Surely the best motivator for family history is the second and great commandment -- given to us by the Savior himself: "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." (See Matthew 22:39; New Testament)
If I lived in an earlier era, before the Gospel of Jesus Christ was restored again on earth, I would hope that some descendant would love me enough to find out my information and submit it for temple ordinances. This is why I do family history. I want my ancestors and other relatives to know that I love them.
When we do family history we also acknowledge the atonement of Jesus Christ and become His helpers to see that the ordinances are completed. It is a great honor to be a helper in the redemption of the dead.
As a convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have been blessed to do a lot of family history and temple work. It is an opportunity that has enriched my life and strengthened my testimony of the plan of salvation.
I am sure other converts to the Church have similar feelings.
However, for members with a long heritage in the Church, some members really do have most of their direct lines completed. My husband is one of those people. We finally found direct-line individuals in his family but they are back in the 1600s. The ancestors were "end of the line" and New FamilySearch finally allows their work to be done because of the family relationships being documented.
My friend has tried for years to find information to submit. She comes from a large LDS family and it is difficult to find anything that hasn't been worked on. Everytime we think we found someone, it turned out that the ordinances have been completed.
I tell my friend that she can do family history in other ways -- scanning ancestral photos, compiling family history books, etc. She has taken this advice to heart and used family history projects for her five grown children at Christmas for several years. Her children really appreciate these gifts. Last year she collected all the written testimonies of their ancestors and made a booklet. (A similar thing could be done with patriarchal blessings of deceased ancestors.)
Family history entails far more than gathering names, dates, and places. It is a way to develop love and compassion for other people. This could be done in submitting information to the temples but, if the work is completed, we can turn our hearts to our families through other projects.
We live in an age of amazing technology which allows us to document and share our research with others all over the world. We can email questions to family members and receive their responses within minutes or hours. We can scan photographs and documents to share with cousins. It really is remarkable what technological advancements have come to pass during the past decade or so.
Whenever the Savior gives us a commandment, he opens up the way for us to accomplish it (see 1 Nephi 3:7 in the Book of Mormon). Latter-day prophets have testified of this truth. President Harold B. Lee (1899-1973) counseled: “Remember, whom the Lord calls, the Lord qualifies.”
We have been called to fulfill this responsibility in behalf of our kindred dead. The Lord will stand steadfast beside us as we pursue our search.
