‘When they had prepared’

Ether 6:4

The Jaredites had many questions before starting their journey to the land of promise.

Praying to Heavenly Father was the key they used to unlock answers.

Their first questions were easy because all they had to do was receive blessings.

They prayed to Heavenly Father and were blessed to keep the same language. 

They prayed to Heavenly Father and were blessed to stay together.

They prayed to Heavenly Father and were blessed with a safe place in the wilderness.

But then, the blessings became harder to earn. 

They prayed to Heavenly Father to lead them to a land of promise. 

Heavenly Father could have ‘poofed’ the Jaredites to the land of promise with his power, but He didn’t. The blessings of a land of promise would require the Jaredites to do a lot of work!

They prayed to Heavenly Father and were blessed to learn about building barges.

They prayed to Heavenly Father and were blessed with ideas and actions to take for receiving air and light in the barges.

Heavenly Father wanted the Jaredites to learn and grow, and they Did learn and grow, one bit of learning at a time.

When we ask Heavenly Father for blessings, He Can and Will always help us.

The blessings we receive may come with chances to learn from our mistakes or chances to learn about things we didn’t know before.

Praying to Heavenly Father is a key we can always use to unlock answers.

Jesus showed us the way to learn things while He was on earth.

Jesus was already perfect when he came to earth, ‘yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered.’ (Hebrews 5:8)

’One step at a time’ is our path to become like Jesus.

‘That we may have Light’

Ether 2:19, 2:22-25, 3:1-6, 6:2-5

What was your last problem? Did you solve it?

After eight barges were built and stoppers were put in the tops and bottoms so air could get in, the brother of Jared still had a problem. The brother of Jared prayed, ’. . . O Lord, in (the barges) there is no light; (how) shall we steer? ‘O Lord, wilt thou suffer that we shall cross this great water in darkness?’(Ether 2:19, Ether 3:4)

Well, this time, the Lord answered the brother of Jared’s prayer by asking him a question. ‘What will ye that I should do that ye may have light in your vessels?’ (Ether 3:23,25)

The question helped the brother of Jared think of answers himself! 

So, he got an idea and ‘ . . went forth unto the mount, which they called the mount Shelem, because of its exceeding height, and did molten out of a rock sixteen small stones; and they were white and clear, even as transparent glass;’ (Ether 3:1)

Then, the brother of Jared asked the Lord to ‘touch these stones, O Lord, with thy finger, and prepare them that they may shine forth in darkness; and they shall shine forth unto us in the vessels which we have prepared, that we may have light while we shall cross the sea.’ (Ether 3:4) 

‘The Lord stretched forth his hand and touched the stones one by one with his finger.’ (Ether 3:6) The brother of Jared put two stones in each barge, one in each end, ‘and behold, they did give light unto the vessels.’ (Ether 6:2-3)

When I have problems or questions, I can ask the Lord for help. He has power and wants to help me when I do my part. (Ether 6:5)

What’s in a Name?

Do you have the same name as someone else? That can be confusing.

The same thing happened in the scriptures.

The name, Mary, belongs to five women in the New Testament:

1. Mary, the mother of Jesus, comes first.
2. Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha is second.
3. Mary, the mother of James and Joses, was at Jesus’ cross.
4. Mary Magdalene was at the tomb after Jesus was resurrected, and
5. Mary was the mother of Mark, a missionary.

The name, Nephi, belongs to at least four men in Book of Mormon times.

1. The first Nephi was the son of Lehi, who said, ‘I Nephi, having been born of goodly parents . .’
2. The second Nephi and the second Lehi were sons of Helaman. They became mighty missionaries who baptized 8,000 Lamanites! 
3. The third Nephi was the son of the second Nephi. He became one of the twelve disciples when Jesus visited the American continent.
4. The fourth Nephi was the son of the third Nephi. He lived when ‘the people were all converted unto the Lord’ and had ‘peace in the land.’

Moroni is a name shared by two people in the Book of Mormon;

1. Moroni, the chief captain of the Nephite armies, lived a hundred years before Jesus came to America.
2. The second Moroni, who was the son of Mormon, lived over 400 years after Jesus visited the America. He was the last Nephite to write stories of the Nephites and Lamanites before they were destroyed.

Many people share the same name, but each person is ‘one-of-a-kind.’ Every person is exactly like every other person in two important ways.

Every person has the same Heavenly Father. 

And every person is a different child of God.

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The Land of Promise

Ether 2:7

“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, which the Lord God had preserved for a righteous people.”

Ether 2:8

“And he had sworn in his wrath unto the brother of Jared, that whoso should possess this land of promise, from that time henceforth and forever, should serve him, the true and only God, or they should be swept off when the fulness of his wrath should come upon them.”

Ether 2:9 

“And now, we can behold the decrees of God concerning this land, that it is a land of promise; and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall serve God, or they shall be swept off when the fulness of his wrath shall come upon them. And the fullness of his wrath cometh upon them when they are ripened in iniquity.”

Ether 2:10

“For behold, this is a land which is choice above all other lands; wherefore he that doth possess it shall serve God or shall be swept off; for it is the everlasting decree of God. And it is not until the fulness of iniquity among the children of the land, that they are swept off.”

Ether 2:12

“Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ, who hath been manifested by the things which we have written.”

Ether 2:15

“And the brother of Jared repented of the evil which he had done, and did call upon the name of the Lord for his brethren who were with him. And the Lord said unto him: I will forgive thee and thy brethren of their sins; but thou shalt not sin any more, for ye shall remember that my Spirit will not always strive with man; wherefore, if ye will sin until ye are fully ripe ye shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord. And these are my thoughts upon the land which I shall give you for your inheritance; for it shall be a land choice above all other lands.”

Why did the Lord repeat his message about a land of promise six times in Ether 2?