"And I know, O Lord, that thou hast all power, and can do whatsoever thou wilt for the benefit of man; therefore 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.
Behold, O Lord, thou canst do this. We know that thou art able to show forth great power, which looks small unto the understanding of men."
Ether 3:4-5
The story of the Brother of Jared and the stones is awesome. In this part of it, the Brother of Jared asks the Lord to touch the stones so that they can use them as light sources while they cross the ocean. And what strikes me here is the incredible faith of the Brother of Jared. He didn't just believe that God could solve his problems in ways that he was already familiar with, but he was absolutely confident that God could perform miracles like making stones into light sources. I am sure that he was led by the spirit to do what he did, but still... to imagine something so far from your own experience and then trust God to do it for you, that's amazing, and cool, and I think really difficult. And it makes me wonder what absolutely astounding and incredible things the Lord could do in our lives, if we would only believe. If we only had a little more imagination and creativity in looking at the world rather than locking down our minds with what is "reasonable" and what we are familiar with. Even in looking at God we imagine that he is like we are... broken, limited. But how different and alien he must be, to be perfect, and pure, and all knowing. Not like a "real" alien from a Sci-Fi show, but alien in the way he thinks. He doesn't experience time in the way that we do. He doesn't look at death the way we do. He MADE everything around us, and in us. Our limitations are never his, and probably not even ours. We limit ourselves by what we believe we can do... and we can do so much more, with God's help. We can become so much more. Today, let's remember the brother of Jared. And let's remember we live in a world where people have walked on water, and moved mountains. A place where people have chosen to live forever. A place where touching the hem of a garment has healed. Where people have risen from the dead. Let's remember that God isn't anything like the people we are used to. He isn't a corrupt politician or a CEO that doesn't have time for the details. He isn't power hungry or cruel. He's our dad, and we have a dad that can do ANYTHING. Let's open our minds today, and find the solutions and the secret escape hatches where once we thought there were only blank walls. :)
Behold, O Lord, thou canst do this. We know that thou art able to show forth great power, which looks small unto the understanding of men."
Ether 3:4-5
The story of the Brother of Jared and the stones is awesome. In this part of it, the Brother of Jared asks the Lord to touch the stones so that they can use them as light sources while they cross the ocean. And what strikes me here is the incredible faith of the Brother of Jared. He didn't just believe that God could solve his problems in ways that he was already familiar with, but he was absolutely confident that God could perform miracles like making stones into light sources. I am sure that he was led by the spirit to do what he did, but still... to imagine something so far from your own experience and then trust God to do it for you, that's amazing, and cool, and I think really difficult. And it makes me wonder what absolutely astounding and incredible things the Lord could do in our lives, if we would only believe. If we only had a little more imagination and creativity in looking at the world rather than locking down our minds with what is "reasonable" and what we are familiar with. Even in looking at God we imagine that he is like we are... broken, limited. But how different and alien he must be, to be perfect, and pure, and all knowing. Not like a "real" alien from a Sci-Fi show, but alien in the way he thinks. He doesn't experience time in the way that we do. He doesn't look at death the way we do. He MADE everything around us, and in us. Our limitations are never his, and probably not even ours. We limit ourselves by what we believe we can do... and we can do so much more, with God's help. We can become so much more. Today, let's remember the brother of Jared. And let's remember we live in a world where people have walked on water, and moved mountains. A place where people have chosen to live forever. A place where touching the hem of a garment has healed. Where people have risen from the dead. Let's remember that God isn't anything like the people we are used to. He isn't a corrupt politician or a CEO that doesn't have time for the details. He isn't power hungry or cruel. He's our dad, and we have a dad that can do ANYTHING. Let's open our minds today, and find the solutions and the secret escape hatches where once we thought there were only blank walls. :)
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