One of the temporary changes that this pandemic has brought with it is the closure of churches and temples throughout the world. I look forward to the day when I can again sit with friends at church and worship God in His holy temples. For now, though, our worship looks different than it has in the past and different than it will in the future.
But when this all passes--and it will pass eventually--I don't want to just go back to normal. Not entirely. I hope this time changes me. I hope it changes my heart. I hope it changes the way I worship forever.
I was listening to the scriptures recently. In Alma 32, there is a story of a people who are cast out of their places of worship because of their poverty. They come to the prophet and ask what they're supposed to do now. How are they supposed to worship if they're not allowed to enter the synagogues?
The prophet, Alma, responds with this:
"...do ye suppose that ye cannot worship God save it be in your synagogues only? ... do ye suppose that ye must not worship God only once in a week? I say unto you, it is well that ye are cast out of your synagogues, that ye may be humble, and that ye may learn wisdom" (Alma 32:10-12, emphasis added).This struck me. Currently, many of us feel as though we are "cast out of [our] synagogues"--not because of our poverty, but because of current events. We cannot enter chapel doors to partake of holy emblems in remembrance of Christ. We cannot sing hymns of praise with our ward members and friends. We cannot visit the temple to participate in ordinances and eternal covenants--for ourselves or for our ancestors. There is so much we cannot do.
But, oh, there is so much we can do.
As I was listening to Alma's words, I was propelled to liken the scriptures unto myself (1 Nephi 19:23-24). Like I do at times, the poor Zoramites (those who were cast out) recognized many things they couldn't do. Alma taught them about the things they could do.
I mentioned that I hope this virus changes the way I worship. I believe it already has, and not just because we temporarily hold a family sacrament service in our home. I've felt that my faith has been strengthened; my ability to feel the Spirit during the sacrament has increased. I hope it will continue to increase and expand in all areas of my life.
So we can't partake of the sacrament in a meetinghouse. But we can partake of the sacrament with our families. We can't sing hymns with other ward members. But we can keep a song in our hearts and homes, for "the song of the righteous is a prayer unto [God]" (Doctrine & Covenants 25:12). We can't visit the temple. But we can prepare ourselves and do family history work in preparation for the day the temples are open again.
It is a blessing to have places of worship outside of our homes. But it is also a blessing to make our homes a place of worship.
For the past several weeks, we've started with a prayer and a sacrament hymn. Then, Joseph has used the priesthood authority which he holds to set up, bless, pass, and take down the sacrament. He and I have been able to partake of the sacrament in this way. I can't fully describe the feeling that this has brought to me every week. But it has been such a special and sacred experience to see my husband, the father of my future (and soon-to-be!) children, my best friend and eternal companion, exercise priesthood power and authority to bless our lives in such a unique way. It has filled my soul with joy, my heart with love, and, on occasion, my eyes with tears.
The current situation is not easy, and it has brought a number of great disappointments. However, as we focus on the positives and potential that we've been blessed with, I believe our outlook will be more optimistic and more like God's. Our eyes will be more opened to see what He sees.
"Do ye suppose that ye cannot worship?"
No. Our worship can mean more than it ever has before, if we are humble enough to let it.
