This Saturday I went hiking again, but this time up to the Mt. Timpanogos caves and they were amazing. It was pretty steep going up to the cave entrance, but it was worth it. We actually went through three different caves and while in the first one the forest ranger guy who was with us told us that we were standing inside a fault line! I thought that was probably one of the most amazing things ever. I've heard lots of people talk about being on top of fault lines, but never inside them. It was pretty amazing. He then told us that if there had been an earthquake that being in the fault line where we were was the safest place we could possibly be. If an earthquake had started at the faultline we were in it would have shaken us a little then moved outward and wouldn't have affected us very much. And if an earthquake had started at a different fault line, when the shock waves reached us they wouldn't have affected us at all because we were so deep in the mountain. So, we were in the best spot possible to receive the least amount of damage.
Learning about all that made me think of a verse I read recently in Doctrine and Covenants section 45. In verse 33 it talks about some of the calamities that will happen in the last days and says, "And there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and many desolations". I thought it was interesting that in the case of such an earthquake the safest place to be wouldn't be in a house, building, cellar or anything like that, but in a mountain. The safest place for us to be is in the place that God has created for us. And if you think of mountains as a metaphor for temples, then the best place to be to stay safe from the spiritual calamaties in the world is in the temple, or the house of the Lord. When we stay as close to Him as possible we'll be safe.
(p.s. the picture is from inside the fault!)
1 comment:
Hey there! Awesome entry, I actually hiked up to Timpanogus caves just two months ago. I've been up there about four or five times now, and its beauty never ceases to amaze me. I had never before made the connection between the safety of being in a mountain and the safety of being in the House of the Lord. It's a wonderful analogy, especially when I think about the breathtaking beauty of the caves and awesome amount of time it took for it to form. Temples themselves also only grow better with time! Thank you so much for your spiritual insight :).
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