What About Jared?

(this picture has nothing to do with what I'm writing about, except that I'm writing about Jared, and this is my own cute Jared, and how could I pass up this picture?)

I've started my Book of Mormon reading this time in Ether. I just wasn't quite ready for 1st Nephi!

Right off I had some interesting things to think about.

First, Jared. We spend a lot of time talking about the brother of Jared. He had great faith, he was directed by the Lord, he saw the Lord, and he had a unique name. But what about Jared? I noticed this verse in Chapter 2 today:

38 And who knoweth but the Lord will carry us forth into a land which is choice above all the earth? And if it so be, let us be faithful unto the Lord, that we may receive it for our inheritance.
39 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord according to that which had been spoken by the mouth of Jared.

Jared must have been a man of great faith as well. I wonder what the reason is that he asks his brother to do the praying for him. But in each situation it is his idea that his brother is praying about. That's interesting to me.

I also loved these verses because it shows how much faith he has in the Lord. I wish that ever, in the middle of a trial, I would think something like "who knows but maybe the Lord is taking me to a land that is choice above all the earth" instead of thinking "I'm quite sure that my life is going to be completely wrecked by this experience." I really admire his combination of faith and optimism.

Second:

7 And the Lord would not suffer that they should stop beyond the sea in the wilderness, but he would that they should come forth even unto the land of promise, which was choice above all other lands...

What a reminder that the Lord often has destinations in store for us that we can't imagine ourselves. We are content to stop in one place, and he is trying to take us to this land of promise. Again, I am usually so short sighted in these situations!

Last: (who knew there was so much to think about in the first two chapters of Ether!)

24 Nevertheless, I will bring you up again out of the depths of the sea; for the winds have gone forth out of my mouth, and also the rains and the floods have I sent forth.
25 And behold, I prepare you against these things; for ye cannot cross this great deep save I prepare you against the waves of the sea, and the winds which have gone forth, and the floods which shall come.

Usually at this point in the story I am more focused on the issue of them being as a whale (because you know this is appealing to me, or at least being with a whale!) or focusing forward on the story of the lights. But today these parts of the verses grabbed me.

We wonder sometimes if the Lord causes our trials. This seems to say to me that sometimes he does. Sometimes he has made the winds and the rain and the floods, all of which challenge us. But how comforting that he also says that he prepares us against these things, so that we are ready for them and can survive them.

At first I thought that this seemed a little pointless. Why would the Lord cause something and at the same time prepare us to survive it? Wouldn't it make more sense to just not cause the trial in the first place? But then I realized that many things are achieved during the experience that would not happen without it. We invariably learn important things about ourselves in these experiences. And we learn to trust more completely in the Lord, especially when we see how well he has prepared us for the wind and the waves and the rain...