Kirtland, Ohio

Tuesday morning we woke and drove 4 1/2 hours west to Kirtland, Ohio, which is actually an incredibly small town. We went directly to the visitor's center, watched a short film on the lives of the saints in Kirtland and took a tour of the grounds. Our first stop was the lumbar mill

The Saints definitely worked hard to build up Kirtland once they arrived. Thanks to the extreme generosity of Newell K Whitney, they had the resources to build a beautiful city.

Brother Whitney also owned the Ashery . Ashes from stoves and wood burning in the fields were sold to the ashery to be processed and sold for use in manufacturing various products. The Ashery provided employment and much needed cash. Brother Whitney donated the proceeds from the ashery to help build the Kirtland temple.

The couple missionaries, The Rowleys, that took us on our tour gave us a great analogy in the ashery. The ashes are either processed cold to produce lye for soap, or are heated to varying degrees to produce potash or another substance resembling lava rock that was sold at a high price and was used in the production of China. The Rowleys explained to us that the more heat applied to the ash, the more it was refined- just as the saints in Kirtland, and just as we have the opportunity to be by enduring well the trials our Father sees fit to send our way.

We also got to see this stream which led to a small river that the Saints would dam and perform their baptisms in. Cool.This is the Johnson Inn

..and the Newell K. and Elizabeth Ann Whitney home

The story of Newell Whitney's life impressed me greatly. What a perfect example of a disciple of Christ. He realized that even though he worked hard for his wealth, this blessing was offered him by the Lord specifically for the purpose of building up the church and blessing the lives of the saints. He freely gave of all he had to assist others. He and his wife were truly instruments in the hand of the Lord during these years.

Emma and Joseph lived with the Whitneys when they came to Kirtland. To some, it may have been an inconvenience to add another family into your home however, the Whitneys welcomed the Smiths with open arms. Newell even had part of his home converted to a seperate kitchen for Emma. What an amazingly thoughtful man.
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The Whitney's store was just across the street from their home. When Newell served as Bishop, the Bishop's storehouse was located in this building as well.

The upper floor of the store served as office space for the prophet, as well as for the initial school of the prophets. It was in this room that one of the recorded visitations from the Savior occurred:

In the room across the hall, Emma gave birth to Joseph Smith III

Truly, visiting these sites is an experience you need to FEEL. It is difficult to express in words. The spirit testifies of truth over and over again on these grounds.

After leaving Historic Kirtland, we had lunch and checked inot our hotel ( which was old, worn, stinky and a HUGE disappointment). By this time it had begun to rain. A big storm had moved in. We decided to visit the Kirtland temple before the rain got any worse so, we climbed back into the car. By the time we made it to the temple, which was about 1 mile up the road, we were experiencing heavy rain, lightening and VERY loud thunder. We braved the elements and made a run for the visitor's center.

The Kirtland temple is owned by the Community of Christ church ( AKA reorganized church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints). Although touring the grounds and temple was a great experience, the difference between this site and the LDS sites was tangible. The Lord acknowledged this temple as His house after it had been built, it is very clearly not the same today under the ownership of this offshoot congregation.

The temple is beautiful. It is truly a living tribute to the faithfulness of the early saints. It was built at great sacrifice and tremendous effort. But what blessings it afforded it's patrons. Truly a miracle in and of itself.

It continued to storm unrelentlessly the remainder of the afternoon and evening. We were glad for some time to just relax and unwind before a VERY long drive the next day.