Jaredites Journey


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This is the first time I've posted on this forum so I do need to include a small introduction.  I am LDS and currently attend the Pathway program in my area.  We are studying the second half of the Book of Mormon this semester.  One of the assignments that we are given every other week gives us the option of posting insights of our weekly scripture reading on some sort of blog or forum, but I have never done it.  I decided to break out of my comfort zone and try this, so please have patience with me.

Yesterday I was reading in Ether chapter six.  When I got to verse four, a word jumped out at me. "...and it came to pass that when they had done all these things they got aboard of their vessels or barges, and set forth into the sea, commending themselves unto the Lord their God." (Italics added)  I looked up the word commending in the Webster 1828 dictionary, which is what was recommended to us by the instructor when trying to find definitions to words found in the scriptures.  The definition was "committing, delivering in charge".  I reflected on what I knew about the Jaredite journey from the previous chapters and what we knew about their vessels.  We knew they were tight like a dish, with no windows and only a small hole for air when needed.  We know that the only light was provided by the stones the brother of Jared took to the Lord and had been touched by the Lord's finger.  In order to be "tight like a dish" we know there were no oars for self-propulsion or any kind of steering mechanism on these vessels.  As the Jaredites pushed off into the sea, they were committing everything to this cause.  They had complete trust in the Lord.  For someone like me, a little bit of a control-freak, this is a terrifying thought.

Last night we attended our class and in our group work, we were asked about this same verse of scripture.  What does it mean to commend your life to the Lord as the Jaredites did on their journey to the promised land?  We talked as a group and came up with some answers, but I knew I needed to continue to reflect on this and find parallels in my life.  This morning as I turned back to this verse, I started to gain some insight as to how I have already started my own Jaredite journey, but that I needed to continue in faith. 

  • When I left my premortal life, I was much like the Jaredites.  I had been taught and prepared there for my life here.
  • I was born with the Light of Christ to help me start my journey much like the stones were the Light of Christ in those vessels.
  • I did not know anything about my destination -- only that this step into mortality was necessary for my progression.
  • I could not "see" what was ahead nor comprehend the experiences I would have.
  • I was (am) NOT in control
  • I didn't know how long my journey would be here on this earth when I started
  • My trust was in my Father in Heaven, His plan for me and that He would guide me much like the wind and waves guided the Jaredites

I have added to the Light of Christ I was born with when I received the gift of the Holy Ghost.  I continue to learn and prepare as much as I can spiritually by attending church, reading my scriptures, praying and attending the temple.  I still cannot see around the corners in my life and I do not know how many days, months, years I have on this earth.  One thing I have definitely learned, this week especially, is that I am NOT in control.  Any control I thought I may have had was an illusion. 

I have committed myself to God my whole life, but I realized, after this heartbreaking week, that the only hope I have for peace and joy is through delivering myself and my life to the charge of the Lord.  I must have full trust in His love for me and His plan for me.  I need to remind myself that 'the winds have gone forth out of [His] mouth. The rains and floods [He] has sent forth.' (Ether 2:24).  I need to remember to be like the Jaredites on their journey -- sing praises, thank and praise the Lord all the day long, never ceasing.  And...when I make it to the promised land, I will bow myself down and humble myself before my Lord and shed tears of joy before Him because of the multitude of tender mercies He performed on my behalf. (Ether 6:9,12)

Edited by bjfamily99
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Great post!  Two thoughts: I think the pre-mortal you knew more than nothing about your future mortality (my opinion).  How much more, I cannot guess.  Another poster here believes you knew as much as you wanted to know, up to and including all of it (if I understand him correctly).  I don't believe that, but we don't really know for certain either way.  Certainly, once you got here, you forgot anything you may have known and we are very much in the dark without revelation.

As for you not having any control: you still have control of yourself - you are free to act (2 Nephi 2).  You can choose what to feel, think, say, and do.  The rest may well be beyond our control, but that is not.

