Gratitude Felt in a Temple Recommend Interview
By Anne Maxson
I recently had to renew my temple recommend. Temple recommend interviews are a special time for me, and I always bring a tissue because sometimes I get emotional talking about my beliefs. This time was no different.
The interview started with some very important questions:
- Do you have faith in and a testimony of God, the Eternal Father; His Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost?
- Do you have a testimony of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and of His role as your Savior and Redeemer?
- Do you have a testimony of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ?
As I sat in there, I started thinking about my journey. I joined the church more than 20 years ago. Back then, I didn't know much, but now I feel so thankful for what I've learned.
A testimony of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ is where it all started. The introduction of the Book of Mormon states, “We invite all men everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the book is true. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost.
“Those who gain this divine witness from the Holy Spirit will also come to know by the same power that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith is His revelator and prophet in these last days, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the Second Coming of the Messiah.”
A few days after meeting the missionaries and starting to read the Book of Mormon, I prayed to know if it was true. I felt a warm feeling inside that told me it was. That’s when I knew that Joseph Smith really was a prophet and that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was restored through him. It was a powerful moment that changed my life forever.
Having faith in and a testimony of God, the Eternal Father; His Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost has provided me with a greater sense of purpose and belonging.
Having a testimony of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and His role as my Savior and Redeemer has helped me find peace and comfort. It has helped me to have an eternal hope in good things to come.
Thinking about these things during my temple interview made me feel so grateful for everything I've learned and experienced because of my faith. Answering each question felt like I was saying yes to everything I believe in—a journey of faith, hope, and feeling God's love.
Renewing my temple recommend provided an opportunity to ponder all the good things that have happened because of my beliefs. Leaving the interview, I felt a renewed sense of purpose and excitement for the future.
As a branch president, currently I am approaching the time where I need to renew my own temple recommend. Bishops and branch presidents sign off on their own interview before seeing a member of the stake presidency. Basically they do a self interview because they are the bishop for their unit. It would seem at first that this would be easy but I’ve found myself contemplating more and more the meaning of each question as I get closer to the time I need to do my self interview. In interviewing others for temple recommends I have found that I am asking myself how I am doing on each question and taking a deeper look into my own thoughts, choices and behavior. Instead of a check the box exercise, it has become a deeper, more meaningful experience being able to do this. I am taking it more seriously and more thoughtfully than when I was being interviewed by a bishop, branch president, or member of the stake presidency before. As a funny aside, I know of two instances where the Bishop of a ward was called to the stake presidency in between their “Bishop’s” interview and their stake presidency interview. This was back in the day before the bar codes and all the signatures were real ink from a pen. In both cases all three signatures on their recommend were their own (Bishop, Stake Presidency Member, and Recommend Holder). One of them told me that when he went to the temple the worker questioned his three signatures because they were all the same and he had to explain why. In the other case the newly questioned stake president asked the Apostle that called him what to do thinking it was wrong to sign all three times and the Apostle assured him it was a wonderful experience and opportunity that the new Stake President and his family would never forget.
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