Building Bridges--My New Year's Testimony 2019

Hello again, everyone! Just over a year ago, the Church laid to rest our beloved Church President, Thomas S. Monson. President Monson always seemed larger than life, a heroic individual who, even in his declining years and months, was still reaching out to the one to rescue them from the sorrows, ills, and transgressions in their lives, or anything else that was keeping distance between them and the Lord.

The stories about the way he ministered to the one could and do fill volumes. Through word and deed, he pointed those within the sound of his voice to a higher way of life, to live the gospel more fully, and urged all of us to reach out and rescue all those within the scope of our influence who are struggling in their own paths. President Monson demonstrated that attitude through engaging personal stories and the many poems and scriptural passages he amazingly committed to memory.

One such poem which he often quoted was "The Bridge Builder". In 2009, while I was taking the "Teachings of the Living Prophets" class at BYU, my classmates and I were assigned to individually memorize one scripture cited by President Monson, one of his many most-recognized quotes, and poems he shared over the pulpit. I chose to memorize "The Bridge Builder". As we get further into this New Year, I felt impressed to share that poem, and some thoughts about what it (and the opportunities afforded by each new year) means to me.

An old man going a lone highway,
Came, at the evening, cold and gray,
To a chasm, vast and deep and wide.
Through which was flowing a sullen tide.
The old man crossed in the twilight dim,
The sullen stream held no fear for him;
But he turned when safe on the other side
And built a bridge to span the tide.

“Old man,” said a fellow pilgrim near,
“You are wasting your strength with building here;
Your journey will end with the ending day,
You never again will pass this way;
You have crossed the chasm, deep and wide,
Why build you this bridge at the eventide?”

The builder lifted his old gray head;
"Good friend, in the path I have come,” he said,
There followeth after me to-day
A youth whose feet must pass this way.
"This chasm that has been as naught to me
To that fair-haired youth may a pitfall be;
He, too, must cross in the twilight dim;
Good friend, I am building this bridge for him."

A new year has often been considered to be the optimal time to start something anew, to mend fences or broken bridges in relationships, to correct mistakes in our conduct and day-to-day living, and to look with hope towards the promise that, if we will do such things, each new year can and will be better than however many years have come before it. But more than that, we can and must reach out to rescue those within our circle of influence who have, for whatever reason, managed to get any aspect of their lives off-course.

Earlier today, the first Music & the Spoken Word broadcast for 2019 was a special one with a "New Year" theme. Lloyd Newell, who gives the "spoken word" portion of the program, shared this message this morning. Part of any transition we make in this life from one stage to another surely involves the process whereby we are presented with new territory in which to forge a path ahead, and the opportunity to cross various chasms and, where possible, turn around and build bridges for others who will, through no fault of their own, need to cross similar chasms in their own lives and situations.

Will we, as the ones who have gone before, make the path easier for those who will follow after us? It has well been said that those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. While serving as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (and Acting President of the Church during the apostolic interregnum following the death of Brigham Young), John Taylor was quoted as follows: "If you do not magnify your callings, God will hold you responsible for those whom you might have saved had you done your duty."

Therefore, if we fail to learn from the mistakes we and others before us have made, do not successfully cross the chasms in our own lives and build bridges for those who will follow after, do not take the time to ensure that each New Year can be such an opportunity to change ourselves for the better and to build bridges for those that will follow after us, we will definitely be accountable to the Lord on Judgement Day for those faults and failings.

That said, since there has only ever been One Man I know of who was absolutely perfect, and who never lost sight of His mission and purpose, who was willing to pay the price for our shortcomings, faults, failures, and flaws, if we have failed in these priorities before now, then this new year also presents an opportunity for each of us to correct course now, to resolve to do better, and to ensure that we do what He has sent us here to do.

While it is never an easy process to make such course corrections, He never said it would be easy: He only said it would be worth it. If we lay claim to the merits, mercy, compassion, understanding and opportunity to course correct, which is freely offered by Him through the gift of His atonement, then not only can we correct our course and resolve to do better in the year ahead, but we can also be successful in doing better in the future, and in preparing the paths we have already trod for those who will follow after, and who would, if not for our preparation, fallen by the wayside.

