The church is true! How our prophet guides us today

I cannot tell you what a testimony builder this COVID 19 experience has been. Everything our governments are doing is reactive. They are trying to handle the situation as it develops, in varying stages of success.

However, almost everything our church has done has been proactive. Today, the church closed all the temples completely. On the outside, it seemed reactive. However, I see now that the Lord prepared us for this.

Less than one year ago, the church announced that couples no longer have to wait a year to get sealed if they have been married civilly. I just shrugged at the time and thought it was a great policy.

However, today I see that the Lord knew the temple closures were coming and He took away the waiting period for couples who had no choice but to get married civilly while the temples were closed.

It solidified my testimony to know that Lord, through our prophet, is not being reactive. He is being proactive. 

• Setting us up with Come Follow Me, and giving us time to become familiar with it (even if we were unsuccessful in our homes, we were still exposed to it at church),
• Letting us know that conference was going to be different (even if it wasn't in any way close to our speculations),
• Today closing temples - but already having a policy in place for couples whose lives are held in limbo!

 A great group of ladies on Facebook helped me see other things going on:

• We were commanded in 1979 to have food storage. We will be in lock-down soon, and I know I will be able to keep my family safe because we have enough food to get us through however many weeks we are on lock-down.
• One told me about how they started an online seminary program in her stake program this year, now their stake seminary kids still get to do seminary.
• The shift from Visiting Teaching to Ministering which moved visits outside of the home to a more wholistic approach. I was pretty bummed about that move, but now I see it was totally preparing us to serve our sisters outside of their home when we could not be IN their home.
• The age change in passing the Sacrament has allowed many more boys to participate in Sacrament in their homes, not just in church.
• All the self-reliance classes the church has been doing! Those have prepared so many people!
• There was a news article about how much money the church has stockpiled away. A lot of people were really upset about it. I have friends who are in leadership in their church and without this time for them to meet with their congregations and collect tithing, they are really hurting. I know that our church will continue to function and take care of the aftermath of this virus all over the world.
• The fact that the church had already been preparing the Salt Lake temple for an earthquake when one hit on the 18th of this month!
• Missionaries all over the world have been using technology and social media, and now that is all they can do!

 The signs are everywhere!