We Receive Eternal Blessings from the Temple

Display a picture of a temple in your area

Attention Getter

Show the children a treasure chest and tell them that inside are beautiful jewels available to each person who lives or has lived upon this earth. Tell the children that these are eternal in nature and important to their eternal progression.

As each of the following points are discussed, take out the jewel so labeled and show the children. The treasure chest could be labeled "Eternal Treasures." The jewels inside could be jewel shaped, colored paper labeled with the following: Baptisms for the Dead, Endowments for the Dead, Sealings for the Dead, Endowments for the Living, Marriages for the Living, Sealings for the Living. You might use glitter to add sparkle. 

Presentation

Explain to the children that the temple gives us treasures that will affect us eternally. For those of us who are living, there are three important jewels. First, endowments, in which adult members make covenants and promises to the Lord. Second, marriages, where couples can be married for time and all eternity. Third, sealings, where couples who have been married civilly can be sealed for eternity, and children born to these couples can be sealed to their parents. (These are sacred ordinances and we need to be careful as we discuss them that we keep them sacred. Provide a brief explanation of this to the children.)

Many families who join the church have a strong desire to go to the temple and be sealed together as a family. For many of them, it is a long trip involving much sacrifice because they do not have a temple nearby, or because they must give up certain habits or tendencies. Many times they are blessed be the Lord as they prepare to attend the temple.

Tell the following story: 

The Teodoro Hoffman family in the Valencia Ward in Venezuela worked hard so they could go to the temple. They even sold their beautiful car to raise part of the money to make the trip. On Sunday, the day before they were to leave for the temple, they attended their church meetings as usual. But while they were at church, their house was robbed. Those who robbed them took many things from their drawers and closets; but the Lord blessed them, because the money for their trip and the tickets for their transportation were left untouched. The Hoffman family was still able to go to the temple.

In order to receive these ordinances in the temple, we have to try to live the commandments and do God's will. 

Tell the following story:

When Ann's family joined the Church, they knew they had many changes to make before they could go to the temple. Her father had a hard time praying with the family at first, but he made certain they had family prayer every day--and soon he overcame the problem. The family also had to change their shopping and cleaning day from Sunday to Saturday. They worked together to get the work done so that on Sunday they could go to church and do other things that keep the Sabbath day holy. Many times when Ann's friends came early to walk to school with her, they found the family reading scriptures together at the breakfast table.

    It had been difficult for Ann's family to change their lives, but they worked hard and accomplished this goal. As they knelt around the altar in the temple and were sealed together forever, they felt the Spirit of the Lord. The unity in their family increased and their love for each other grew stronger.

Ask the children the following: What about those people who lived on the earth when there were no temples? What happens to them concerning ordinances? Try and help them see that the temple provides the opportunity for the living to serve those who have already died. In the temple we have Baptism for the dead, Endowments for the dead, and Sealings for the dead. When you turn twelve, you can go to the temple and be baptized for the dead. 

President Spencer W. Kimball, at the dedication of the temple in Washington, D.C., and again at the rededication of the St. George Temple said, "The day is coming not too far ahead of us when all temples on this earth will be going day and night. There will be shifts and people will be coming in the morning hours and in the night hours and in the day hours, and we must reach the time when we will have no vacations, that is, no temple vacations. . . But there will be a corps of works night and day almost to exhaustion, because of the importance of the work and the great number of people who lie asleep in the eternity and who are craving, needing, the blessings we can bring them."

You could also share a story about an experience in the temple or share your testimony of temple work.

(This topic could be used for two sharing times--one focusing on the blessings of the temple for the living and one focusing on the blessings of the temple for the dead. When talking of the blessings for the living, you could bring in the following: the temple is a place for instruction, of peace, of revelation, as well as a place to receive eternal covenants. Also, emphasize that it is the Lord's house where He will visit in person or with his spirit. When talking about the blessings for the dead, genealogy and ancestors could be stressed. See the following lesson suggestions.)

Our Ancestors Can Enjoy the Blessings of the Temple

Attention Getter

Use a picture of a boy or girl, a gravestone, a genealogy chart, a temple, the celestial kingdom. Explaining that we who are living as depicted by the picture of the boy or girl, can help our ancestors, portrayed by the gravestone, by doing our genealogy. Then we can do the temple work so that they, too, can obtain the ordinances and covenants necessary to obtain the celestial kingdom.

Explain to the children that Heavenly Father wants all of his children to have the opportunity to obtain the ordinances necessary to obtain the celestial kingdom. So He has made it possible for people here on the earth now, to do the work for those who have already died.

Ask: How do we know the names of those who have died? Discuss with the children the concept of genealogy--of searching out the names of ancestors who have died. Stress also the importance of accuracy. The following story could be told.

When President Wood of the Cardston Alberta Temple was sealing a family together around the altar, he felt impressed to ask if the information on the sealing sheet was correct. The mother said it was. As they began the ordinance again, he again felt impressed to ask if there were other children that needed to be sealed. She assured him there were none. The third time, he heard a voice quite clearly say, "I am her child." Again, he asked the mother if she had ever had another child. As she thought back to her early married years, she recalled a baby who had died shortly after birth. The mother rejoiced as her little girl was included as part of their eternal family.

At this point you could have several children share stories of their ancestors (they could need to be assigned to do this a couple weeks in advance). You might have a member of the ward who has successfully done genealogy and temple work come and share their experiences with the children. You could enlarge a four-generation genealogy chart and explain to the children how to fill one out--then challenge the children to do so with their parents.

End with your testimony of the importance of these earthly ordinances being done for our ancestors and the great opportunity that they will have when they get older to serve their ancestors by doing temple work.