This is the opportunity that each New Year affords for us all. I pray that we will take that opportunity this year, and every New Year for the rest of our lives. If we can do so, we will then be able to stand blameless before our Father in Heaven and His Son, who makes it all possible. This is the New Year testimony which I offer on this Fast Sunday in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Further Revisions Made to Announced Temples Section of My Temple Construction Progress Report

Hello again, everyone! As briefly referenced in my previous post, I am now fulfilling my promise to bring you the revised version of the announced temples section of my temple construction progress report. Most of those revisions involved reevaluating what was known about each temple (including any information which had been officially or unofficially confirmed), and based on my analysis of the relevant factors, I reworked the section of announced temples for which sufficient information that is known has given me enough confidence to provide a general estimated time-frame within which a groundbreaking might occur for those temples. I should also mention that there is a current backlog of 28 temples for which a groundbreaking is pending. Of those 28, the information to which I currently have access has me confident enough to venture a general groundbreaking estimate for 16 of them, and if those estimates are anywhere near correct, all 16 temples could have a groundbreaking within the next 3 years or less. And since many (myself included) were surprised by the unexpected announcement of the groundbreaking ceremony for the Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple (with that ceremony being held almost two months ago), I am not ruling out the likelihood that could occur again for temples in the second section of announced temples. As I also observed recently, although it has been somewhat standard in recent years for temples to have 2-3 years between the timing of an announcement and a subsequent groundbreaking ceremony, depending on what President Nelson has planned for future temple construction, that time-frame may accelerate significantly, especially for temples which will be smaller in size and will serve a smaller district. Time will tell just how accurate any of these estimates are.

It should also be noted that, since I last posted this section of my report on this blog (6 days ago), I have increased the number of additional temples which might have a groundbreaking by the end of 2019 from 5 to 7. If something big is coming in terms of future temple announcements and construction efforts, then part of that will surely involve moving announced temples into the construction process more quickly than we have seen up to this point.

So it is possible that this year and the years that follow will see even more groundbreakings and new temples announced than the years before, which in turn would multiply the number of temple events the Church will see in subsequent years. As with anything else I post, I will be just as happy if my estimates prove to be off as I will be if any of them are accurate. With that noted, the updated section of my report highlighting announced temples follows below.

In order to not disturb the flow of that information, I will end here and now as I always do. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly-added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Announced Temples (for which sufficient information has me confident enough to venture a general groundbreaking estimate):

174. Pocatello Idaho Temple: Government approval process; streets around temple site opened; groundbreaking anticipated in mid-2019.

175. Saratoga Springs Utah Temple: Government approval phase; probable site identified; awaiting official confirmation and artist’s rendering; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2019.

176. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Planning and preliminary construction phase; awaiting official site announcement; President Nelson visited probable site on October 20, 2018; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2019.

177. Nairobi Kenya Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; media event held June 14, 2017; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2019.

178. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; President Nelson visited potential site on April 17, 2018; groundbreaking anticipated in late 2019.

179. Brasilia Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; site inspected by Church engineers on June 21, 2017; groundbreaking could occur in late 2019-early 2020.

180. Greater Manila Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official name announcement; groundbreaking could occur in late 2019-early 2020.

181. Layton Utah Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early 2020.

182. Richmond Virginia Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early 2020.

183. Salta Argentina Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2020.

184. Bengaluru India Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; President Nelson toured potential locations on April 19, 2018; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2020.

185. Mendoza Argentina Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2020.

186. Puebla Mexico Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2020.

187. Managua Nicaragua Temple: Announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in late 2020.

188. Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in ­late 2020.

189. Auckland New Zealand Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in late 2020-early 2021.

Announced Temples (for which more information is needed before I provide an estimated groundbreaking time-frame):

190. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

191. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

192. Cagayan de Oro Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

193. Salvador Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

194. Yuba City, California Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

195. Praia Cape Verde Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

196. Yigo Guam Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

197. Lagos Nigeria Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

198. Davao Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

199. San Juan Puerto Rico Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

200. Russia Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official location and site announcement.

201. Washington County Utah Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official city and site announcement.

Some Items of Business Relating to This Blog (Including Some Observations About Temples)

Hello again, everyone! I hope you all are enjoying the new method I have been using to convey information (posting more minor developments in comments on existing threads, and focusing blog posts on the more major developments that are significant enough to merit new posts and additional analysis on my part). I also hope that any of you, whether long-time or newer readers of this blog, will continue to feel free to post comments to share feedback on any new content, or any older posts to share new information.