Welcome to the groups!

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7 hours ago, zil said:

Great post!  Two thoughts: I think the pre-mortal you knew more than nothing about your future mortality (my opinion).  How much more, I cannot guess.  Another poster here believes you knew as much as you wanted to know, up to and including all of it (if I understand him correctly).  I don't believe that, but we don't really know for certain either way.  Certainly, once you got here, you forgot anything you may have known and we are very much in the dark without revelation.

There is a guy on earth right now that did not have the veil of forgetfulness placed on him. He remembers the pre-earth training. He described the room where the Book of Life is kept and first being introduced to it. The Book of Life would show key times in his life and then his guide/teacher would discuss the events. By no means were all the events shown and nobody was ever shown their death. The Book of Life was very sacred and a premortal person simply was not permitted to freely open and view it. It was only through the Book of Life that one could see their future.

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1 hour ago, Sadliers said:

There is a guy on earth right now that did not have the veil of forgetfulness placed on him. He remembers the pre-earth training. He described the room where the Book of Life is kept and first being introduced to it. The Book of Life would show key times in his life and then his guide/teacher would discuss the events. By no means were all the events shown and nobody was ever shown their death. The Book of Life was very sacred and a premortal person simply was not permitted to freely open and view it. It was only through the Book of Life that one could see their future.

Source?

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11 hours ago, kapikui said:

Source?

"The Soul's Remembrance" by Roy Mills. Here's a portion:

 

"One of the most interesting and important parts of my education was being shown the Life Books. The young angels were the first to take me to see one. I wasn’t sure what the Life Books were, but when I entered the room where I was to learn about them, they were impossible to miss. A heavenly light shown in the room, flowing from every corner, even from the Life Book itself. The book was very large and thick, as big as a small suitcase. It had an ornate cover and sat on a table about five feet tall. Just looking at it, my excitement grew. I sensed the importance of the Life Book and how special it would be to my training. The angels were always careful not to let me or anyone else touch the book. When one of the angels spoke, the book opened by itself to reveal pure white pages. In an excited voice, my instructor asked me what I saw. I replied that I did not see anything except blank pages. He told me to stare into them and concentrate. I did as he said, and watched in amazement as the book revealed events that would happen in my earthly life. Each page showed me one part of my life, much like a television, and then the page turned by itself. Later on, the angel who had brought me to meet the young male guides returned. She took over for them and stayed with me for the rest of my education. I sensed from the way the young male guides acted around her that she was an important supervising angel. She showed me the Life Book on several more occasions, and each time, I grew in knowledge. The angel only let me see a few pages at a time, and then we would discuss what I had seen. I learned all kinds of details about my physical life: who my mother would be, where I would go to school, who I would marry, even when I would buy my first car. I had wondered what my physical body would look like in my earthly life, so when I saw it in the Life Book for the first time, I got very excited. “Look! There I am!” I kept shouting. “There I am!” Each time I visited the Life Book, it went further into my life. I was interested in seeing my physical body as it grew older, and that made my angel guide smile. Finally, I barely recognized my body, because it had grown so much older and gained a lot of weight. Although I saw many events in my life from the time I was a baby until the time I was old, my guide did not let me see my own death or anyone else’s. I’m not sure why such things are kept hidden, but I believe it may be because mortal men would be inclined to try and avoid death if they knew when it was coming. Each time we finished looking at a portion of the Life Book, the angel asked if I had any questions. I always had a lot of them, and she was always very good about answering me. If she knew the answer, she gave it to me very directly; this guide did not soft-pedal or sugar-coat the truth. And if she didn’t know the answer, she took me to other angels who did. The only questions she would not answer were ones about other people in my life. She told me that it was not my concern at that time. I suppose I could have asked more questions about world affairs, but at the time, I was not thinking about other matters because I was so intrigued with my own upcoming life."

Edited by Sadliers
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