eternity

Surprise! I'm still here!
Only for 21 more days.
#wheredidthetimego

I'm in the process of copying pictures over and uploading them to blogger so you can all see the adventures of this year's summer vacation road trip. While that magic is happening, I thought I'd share with you all one of the most incredible days of my life.

On August 15th, I went through the temple for the first time.
Several of my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins were able to be there with me.
I was so incredibly blessed to be able to go to the Provo Temple, where I have already spent so many hours with dear friends and family members.

Words cannot adequately describe the peace and joy I felt being in the temple with my family.

my eyes might be closed in this one. oh well.

Uncle Brad, me, and Steven!!

Uncle Jeff, Aunt Carly, Grandma Hyde, me, Steven, Grandpa Hyde, mom, and dad

note: there's a waaay better picture except it's on my laptop and Rachel has that. so you're stuck with this one. sorry.

Having been able to go to the temple a few more times since that beautiful day, my love for the temple has grown every single time.

Moses 1:39 says:
"For behold, this is my work and my glory; to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."

Heavenly Father's work is the work of eternity.
Missionary work is the work of eternity.
One of the members of the temple presidency spoke to the youth when I went to help out with baptisms a few weeks ago. He said something that really stuck out to me:
"You may be here for just a few short hours out of your busy lives. But the work you are doing changes someone's eternity."

That is the whole reason that I want to serve a mission.
This isn't about me.
Sure, I'm excited to have a mission call, to be missing out on finals for a year and a half, and to be getting a whole new wardrobe. #eldershaveiteasy

But that's not why I'm serving.
I am serving because I love my Savior.
Because I love my brothers and sisters.
Because I want all of them to experience the same joy and love that I felt on that day.
Because I pray that I can be an instrument in my Heavenly Father's hands in bringing them back to Him.
Because I hope that each of us can be with our families for eternity.
I love my family dearly, and I cannot imagine eternity without them.
I feel so incredibly blessed and honored to have been entrusted with this responsibility and privilege of inviting my brothers and sisters to come unto Christ, to strive to return to our Heavenly Father, and to one day live with Him again.

Going to the temple helped put that into the eternal perspective.
I thought I couldn't be more excited to serve a mission.
I was wrong.
Every single day, that desire and excitement grows.
21 more days.
It can't come soon enough.

I also found this really cute picture of when I opened my mission call that I never knew existed. 

It is my hope and prayer that each person I know [or will soon know] will be able to come to the temple often and feel of the joy, peace, and love of our Heavenly Father.