The temple is the House of the Lord and He’s thrilled to have you there. The first time you go, all you need to do is focus on the peace and love you feel in His house, since temple workers are there to help you every step of the way. This guide is intended to help you feel prepared to enter the temple with a calm mind and an open heart, ready to feel God’s abundant love for you. Let’s get started! ...

• Meet with your bishop and your stake president to get a “living ordinance” temple recommend. This is different from the recommend used for baptisms.
• Schedule an appointment; you can’t just walk in for your own endowment.
• Buy temple garments and temple clothing.¹ There are many different styles and fabrics of garments. Choose ones that are most comfortable for you. For women, white temple dresses can be mid-calf to floor length with three-quarter to full-length sleeves. Men wear all-white pants, shirts, and ties.
• Choose an escort (a close family member, friend, or Church leader of your same sex) to go with you.
• Tell endowed family members and friends about your appointment so they can attend with you!
• Arrive early and plan to be at the temple for 2–3 hours. (Consider eating something before you go.)

When you arrive at the temple, you want to be wearing the kind of clothing and shoes that you would wear to a sacrament meeting. Bring the temple garment and your temple clothing with you. At the recommend desk, a temple worker will greet you. You’ll scan your recommend and be introduced to another temple worker who will assist you and your escort the whole time you’re in the temple.

Next, you and your escort will briefly meet with a temple leader who will give you some instructions. Then you’ll go to the men’s or women’s locker room, where you’ll have a private changing stall and a locker to store your clothing and bag, similar to a temple baptistry.

In the changing room, you’ll put on the temple garment for the first time and then dress all in white. If you’re a woman, you’ll wear a white temple dress, along with white slippers and stockings. If you’re a man, you’ll wear white pants, a white shirt and tie, and white socks and slippers. Dressing in white reminds us that through Jesus Christ, our sins can become “white as snow” (Isaiah 1:18) and that we are equal before God.

You won’t put on the ceremonial clothing yet—you’ll carry it in a small cloth packet. After changing, your escort (also wearing white) will wait while you receive the initiatory ordinances.

Learn more about what to expect during the endowment ceremony in Your Guide to the Temple Endowment.

Confidently prepare for the temple

In Your Guide to the Temple Endowment, you will find what you need to know before you enter the temple. This short booklet features a step-by-step look at the process—from checking in at the recommend desk to being in the celestial room—scriptures to study, and questions to ponder to help you feel more at ease as you prepare to receive your temple endowment.

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More articles for you:
▶ Share this summary of the endowment video with first-time temple goers
▶ The unexpected comment from a temple worker that pointed me toward Christ
▶ 5 helpful things to say to someone before they receive their endowment

Note
1. It is often possible to rent temple clothes, but Elder Gerrit W. Gong taught, “Where your circumstances permit, please consider the blessing of owning your own temple clothes” (“All Things for Our Good,” Liahona, May 2024).