My favorite mornings
I apologize if this gets gushy... but there is this sweet hour I get every once in a while at work. It happens at 7:30am. I come in as the first person in the school and 'open' the school. I stand (or sit) and greet all the students as they arrive. There is something so sweet about being able to shake each student's hand. I feel like I'm channeling all the energy I have to helping them feel loved and happy about the start of a new day. There is not a single student who walks in for whom I don't feel that love. I love talking with them and getting to know them outside of the classroom and before they start their school work.

I think there is something to be said about the magic of the early morning hours. When I think back on some of the sweetest moments, many of them happen in the morning... early... when it is tempting to still be under the covers. I think of early morning runs or bike rides or watching the sun rise. Or when my dad would take me out to breakfast for my birthday. Or being at work early and getting so much more done. Or my best scripture studies. I think part of it is sacrifice, and I think part of it is the newness and purity of the beginning of a new beginning.

Which brings me to the increase in blessings that come from attending the temple when it is a sacrifice. I was on my way to the temple with a good friend a few weeks ago. He had a lot of work to do that day and was a little anxious about getting it all done. We had just attended the baptism of a friend and were heading up to the temple. I told him I was impressed that he was attending the temple with all he needed to do. He told me that those were the times when he received the greatest blessings from temple attendance- when it was the greatest sacrifice. When he showed the Lord his priorities during a time when many things were demanding of his attention. I have since gained a testimony of this principle. I have felt abundantly blessed and can see how many of these blessings are connected to attending the temple when it was most difficult to fit into my schedule.