Families are Forever

Elder Leavitt and I were able to attend a family sealing!

Hello family!

This has been a heck of a week! We have been running around like crazy with barely any time to catch our breaths! I guess you could say there was a lot of anticipation building up for General Conference. A lot of changes were made amongst the General Authorities and general officers of the church..but I'm getting ahead of myself!

So the fun really began on Tuesday when I got a call from Elder Leavitt telling me that a guy I worked with in Pleasant Grove, UT, Don, is getting sealed to his wife in the Salt Lake City temple on Friday and he wants me to come! Without any hesitation, I quickly called President Killpack seeking permission to leave the mission and attend this momentous event. I received the green light and off I went to PG on Friday morning to meet up with the family who we would be riding up to SLC with. Elder Leavitt and I jumped in the car and off we went! It was a very wet ride up the freeway. It was literally raining buckets! It was almost like we were driving through a river on I-15 headed north. When we neared downtown Salt Lake, the rain subsided. We grabbed lunch and off we went to the temple! We arrived at about only to find out that the sealing ceremony wasn't until later. We looked at each other and went off to do some initiatories to pass the time. We reconvened with the family around 3 in the marriage waiting room. They took all of us back to the sealing room (which was quite small btw). The sealer came in, gave them the whole spiel and performed the ordinance! Despite it being a brief performance, it is still one of the most profound ordinances held within the temple. To think that they are now sealed to each other for their time here on Earth as well as throughout eternity...like...forever and ever....is quite a feat to comprehend. Yet, it's super cool! Well, the ordinance was finished and we were filed back to the marriage waiting room. Elder Leavitt and I took another route to avoid the congestion all these slow moving old people were making... Well, we rounded a corner..and who walks by us? President Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. We stopped dead in our tracks like a deer in the headlights. We were so starstruck we didn't say a word until he rounded another corner. Though, I can confidently say that I was smacked in the face by the spirit as we walked by us. Man...the power coming from that guy...and apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. A powerful moment I won't soon forget. Looking back now, I really wish I had said something...but oh well...maybe next time! (hopefully there will be a next time!) We joined the rest of the family outside of the temple, took some pictures, and headed back to Utah County. Well, so we thought. I-15 south bound was completely bumper to bumper from 4000 S in Salt Lake to Timpanogos Highway in north Utah Valley. Holy whip it was a very long drive. Fortunately, I brought my iPod so we had some music to help pass the time.

Saturday morning arrived and we went over to a family's house to watch conference. What a wonderful round of talks from Apostles and Seventies. We met up with the other elders for the afternoon session at another members home. This was the session we were all waiting for. This was when they called and sustained 3 new apostles to take the places of President Boyd K. Packer, Elder L. Tom Perry, and Elder Richard G. Scott. Warmly welcomed, Elder Ronald A. Rasband, Elder Gary E. Stevenson, and Elder Dale G. Renlund joined the holy apostleship on that faithful day. Sunday morning had to have been my favorite session! Amazing talks. The one that really got me going was President Monson's talk. I wasn't sure if he was gonna make it! He progressively got lower and lower on the pulpit, his words were drawn out and his breaths were shorter. Poor guy had to be carried back to his chair by his escorts after his talk. What really got me though was the power of his testimony. He wasn't about to give up. He was determined to finish his talk no matter what. He is a true example of the believers. I love President Monson. He is the man! 

Well, that about sums up the excitement of this week! I hope each of y'all had an awesome week chocked full of the spirit!

Love you guys! Y'all are the best! Until next week,

-Elder Ahrens