Lessons to Learn from my Ancestors

My Family Tree!!

I discovered something new just recently.  If you have an lds.org account, this takes about a minute to do if not less.  Simply go to this link, https://createfan.com/, type in your username and password, and boom, in an instant, this 9 generation family tree is generated for you and you can save it and keep it to print and share with others!!  I did this just recently and it's already become a blessing in my life.  It's allowed me to see what work I can do to make mine more complete and gives me a visual to see who these people really are and how they relate to me.

I've enjoyed so many blessings because of this new found joy in my family heritage.  While packing all my stuff just before leaving home to be a missionary, my dad pulled up on the computer a whole bunch of stories from my family history and printed them for me to take while on my mission.  I've briefly glanced over them and read a few, but really haven't gotten to much into them.  The reason being is I can't remember who is who and how they relate to me.  But with this new chart that is up above, I've been able to go through these personal histories of my family and experience a deep personal connection with them.  Here is a few things I have learned already.

Men working on granite blocks for the Salt Lake Temple

I learned that my blood comes from a few European countries.  My last name Rasmussen comes from Denmark.  My great-great-great Grandfather was a Rasmussen from Denmark who sailed to the USA and Denmark and back 7 times before settling with his family in Idaho!  I also have family deeply rooted in England and especially Scotland.  I learned a lot from the example of one of my many great-great-great-great grandmother Elizabeth Patterson Hunter.  She suffered a lot in her youth and also throughout her adult life.  She was forced to work in coal mines in Scotland but she joined the Church and traveled with her family across the sea and across the plains.  She endured hardship after hardship but always had a positive attitude.  She loved to sing and dance and could brighten anybodies heart.  She loved her Scottish heritage and shared it quite frequently with others to boost their spirits during hard times.  She raised a wonderful family and helped establish the Saints out in the west.  Her husband Adam Patterson Hunter was also a stalwart example of hard work, love, and perseverance.  I was so happy to learn that he contributed almost his whole life to the building of the Salt Lake Temple which has a special place in my heart.  He gave of his time and means for years to help quarry and haul the granite blocks from Little Cottonwood Canyon to be used in the building of the temple.  I learned a lot from their history, about what I can do when I go through hard times in my life.  I learned from their examples that I can go through anything in life with a positive attitude and that there is always a bright future in store.

I wish I could share more about what I've learned from these family histories.  But overall the experience has been remarkable.  I've learned lessons of hard work and perseverance as I've read about the rich history of my pioneer ancestors.  I know they are just across the veil and that they are supporting me through what ever I may go through.  I wish to share with others how great a blessing this simple research of my family history has already blessed my life.  If you have just a quick minute, jump on a computer and print one of these family tree fans that you see on the top.  Then start finding some old stories of your ancestors.  As you reflect back on what they did, you will find so much added strength and an even greater personal relationship with those who have gone on before you.  I know this Church is true and that families are together forever.  I can't wait for the day when I can finally meet these my ancestors and thank them for all they have done to provide me with the life I enjoy today.  I love them so much and I love my living family even all the greater!

A Love for the Temple

Logan, Utah Temple

I've always had a special love for the temple, ever since I was a kid the temple has been in my life.  Growing up in Utah, you can't help but see a temple or to in your travels.  I mean I drove from Logan, Utah to Provo, Utah, a three hour drive, and saw eight temples and passed nine.  Soon it's going to be nine or ten.  Either way I've always had the temple in my life and I always knew it was special.  But not until recently did I ever imagine what the temple really means to me.

The temple is amazing!  The Spirit is so strong there I can't even describe it.  While you are within the walls of those sacred buildings, the world goes away.  You don't worry about the troubles of life.  You feel at peace, you feel calm, you feel great!  You learn so much about God and Christ it's breathtaking.  You are on the top of the world.  Before I came out on my mission, my mom and I attended the Jordan River Temple, only about a month before me leaving home.  As we were leaving for home, she and I agreed that you feel different leaving the temple.  You come out happy and joyful, with light filling your body and spirit.  These are feelings that are hard to describe, but they are wonderful.

Celestial Room at the Draper, Utah Temple

The temple though isn't there just to make you feel good.  Special ordinances necessary for salvation are performed in the temple.  Just like baptism is an ordinance (or ceremony) so are the things we do in the temple.  Because of these ordinances, family units can perpetuate beyond the grave.  I have felt that assurance in my life and it came to me one day at the temple.

One of the sacred ordinances we perform in the temple is called the endowment.  After the endowment, you end up in a room that every temple has called the Celestial Room.  These places are among the most magnificent and beautiful places you will ever be in.  They symbolic of the presence of God, so you can image how powerful it is to be there.  It was my first time at the temple back in June of 2011.  I was with my parents, my grandma, my grandparents, and other extended family members.  After the endowment, I walked into the Celestial Room of the Bountiful, Utah Temple.  As I walked in the room, it was real.  It felt like I had walked into God's presence and His love filled every space there.  I turned my head and there were my parents and my family.  I broke down crying it was amazing.  I was back home with my Heavenly Father and I wasn't alone.  I was with my family and we weren't going to be separated.  Even my Grandpa Rasmussen who had passed away a year before this time was there.  I was with my family forever in the kingdom of our Father in Heaven.

Palmyra, New York Temple

That's why temples are so important.  Without they are what allow us to return back to our Father in Heaven.  Not only that, but they allows us to return not alone, but with our families.  I can't describe how amazing the temple is!  I wish to help everybody get there and experience what I've had a chance to experience.  Please make the temple a priority in your life, marvelous blessings await your.

I know this Church is true.  It isn't just another church out there in the mix of things.  It is God's kingdom again restored on the earth with prophets, apostles, and the priesthood authority.  I know Christ is real and that He did suffer for our sins and afflictions.  I know that it is only through Him that we can return back to live with God again.  Oh and by the way, everything in the temple centers on Jesus Christ.

If you want to learn more about the family and the temple, try this link. http://mormon.org/family/