"Did it work?"

Yesterday evening, I attended a service in which a 9-year-old boy was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. These baptismal services are always beautiful and sacred experiences; moments where you can feel the hand of heaven reaching down to touch someone who is willing to turn his or her life over to Jesus. You feel the culmination of preparation and serious personal decisions, as well as the promise of a new life and new opportunities on the path back to God. Last night was no different, and I found myself touched, humbled, and awed by the simple beauty of the ceremony and the power of the covenants that my young friend was making. One moment in particular, however, stood out to me more than the rest. As this boy—the newest member of the church—emerged from the water, trickles still running down his face and back into the font, he looked up and asked earnestly, “Did it work?”

The congregation smiled and laughed at the sweet innocence of this young man. But silently I think we were all pondering the same question: How do you actually know that baptism works? Even though these baptismal services are holy events, there are rarely heavenly manifestations or angelic visitations at them. When you’re baptized, the evaporating water doesn’t leave a permanent, effervescent glow surrounding your face, alerting others to the promises you made. Your personality is not instantly altered. You don’t leave the ceremony floating a foot above the ground. For all intents and purposes, things really do look the same before and after baptism.

So did it work?

I think that many of us have asked questions like this at various times in our lives, needing to know if our acts of religious devotion are efficacious. We need to know that we are not just going through motions, but that our actions truly are backed by priesthood power. We ask:

When I prayed this morning, did God truly hear me?

When I partook of the sacrament this week, did God really forgive me of my sins?

Do the covenants I made in the temple really make it possible for me to live with my family forever?

When I took the time to help someone else, did my own character actually grow?

When I prayed with my child, did he draw closer to God?

Does God notice all the efforts I go to in order to serve His children?

And the beauty of it is that we cannot always see the answers to those questions. I don’t leave sacrament meeting every week with a glowing sign following me everywhere proclaiming “Forgiven!” I can’t audibly hear God’s voice as I finish my morning prayers. Daily acts of devotion rarely yield immediate significant results. We walk by faith. God sent us to this earth not to know immediately if something works, but to grow grace for grace, day by day, until our faith matures and we come to know God. And He promises to answer—piece by piece, and sometimes all at once—each time we ask, “Did it work?”

I remember a time I asked my own version that question. I was about to embark on my 18-month mission to Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. Part of my preparation included going to the temple to receive ordinances that Latter-day Saints call the endowment. I had read and pondered and studied and prayed much in preparation for this significant event, and I felt prepared to make promises to God that I would be obedient to Him. Due to the sacred nature of the endowment, however, there was still much I did not know, and I wondered how these ordinances would change me. As I sat with my ecclesiastical leader prior to my entrance into the temple, I posed the question most pressing to my 21-year-old mind: “Bishop, do you feel different after you go to the temple?” I needed to know that the temple “worked,” that I would feel and be different as a result of what was going to take place. In a time of great change and uncertainty in my own life, I craved the peace that I had so often heard comes from temple attendance. I wanted the strength of the covenants that I had read about. I wanted to be spiritually stronger. I wanted to be closer to heaven. I wanted to become better because of these temple ordinances. I needed to know that it worked.

While my bishop’s thoughts and testimony were helpful—as were the scriptures and words of prophets I had read—it was only through experiencing the ordinance myself that I came to understand that it worked. Did I immediately feel different after my first journey through the temple? Not exactly. I felt humbled and as if I had much to ponder and learn. I felt good and peaceful, as I usually do after spiritual experiences. But I was still me. I was still facing my same challenges in life. My character remained fundamentally the same. As time passed, however, I grew to recognize the increased power that comes from making and keeping those covenants. I have continued to feel that power as I have returned to the temple regularly, recognizing spiritual promptings and drawing closer to heaven. As I act on that revelation, I have seen myself improve and become a better person.  I see now—at least to some extent—the differences that come into one’s life through temple worship. The longer I live, the more I recognize that my temple covenants worked.

The scriptures tell us that if we “do (God’s) will” we “shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God” or otherwise (John 7:17). God wants us to know that our acts of faith are indeed efficacious. He promises that there are ways to know and find spiritual truth. Some of these spiritual witnesses come quickly, while others may take years to recognize. It takes a lot of patience and humility on our part sometimes to wait upon the Lord to receive a witness, yet those witnesses invariably comes. God wants us to know that faith works, and He often does so in simple, almost imperceptible ways.

The sweet feelings of peace that come after sincere repentance are a witness that God remembers our sins no more.

The continued increase of spiritual knowledge and insight that comes from years of consistent scripture study shows that this daily habit works.

The joy we feel in family relationships and in the temple witness to the veracity and efficacy of sealing ordinances.

The almost imperceptible refinement of our ability to hear and respond to the Lord’s voice as we seek Him in prayer tells us that prayer is a valid means of communication.

The companionship of the Holy Ghost and the consequent increase in revelation testify that baptism is indeed efficacious.

So to that young man who was baptized last night, I say, yes! Yes, your baptism worked. You truly did enter into a covenant with God to serve Him and your fellow men. God has made promises to you in return, and He will sustain you. But you are going to have to walk by faith day by day until that reality becomes clearer to you. You won’t see it all at once. You probably won’t hear God’s voice telling you that you are on the right path. But bit by bit, it will become clearer. God’s hand in your daily journey will reveal that to you until you know without a doubt that He is real and His promises are immutable.

And until that perfect day when all doubt has been dispelled, we will walk by faith, treasuring the assurances from God that He does indeed ratify and sanctify our efforts to become holy.