Our Sabbath Sanctuary

By President M. Russell Ballard

Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

From “The Chapel: Our Sabbath Sanctuary” at prophets.lds.org.

If we can start thinking of the chapel as a sanctuary of faith and devotion for sacrament meeting, we all will be blessed.

Sacrament meeting is a wonderful and glorious time. When we step into the chapel and prepare to receive the sacrament, we should think of ourselves as being in a sanctuary, a sacred and special place where we can contemplate Christ and His great and glorious mission. We put aside the things of the world and think instead of what is eternal. We need to put aside our cell phones and ponder about Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God.

We have just 70 minutes each week to focus on our love for the Savior. If we can start thinking of the chapel as a sanctuary of faith and devotion for sacrament meeting, we all will be blessed.

As we build the kingdom of God, I can’t think of anything more important than having a well-prepared sacrament meeting where speakers speak of Christ, testify of Christ, and share testimonies from the apostles and prophets in the scriptures and other sources.

As a Church we’ve been focused on the Sabbath day. We’ve made progress, but we are not there yet. We’ll continue our efforts until every member and missionary is so spiritually motivated during their Sabbath day worship that each says to his or her neighbors, investigators, and relatives, “Come and see. Come and worship with us.” This is where we want to be.

If we could all do this as a Church, those who accept our invitation to “come and see” will feel the power of the message of the restored Church of Jesus Christ. As they worship with us in our sacrament meetings, their hearts will be touched and the light of the gospel will be lit in their hearts and minds.