Lynn's Lines - I love to see the temple...

Yesterday I had lunch with my parents and my uncle Skip (my Mom's brother). After eating we went up to my office - about 3 months ago I moved into a new office, and I was dying to show my Mom the view from my office window (see below: I took the picture about a month ago).

I love walking into my office in the morning and almost being able to reach out and touch the temple, it helps me to remember how thankful I am for my employment and it's importance in our lives.

Since last general conference I look at the temple differently. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, in his talk 'Lift Where You Stand,' shared this unusual story about John Rowe Moyle.

"This year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of John Rowe Moyle. John was a convert to the Church who left his home in England and traveled to the Salt Lake Valley as part of a handcart company. He built a home for his family in a small town a valley away from Salt Lake City. John was an accomplished stonecutter and, because of this skill, was asked to work on the Salt Lake Temple.

Every Monday John left home at two o’clock in the morning and walked six hours in order to be at his post on time. On Friday he would leave his work at five o’clock in the evening and walk almost until midnight before arriving home. He did this year after year.

One day, while he was doing his chores at home, a cow kicked him in the leg, causing a compound fracture. With limited medical resources, the only option was to amputate the broken leg. So John’s family and friends strapped him onto a door and, with a bucksaw, cut off his leg a few inches from the knee.

In spite of the crude surgery, the leg started to heal. Once John could sit up in bed, he began carving a wooden leg with an ingenious joint that served as an ankle to an artificial foot. Walking on this device was extremely painful, but John did not give up, building up his endurance until he could make the 22-mile (35-km) journey to the Salt Lake Temple each week, where he continued his work.

His hands carved the words “Holiness to the Lord” that stand today as a golden marker to all who visit the Salt Lake Temple.

John did not do this for the praise of man. Neither did he shirk his duty, even though he had every reason to do so. He knew what the Lord expected him to do.

Years later, John’s grandson Henry D. Moyle was called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve and, eventually, served in the First Presidency of the Church. President Moyle’s service in these callings was honorable, but his grandfather John’s service, though somewhat less public, is just as pleasing to the Lord. John’s character, his legacy of sacrifice, serves as a banner of faithfulness and an ensign of duty to his family and to the Church. John Rowe Moyle understood the meaning of “lift where you stand.”'

Now when I walk into my office in the morning I read the words: "Holiness to the Lord" and remember John Rowe Moyle's example of service and dedication. His legacy helps me to want to be a better person and go the extra mile (on two good legs) to serve others. Next time you're on Temple Square take a moment and read those 'golden' words "Holiness to the Lord."