Brother of Jared, Part II

One of my favorite parts of The Book of Mormon is the account of the Brother of Jared. A few years ago, I was struggling between several different decisions. I felt like I was begging and pleading Heavenly Father to give me an answer to a situation I was going through. No matter how much I begged and plead, I still felt like I wasn't receiving an answer. This was so hard for me!

And then I began rereading the account of the Brother of Jared in my scripture reading. He asked Heavenly Father for help in two aspects: 1, what to do so that they could breath in their ships; 2, what to do in order for them to have light crossing the ocean. Heavenly Father answered the first of Jared's requests and then turned the second request into a question by saying, "Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?" (Ether 2:25).

Rather than giving the Brother of Jared a direct answer, Heavenly Father asks him to study it out for himself and come to Heavenly Father with an answer. I realized after reading this that is how Heavenly Father often answers my prayers. I come to Him without having done the proper research myself. I ask questions without having thought of what I think would be the best solution or answer, expecting to be enlightened when I haven't given any "thought save it were to ask" him. What can I say? I'm lazy like that. I want everything handed to me on a silver platter rather than actually having to work for it.

That's why I love this story. The Brother of Jared thought about and made up his mind to act, and then in humility he came to Heavenly Father letting him know of his decision. Because of this, the Brother of Jared as blessed for his faith and humility. He was so blessed that he was able to see first the finger of the Lord and then the entire body of the Savior. In fact, the Savior said of this, "Never have I shown myself unto any man whom I have created, for never has man believed in me as thou hast," (Ether 3:15). What a powerful example of what faith, work, preparation, and humility can do to bless our lives and provide answers to prayers.