We had a really good week and had some really great experiences and tender mercies from heaven.
1. We got the privilege of helping clean the Salt Lake City Temple! It's been closed for a while for cleaning, and we got to go over and help. It was certainly an experience I'll never forget. I was pondering while we were cleaning, and I was thinking about how one of the prophets said that Jesus Christ has walked every hallway of this temple, and that it really is His home. It made cleaning it feel like more of an honor for me, I was thinking while I worked that the next time Jesus walked by this chandelier or this wall or this pillar or this room, I wanted it to be spotless. Unlike the times that I clean my apartment or my room, I wanted to be 100% sure that I hadn't missed a single spot - I really wanted it to be perfect. I'm so grateful for the opportunity I had to clean the temple, it's so gorgeous inside, and while I felt a little like I was cleaning things that were already clean, I like to think that the crystals on the chandeliers sparkled just a little more after I had cleaned them.
2. I had another thought while cleaning about having eyes to see. When we first started working, I felt like I was making absolutely no difference - I was cleaning something that was already spotless. But as I spent more time there, particularly on the chandeliers, I began to see little bits of dusts and little streaks and smudges on the crystals - I began to see what we were cleaning! It made me think a little bit. I think that at first, it's really easy to look at others and just think their lives are perfect. They have no struggles, they have no problems, they have no fears, no trials... they have it all. But really, all of us have different struggles and different trials and different temptations - although some of our problems may not be super obvious to those around us, everyone struggles in some way. The Lord understands that perfectly though - He knows exactly where our smudges and our stains are, and He knows exactly how to get them out. I really have a testimony of the Savior being the Savior of everyone. That He knows and loves each of us as individuals, and not just as a mass - but that He knows each of us, He looks at the crystals not just the giant chandelier. He looks at us and loves us for who we are and who we can become.
3. Something not about cleaning the temple - we have taken a lot of Spanish tours this week, as well as a lot of tours with people here in SLC from the transplant games! It's a worldwide event being hosted here where people who have been affected by transplants in any way (donated, received, family members of those who have passed and donated, supporters etc.) can come and have an Olympics of sorts! But there are all types of events so that everyone can participate. One of the things people do is collect and trade pins from all the different players - the pins represent where they come from. We've taken quite a few of them on tour, and now I have 6 pins! It's really fun to meet all these different people and hear about their different life experiences.
I hope everyone has a good week! We are loving life here in Salt Lake, and we're getting more and more excited every day for the lights to be back! (Though we aren't as excited for all the weddings to be back... we counted at least 7 this morning in the same hour hahaha)
Love you all!
--Sister Black
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