Some of you know we planned a Harley ride from Page, Arizona to Cedar City, Utah for October 11, 2018. It didn’t work out quite as planned! We had brought the Harley to Page in our enclosed motorcycle trailer for the first leg of our trip. It rained all night the night before our planned ride in spite of the weather forcast saying it would be improving with only some lingering showers on the 11th. They LIED! It was pretty chilly that morning as our ride time approached so I agreed with my wife to trailer the Harley over Highway 14 from Highway 89 to Cedar. Only occasionally do I see so immediately why I should listen to my wife’s counsel! It was snowing on top near Duck Creek as we crested the summit. There was snow on both sides of the road and it rained significantly where it wasn’t snowing! We would have frozen and been miserable! We enjoyed the colors of fall which were a blaze where nature hadn’t striped the Quakies bare and it was a beautiful drive in our cage, except when the clouds were down nearly on top of us! Though that too can be a beautiful display of nature it can really restrict visibility as well. Since we had ridden the Harley from Bryce Canyon to the Cedar City Temple earlier this summer we weren’t too disappointed to have to travel via cage this time.

The Cedar City Temple is beautiful inside and out and was quite busy that evening. It was a joy to serve in the House of the Lord with so many others! Any unanticipated waiting time in the temple is an opportunity to ponder, think, read scriptures, and pray not an inconvenience!

The 12th was pretty chilly as well for our wake up call. Given the ride time to and from Vegas we needed to get an early start! So, we trailered to Mesquite, Nevada and then rode the Harley to the Las Vegas Temple. What a contrast between “Sin City” and the holy house of God. What a distinct difference between the values displayed on “the strip” and of those convenenting virtuous lives to the Lord in His house! What a contrast between the hustle and bustle of the casinos and the peace and calm that prevails in the House of the Lord! Knowing this from previous experiences we completely avoided downtown Vegas. The temple is north and east of the city on the hillside overlooking the valley.

We met a couple of missionaries there with some recent converts. One of the missionaries is from Florida and the other from Meridian, Idaho - we plan to visit that new temple early next month!

On the 13th we trailered to the Hurricane exit off I-15 so that when we started our trip back to Page on Highway 9 it wouldn’t be necessary to first double back to Cedar City. From the exit we rode the Harley to visit the St George Temple. This pioneer day era temple is pristine and beautiful inside and out. As often is the case, there were more women than men in our endowment session. In 1979, President Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) prophesied:

“Much of the major growth that is coming to the Church in the last days will come because many of the good women of the world … will be drawn to the Church in large numbers. This will happen to the degree that the women of the Church reflect righteousness … in their lives and to the degree that the women of the Church are seen as distinct and different--in happy ways--from the women of the world.”

Our select little group that day needed and got without any extra prompting all of the men to participate in the prayer circle so that the altar could be comfortably surrounded.

On this trip we met a sister during a sealing session. She explained she is the only member in her family and is trying to get the needed work done for her family. She’s busy doing lots of  temple ordinances. Thanks for your example of devotion dear sister! You, like so many others, touch us with your pioneer spirit and temple and family history dedication!

Great to be in the temple, again - as it always is! I noticed the peacefulness in me has increased as we’ve been in three temples in three days!

What a day Tuesday was! We had about a 360 mile motorcycle ride. The bike is great but that’s a long time to ride it for a couple of retired folks! Wasn’t sure we had it in us but off we went anyway! What a great way to remember 9-11 riding a patriotic themed motorcycle Tuesday to the temple! My family tree has several people who have given their all in defense of liberty over the years.

The Harley is a Screaming Eagle Ultra Classic. If you don’t know, Harley gives each model a name. With a name like that it seemed to demand a patriotic paint theme! Depicted on each side of the gas tank are eagle heads. The saddle bags show scenes of F-15 Strike Eagles flying around the clouds, and circling the tail lights. During the design phase we wondered what do on the front fairing to be consistent with the theme of American Freedom? A tribute to Friberg’s famous portrait of Captain Moroni was selected. You may know that “the Captain” lived centuries before Columbus “discovered” America. Captain Moroni was an early defender of freedom on this continent: Moroni, chief commander of the Nephite armies in the Book of Mormon made the banner (known as the Title of Liberty)  to inspire the Nephite people to defend their religion, freedom, peace, and families.

    Moroni made the title of liberty out of his torn coat, Alma 46:12–13.

    Those who would maintain the title entered into a covenant, Alma 46:20–22.

