Your Body is a Temple: Let's Renovate

For the past three weeks Provo temple has been closed for maintenance. You know you have "Provo Problems" (as opposed to "first world problems") when you catch yourself thinking, "I can't wait till the Provo temple's renovation is done so I don't have to commute 30 minutes to get to the Timpanogos Temple." Um, come on, 30 minutes?! That's so close! Yeah, that's what we call a "Provo problem."

For the past three weeks Provo temple has been closed for maintenance. How about us? Do we ever follow that example and "close up shop" for personally needed renovation too?

Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? … For the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are (1 Cor. 3:16–17).

A few years ago certain lessons kept standing out to me at the temple. They all related to how our bodies are like temples. Is there ever a time when multiple specific lessons and topics repetitively stand out to you at the temple? Multiple things began to standing out regarding how the temple is taken care of.  What lessons can we learn through the the temple and apply to the "temples" of our bodies? Here are some of the lessons that have stood out to me:

• Certain work is done to simply make the temple gorgeous, not just functional:







Not essential, but exceptional.




• One of the pieces that taught me this lesson most was when the Provo Temple had its Celestial room chandelier replaced with a gorgeous new one. The previous chandelier "worked" but the new one fits the setting and is gorgeous. Around that same time the landscaping of the Provo Temple was also completely redone - fountains were added, along with flowers, trees and yes, even speakers for background music which I absolutely loved! It's clear to see that these things are not mandatory, but that they are gorgeous. As a side note - after the landscaping update the number of weddings at the Provo temple also had a steep increase. Coincidence? Nope.

• Temporal beauty & aesthetics can potentially influence our ability to feel the Spirit:


• Just as the temple's being beautiful is not for the sake of bringing attention to the temple but rather to God, it can be the same with people as well. Just as the aesthetics in the temple influence our experience there, so too our personal care and maintenance can influence our ability to feel the Spirit. 
• Go for What's Best, Not for What's Cheapest:
• While touring a temple, guides reiterated the quality of the furnishings, carpet, and every piece that went into the temple. No expense was spared. When it comes to building something to glorify God you go for what's best, not for what's cheapest.  Everything was gorgeous, perfectly coordinated and breath taking, especially the bride's room, sealing rooms and the Celestial room. 
• When these lessons were standing out to me, I had just graduated from college and was starting to save a little bit of money in my first real "career" kind of job. Having been a big saver in the past, I learned a needed lesson of making choices based on what would bring the Spirit into my life more rather than what would bring more money into my bank account. For me, it was a needed lesson: Be beautiful, not cheap or in other words, use the resources you've been blessed with to build something to glorify God inside and out, in who we are and in what we do.
• Close it Early 
• The last scheduled appointment is at 8 so that it can conclude and dismiss people by 11. 
• This seems to be my lifelong goal and area for improvement. D&C 88: 124 "Retire to thy bed early that ye may not be weary." In high school I had this scripture on my wall and I am still consistently working on it. 
• Open it Early

• Provo opens at 5:40 on Monday's & Tuesdays, 7:00 on other days.
• D&C 88: 124 "Arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated."
• I love this feeling!
• Clean it Daily
• One evening I left a pair of earrings that were a special gift from my parents in the dressing room. I was so afraid that I would have lost them. An hour of so after the temple had closed I went there to see if the security could possibly help help and had major luck... (aka huge blessings). When I arrived the maintenance team was working near the entrance. They came to the door, I described where I had left the earrings and they were able to retrieve them for me. What stood out to me regarding the upkeep of the temple was that there they were, doing the behind the scenes work, after hours, on a daily basis, making the temple the gorgeous and clean sanctuary that it is we enjoy every time we go there. 
• As for my bod - clean up daily. Nuff said.
• Close Up Shop 1-2 Days/Week
• Take a day off to spend time with friends and family and to pursue other important purposes.
• Close Down to Build Up: Renovations
• Can't knowing that they close the temple for weeks to make needed improvements encourage us to take initiative to intentionally and deliberately step aside from other pursuits for the sake of making whatever personal improvements are needed? Yep they put the work of saving ordinances for eternal salvation on hold to improve the mechanism or model through which the work is taking place. Can't it be the same with us? I love the idea of taking a break at least a couple of times a year for "renovation" or deeper care and renewal of our bodies, minds, spirits, relationships, etc.
• What can we do to enhance ourselves, to create an experience where we can better feel the Spirit?

Ogden Temple Before Renovation

• If you're wanting to improve something physically/aesthetically speaking, that's a personal decision and if it's what's right for you, go for it. “Even a barn looks better when it’s painted.” Pres. Kimball. While some might hesitate thinking this may be vain, I think it's not what a person does but why, or their motivation behind what they're doing in regards to their appearance that determines vanity or the lack thereof. 

Ogden Temple After Renovation

• Ogden temple has been closed now for 2 years. When it is done the exterior will be very different, some of the inside rooms will be restructured and a lot of needed updates (electrical, heating, plumbing, energy-saving, etc.) will be be installed as well. It's not closed because they couldn't do temple work there, but rather to get it (ourselves) to a condition where it can do the work it has ahead of it in the best way possible. 

• I'm grateful for the times I've been able to take a little "time off" not because I couldn't do the work I was doing, but rather to update myself and get myself to the best point possible to do the work ahead of me.
• "The Lord expects us to do the best we can with what he has given us.... After you have done what you can to improve... forget about yourself and think of others and their needs." Elder Joe J. Christensen

Here's to living beautifully not cheap. Here's to day-to-day upkeep, getting needed rest, semi-regular renovations and making myself on the outside a clear reflection of what I'm aiming to become on the inside. Here's to feeling like we are at "home sweet home" within ourselves. Here's to living like a temple - a place of peace and a sanctuary of the Spirit, that is well "prepped" to do some work in the saving dept.  

Go team,

Ali~