I was thirteen year old when the Nauvoo, Illinois temple was being rededicated. As a young child, my parents took us to the grounds where it had once stood before it was burned down. I remember walking the grounds in reverence. For some reason, my family felt a certain closeness to that particular temple so once it had started to be rebuilt, we made plans to drive out there again to see the glorious replica.
On our drive to Nauvoo, we stopped at many different church and historical sites. It was Saturday June 1, 2002 and we stopped at a little camp ground in Keokuk, Iowa to prepare for fast Sunday the following day. My family set up the camper trailer and I set up my little tent that I enjoyed sleeping in alone.
On June 2, I wrote in my journal:
“We went to a little branch in Keokuk. We were so lucky to be there on fast Sunday. Every one’s testimonies were so strong. Everyone was so excited for a temple to be a couple minutes away rather than a couple hours away. In Utah, there are temples everywhere. I take it for granted. I never realized what it would be like with only a couple people in the whole school are LDS or having a temple far away from you.
“My family is picking on me. I’m the only one that gets in trouble. This trip sucks because: my mom left her purse 2 ½ hours (one way) away, we got a flat tire, I’m being picked on, every one’s mean and we forgot a lot of important stuff. See what I mean.”
I don’t remember why I was upset, I just remember being extremely upset and I chose to leave my family in the camper and confine myself in my own little tent. I remember deciding to read my scriptures, even though I was angry and upset. I continued:
“I have just studied a scripture. It is Moroni 10:3-4 [which says “Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts. And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.”] After reading it over and praying about it I can now say it’s all true. Jesus Christ is the true God. He will manifest this unto you if you go before Him with a humble heart and faith. He has done it unto me and I know he can do it unto you. I know this is the true church. I know the scriptures are true. I know this gospel is true.
“The spirit is very strong with me right now. I feel much joy from the testimony I have just gained. I know it is all true and what joy that brings to me. It’s kind of funny it all happened in a little tent in Keokuk at a hard time in life with my family. But I know it’s true!”
This was the pivotal experience in my life. Before this, I had believed the things that I was taught, but after this experience, I knew that it was true. Sitting in that little tent, weeping with joy, feeling my Savior’s love and a burning in my heart as I prayed to know that the scriptures were true, is an experience that I have carried with me my whole life. In times of darkness, I sit back and remember what I felt that day and what I learned that day and I still retain my testimony and can testify that God hears you and He hears me. He loves us with a greater love than we can imagine. He reaches for us with His arms wide open, inviting us to come to Him and to come home.
