’t quite right – without even knowing what that might be they would quickly say “We’ll fix that!”
Elder Eyring also spoke on the importance of being a Savior on Mount Zion – that once you find and perform sacred ordinances in the Temple for an ancestor and help teach it to those in this world too, that you will truly feel the blessings and importance of being a Savior on Mount Zion, as always, his talk spoke near to my heart and sparked a new excitement on preparing names with my mom and doing ancestral work to find my own ancestors who are up there ‘just waiting’. To give you an idea, my dad nor any of his family has ever been a member, both my mom and my stepdad are converts – I have a lot of work I can and should be doing!
Once President Monson was done with the dedicatory prayer the choir (who were standing behind the brethren dressed in white listed above)began signing the first verse of The Spirit of God and then everyone who filled the Temple began singing on the 2nd verse with the choir “oooing and ahhhing” in the background, I had felt the spirit throughout the whole service, but nothing like I felt during this moment! The prophet was in the Celestial Room, we were pretty much next door in the Telestial Room – but seriously, there were people sitting everywhere – I believe there were over 2000 people there that session. But when we all started signing it was SO overwhelming! For those of you who haven’t been in the ordinance rooms in the Temple, they aren’t that big, maybe holding like 50-60 people but I swear when we all started in on the 2nd verse EVERYONE throughout the Temple could be heard and it was the most beautiful thing I have ever heard.
I am so thankful to be surrounded by so many Temples and for the rare opportunities I do get to be part of being so close to these holy places. No where else in the world could you be driving down the freeway and see 3 almost 4 Temples. What a blessing!