    Moroni caused the title to be hoisted upon every tower, Alma 46:36 (Alma 51:20).

Painted on our motorcycle trailer, which we can pull behind the Harley, is a tribute depicting the raising of the American Flag on Iwo Jima.

Today, we road through the beauty of God's creations and visited the Vernal Temple. On a spire of the temple stands a statute of the Angel Moroni. The angel and the captain are two different people from The Book of Mormon Another Testament of Christ. When we ride the Harley to the temple we like to tease that we are taking the Captain to visit the Angel!

Tuesday’s route took us up the canyon east of Heber City, Utah. It’s a beautiful winding canyon as we climb from a mountain valley yet higher, passing through the Strawberry Valley, and yet onward. Across the high mountain plateaus we encountered some cross winds but pressed on. This route is filled with mountainous vegetation, cattle on their summer ranges, wild life (but thankfully they all stayed out of harm’s way!), and the smells and sounds of fall. The leaves are just beginning to change now as nature reflects the beauty of her Creator’s artistic hand.

Arriving at the temple at about 10:00 a.m. We each had a family name to perform baptisms, confirmations, then added some additional names for initiatories, two family endowments, and then 10 sealings. A very productive day. The Spirit of the Lord was so sweat and so strong in the temple. It was deeply touching to hear again the words of the sealing of a couple to each other. You may know that Stef and I were sealed to each other less than a month ago. It was the first time she has heard those words since. She was moved to tears as was I. After an embrace and a kiss we left the sealing room, changed, and were back on the Harley to head for home. We stopped at McDonald’s for a quick burger and made it home before dark! Great day! So blessed to be able to participate in the saving ordinances for our family!

I’m not sure I have the skills to communicate the feelings of the temple. I don’t think I do. But, if you are in tune with the Spirit He has those skills. I hope in my weak words you’ll find His mighty strength. The strength of God to carry things to one’s heart in a way no other can.

Stef and I visited the Provo City Center Temple on Tuesday. What a beautiful building. As you may know, it was an assembly hall until it burned down a few years ago. I was in it during my BYU days. In fact, I was sleeping through church in it one day with my elbows on my knees and my head in my hands. I was out! When I was awakened by tugging on my pant legs. As I opened my eyes a toddler was climbing up between my feet. She was lost! I didn’t recognize her! I looked to my right and left and no one had that “would you pass my kid this way” look on their face. No one in front of me was looking back. So, in desperation, I looked behind me for the parents who had lost their child! A few rows back Danny Ainge and his wife waived to pass Michelle back, which I gladly did!

Today, we rode the Harley to that former assembly hall now temple. There were no wandering toddlers inside. What a wonderful spirit fills that place. We loved being there! Stef did ten initiatories and I did seven. Then we each participated in an endowment session. On an earlier visit we had done baptisms and confirmations. Our first temple checked off the list of those we thoroughly visit!

Great day capped off by a short Harley ride home!

Some of you my dearest friends are not as famiiliar With the temple as others of my dearest friends are. Thought I’d share a little historical perspecivte with all of you from the Bible Dictionaary:

Temple

A temple is literally a house of the Lord, a holy sanctuary in which sacred ceremonies and ordinances of the gospel are performed by and for the living and also in behalf of the dead. A place where the Lord may come, it is the most holy of any place of worship on the earth. Only the home can compare with the temple in sacredness.

Whenever the Lord has had a people on the earth who will obey His word, they have been commanded to build temples in which the ordinances of the gospel and other spiritual manifestations that pertain to exaltation and eternal life may be administered. In cases of extreme poverty or emergency, these ordinances may sometimes be done on a mountaintop (see D&C 124:37–55). This may be the case with Mount Sinai and the Mount of Transfiguration. The tabernacle erected by Moses was a type of portable temple, since the Israelites were traveling in the wilderness.
From Adam to the time of Jesus, ordinances were performed in temples for the living only. After Jesus opened the way for the gospel to be preached in the world of spirits, ceremonial work for the dead, as well as for the living, has been done in temples on the earth by faithful members of the Church. Building and properly using a temple is one of the marks of the true Church in any dispensation, and is especially so in the present day.

The best known temple mentioned in the Bible is that which was built in Jerusalem in the days of Solomon. This was destroyed in 587 B.C. and rebuilt by Zerubbabel about 70 years later. The restored structure was partially burned in 37 B.C. and was partially rebuilt by Herod the Great, although the rebuilding continued until A.D. 64. It was destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70.