Youth Conference but for adults!

(Warning!  This is long!)  Saturday was the day to beat all days!  A sealing, a baptism, and the General Relief Society Meeting.  It was a serious dose of Youth Conference but as an adult!  I don't know the last time I had a day like this but hopefully it's not the last.  Lets start with the sealing.  This sweet couple in my ward were being sealed.  There is no better way to start your morning than by being in the temple with your sweetheart except when you're in the temple with your sweetheart and attending another's sealing!  This cute little couple has to be somewhere around 75 if not a day older.  She has been a member for a number of years but her husband was baptized only a year ago.  The sealer I noticed after a few minutes was also the temple president.  He spoke to us at our recent Stake Conference and I was excited to hear what he would say to this couple.  Boy did I ever have reason to be excited!  What a sermon!  He went over so many things in a short amount of time but didn't leave anything out!  He talked about the words of the sealing covenant and all the many things they entailed.  He talked about angels being witness and signing the same document in heaven certifying the sealing.  He said that those angels are our family who have gone before us.  He talked about the washing we receive and that it is a washing for the mortality and sin of the world.  He said that we are held to a higher standard because of this washing and anointing and that we would be kept safe from the evil of the world.  This was comforting to me.  One of the other things that made an impact with Brent and I was when he talked about the sealing covenant being the ultimate power of the priesthood on the earth.  This "ultimate power" created such conversation on the way out of the temple that we stopped and talked to the temple president to find out more information and he sent us over Deseret Book to find answers.  Answers we did find!  Answers about holding keys and priesthood power.  Amazing! 

Next was the baptism.  This was an interesting story that I won't go to much into but to say that she just moved from Tennessee and then from that place in another stake into our ward so no one really knew this sister who was about to be baptized.  Nonetheless it didn't matter, a sister is a sister right?!  I was intrigued as I listened to her friends from Tennessee and the other stake talk about her and about baptism.  Mention of her testimony of Jesus Christ was flowing freely from every lip and tongue.  Finally I got to meet her and saw just what everyone was talking about.  She exudes a spirit of happiness and joy.  What an incredible baptism!  

Now on to Relief Society.  Hmmmmm!  Just thinking about that night brings sweet memories back!  I almost stayed home.  My throat had started to hurt and I was tired but alas I went.  I knew I needed to be there.  The talks were of course wonderful but it was President Uchtdorf's talk that left me with such hope and joy!  (a little guilt but that's just the jerk talking....i.e.the jerk is satan and yes I refuse to capitalize that name!)  If you haven't read it or seen it and I highly recommend that you do whether you are LDS or not, please click here!  So we watched this talk of love and encouragement and then we sang "Now Let Us Rejoice."  Now there's no mistake that those who plan out the music for these conferences know exactly what their doing when they select the music because it wasn't until I started singing that song with the power and force from all the women around me and the power of the words that were a foot tall on the screen that I started to cry!  I couldn't hold it back!  Then I sniffle and wipe all through the closing prayer only to look over at Amy sitting next to me when the prayer was finished and see that she was crying just as much as I was!  BAH!  WOMEN!!!  I'm so thankful to be one! 

What an incredible day!  After that was finished I went with a few women to Denny's (not because we hadn't already had an awesome dessert) to have hot coco and visit!  We ended up staying there until 12:30 and subsequently all of us had MAJOR headaches the next day at church!  That was totally one of the best days ever.  You know when I started getting older and realizing I wasn't going to be at girls camp every year to get that spiritual high I kinda worried that I would never feel that way again.  Ya, now that I am older I realize that that spiritual high is created by me!  I have the power every day to have epiphanies and have the Spirit so close to me.  I realize that every Sunday when I take the Sacrament, I have the opportunity to feel that special closeness to my Heavenly Father!  Saturday September 24, 2011 was kind of like going to a Youth Conference that's for sure and I'm so glad I never let the jerk persuade me from being a part of it!