I am particularly hosting an open commenting period on my April 2019 General Conference predictions, and welcome any insights any of you have on the projected speaking order, potential changes in Church leadership, the estimated figures for the statistical report, and the list of potential locations which, given recent comments from Church leaders and the research I have done, is more extensive than it ever has been.

While I have tried to limit that list to one location per US state or nation, there are a few nations and one state (Utah) where multiple temples seem likely to be announced. Although the United States (except for the regions within the Mormon corridor) has been in a general state of stagnation, Matthew Martinich, who maintains the Church growth blog, has indicated that congregational growth in the United States improved in 2018 in comparison to 2017.

That statement may not indicate that the stagnant growth in the US is beginning to reverse itself, but there are certainly areas within the US where I feel more confident a temple could be built than I was this time last year.  I have also recently referenced in my comments on this blog my opinion that the 19 temples announced last year were President Nelson's way of starting slowly to expand the number of temples.

In that regard, I was also reminded that 2018 saw the second-highest number of temples announced in a single year (which may be considered the highest number of temples for which a specific location was announced in a single year). So perhaps 2019 will see many more temples announced. But more than that: 9 of the 19 temples announced last year have since had a specific site either definitively or unofficially confirmed.

So the face of the Church's temple construction program is changing for sure, and part of that will almost certainly involve the announcement of dozens (if not scores) of temples. That is why my list of potential locations that could have a temple announced in April is more extensive than it has ever been. But another part of the changing face of temple construction might be that we will see temples move more quickly from announcement to groundbreaking.

In view of that consideration, I have taken time over the last hour or two to update my general estimated time-frames within which many of the announced temples could go on to have a groundbreaking, and part of that involved adjusting the order of some temples and moving up their estimates. I will be posting those changes within the next hour.  In the meantime (with my apologies for rambling), any thoughts anyone has about my General Conference predictions, particularly the list of potential locations which might have a temple announced in April, would be particularly appreciated.

Getting back to the items of business for this blog, I wanted to also solicit feedback on the current layout of this blog. Because I could not "sound off" about subjects close to my heart without you who are willing to read and offer feedback on the content here, if there is anything not working for any of you, I would like to know about it. I have also been mulling over the merits of adding other features to this blog, so let me know if there is anything you would like to see in the layout that is not presently included.

I also know that in the past, some of you who regularly comment have mentioned I should be earning money for my blogging efforts. So I have been considering that as well. I currently have Adsense ads on this blog, but my earnings therefrom have never been too significant, even on the highest-earning days. That is one of the main reasons I have tweaked the layout of this blog so much recently. I was checking if different layout configurations would impact the earnings.

So one option for me would be to add a "donate" button here. I hesitate to do that, because that can get tricky, and I wouldn't want any of you to feel pressured to donate if you didn't want to. But at times, I do wonder if that would be a good option. My efforts, unlike other blogs that provide extensive analysis of different aspects of the gospel, have no private source of funding, and I am certainly not getting revenue out of this blog which would be equivalent to the hours of work I put into the content I post here. If I do wind up adding such a button, donations would be completely optional, and I would certainly never think any less of any of you who do not want to or are not able to donate.

But the more I thought about this, the more I realized that I wouldn't want to unilaterally make any of these changes if they would only prove to be a deterrent to earnest discussion of the topics covered on this blog. For that reason, I would likewise appreciate any thoughts any of you have on any of the changes I am considering for this blog. While I do enjoy "sounding off" about subjects so close to my heart, this blog has cultivated a community of several loyal readers, many of whom also comment regularly. So none of this is my personal prerogative to decide on. If the changes I am mulling over will not improve the overall experience for you, my readers, making them would be a non-starter for sure.

For that reason, if any of you have any comments on anything I have discussed here, I would welcome and appreciate the chance to hear your input, and that also goes for any previous content on this blog. The commenting period for any posts on this blog (except those for which I have specifically set a time-frame limit) is eternally open, as far as I am concerned. That does it for this post. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly-added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.