http://www.ldsliving.com/6-Temple-Miracles-Youve-Never-Heard-Before/s/79994?utm_source=ldsliving&utm_medium=email
My favorite is number six - the Lord simply provided the material that was needed. A prayer was needed - an answer given. When we have loss in our lives or financial set backs, try to consider that it may be the Lord helping someone who was in need.
Around the time our son died, I had bought a small minivan that was perfect for us five people. It was the ideal solution for our family and we both loved it. Small, economical, fun to drive. BUT, I did not know that Nissan had taken a few shortcuts in the build quality of the powertrain. They did not case harden a spline shaft in the automatic transmission which my wife discovered on what I termed "transmission hill" and I had to rebuild the top end of the motor because Nissan used a cheap phenolic resin on their chain guide which caused the timing chain to jump several teeth and erode the tops of all the pistons due to pre-detonation. Before I bought our next size up, I had gone thru that darned thing and it was set for another lifetime - but it was too small for us. I was frustrated at all the time that had been spent on it, for so little return on my investment.
Then up showed one of the nicest ladies to buy it. It was for her daughter who had two small children and I cannot remember the story on her husband - had run off and left her or had died. I was so tickled to have it go to someone who was struggling and needed something that was in perfect condition with no looming future mechanical issues. I understood at that point, how the Lord feeds and cares for all of His creatures in their hour of need.
Sometimes, we are just acting as angels of the Lord - and we do not know it. Just as this fellow with his ship on the reef. It is quite possible that he never even knew of the bigger picture. It is my hope, that one day, he will be able to tour that temple and quite possibly see the results of that unintended effort. I am sure it left him deflated at the time, but sometimes it is just a matter of time before the truth comes out.
1. The First Presidency and a Fire Chief
Boise Idaho TempleAt 10 a.m. the fire chief arrived and was given a private tour of the temple. Afterward, he agreed to grant the temple a permit for unlimited occupancy, as long as a few safety procedures were followed. After the fire chief drove away, the group returned to the president’s office to give a prayer of thanks. Brother Thurber was asked to pray and later said, “I was in such tears I could hardly pray. The First Presidency had taken a particular issue and solved it by imploring the assistance of Heavenly Father.”
2. A Special Dream
Houston Texas TempleRichard Gieseke, a Church member and owner of a small landscaping nursery in Houston, played a special role in beautifying the grounds of the Houston Texas Temple. One night, a few months before the temple was announced, he dreamed of gardens adorning an unknown temple. “The dream was so vivid,” he recorded, “that I awoke and wrote a letter to the First Presidency of the Church and filed it for later use. The unusual dream was of a beautiful temple with lovely gardens in special arrangements. From the dream I knew the Lord wanted me to begin growing plants at my nursery for the temple.”
And he did just that, using his filed-away letter when the temple was announced three months after his dream. Six months before his dream, Brother Gieseke had unexpectedly acquired 100 four-year-old oaks. For a reason he cannot explain, he planted the trees in containers larger than usual. After the dream, he designated the finest of the oaks and the best of his other plant material exclusively for future temple grounds. He made every effort to ensure that his temple stock were of “uncommon excellence.” As time passed, his specially designated temple plants grew in size, quality, and value. On many occasions he had opportunities to sell the trees to fill orders that were otherwise unfillable, but he remained firm in his decisions that these plants were for the temple. In retrospect, Brother Gieseke recognizes how he and his nursery business were blessed during this several-year period. Just before he had his dream, his nursery had consisted of six acres. Within a few years he had the opportunity to acquire a prosperous 40-acre nursery and a 50-acre tree farm. Three years after his dream, the plant stock Brother Gieseke nurtured for the Lord’s house finally had a permanent home on the grounds of the Houston Texas Temple. The majestic trees now stand at the front of the temple’s entryway, and his flowers provide the perfect contrasting color against the exterior.
3. Music Stands and Snow Shovels
Billings Montana TempleA hearty storm blew in for the March 1998 groundbreaking of the Billings Montana Temple, taking Church members and guest dignitaries by surprise. The 4,800 people—from 12 states and two Canadian provinces—in attendance braved freezing temperatures, fog, and snow to be there for the occasion. Teeth chattered as a 700-member youth choir sang “Now Let Us Rejoice.”
The spring snowstorm had caught the majority of the attendees off guard; and lacking a sufficient number of snow shovels, many used inverted music stands to push away the snow and ice. The weather worsened at the passing of each hour. One loyal sister in her sixties had arrived two hours early to ensure she would have a front-row seat. Swathed in a blanket under an umbrella, she sat on a lawn chair for more than four hours. When she rose, the perfectly dry ground beneath her chair was ringed by snow five inches deep!
One young man displaying an optimistic attitude remarked that “The Lord blessed the groundbreaking today with snow to make this temple ground white and pure.” Later, Church members learned that the spring snowstorm was a blessing indeed. A large anti-Mormon organization from northern Wyoming had planned to disrupt the groundbreaking proceeding. Not one protestor was able to reach the temple site because of the hazardous weather and travel conditions.
4. A Special Session
London England TempleIn the late 1980s, a couple from Ghana in western Africa saved their money and traveled to the London Temple on an uncomfortable freight vessel. They arrived in England on a Friday night and awoke the next morning eager to visit the temple. With the help of a deckhand from the freighter, they found the temple Saturday afternoon. Their anticipation turned to sorrow when they learned that the temple was closed on Saturday afternoons; the last session of the day had begun a half hour before their arrival. The temple would reopen the following Tuesday—the same time their freighter would be returning to Ghana.After traveling a vast distance at a great cost, the couple was overwhelmed with anguish and feared their dreams of achieving temple blessings would not be realized. They broke into tears.
Arthur Henry King, who served as president of the London England Temple from 1986 to 1990, soon learned of the couple’s plight. President King arranged for a few temple workers and local members to participate in a special, additional session that day. His actions allowed this humble African couple to receive their endowments and the sealing ordinance that afternoon. They left the temple late in the day filled with peace and joy found in temple blessings.
5. Many Hands Make Light Work
Baton Rouge Louisiana TempleIn June 2000, the Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple was ready to be faced with Imperial Danby white marble. Many of the smaller temples built at this time—including the temple in Baton Rouge—used this beautiful marble, acquired from a quarry near Sharon, Vermont, birthplace of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Truckloads of the beautiful white stone were arriving daily.
The young men went to work and unloaded the remaining eight crates, totaling approximately 15,000 pounds of marble. They then went the extra mile by placing the marble, piece by piece, around the temple where workers could use it as it was needed. Through the entire process, only one piece of marble was broken.
After transporting all the marble, the young men focused their efforts on freeing the stranded truck. In a unified effort of strength, they managed to rock the big semitruck off the sand pile. All of the evening’s diligent labors required only one and one-half hour’s time.
6. Salvaged Lumber
Laie Hawaii TempleWhen the Laie Hawaii Temple was built in the early 1900s, the island of Oahu was quite remote. This made it difficult to receive shipments of building materials, such as lumber and other supplies. Several creative means were employed to get around the problem.
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