"And thus they were driven forth, three hundred and forty and four days upon the water.
And they did land upon the shore of the promised land. And when they had set their feet upon the shores of the promised land they bowed themselves down upon the face of the land, and did humble themselves before the Lord, and did shed tears of joy before the Lord, because of the multitude of his tender mercies over them."
Ether 6:11-12
Earlier in this chapter, it explains that "the Lord God caused that there should be a furious wind blow upon the face of the waters, towards the promised land; and thus they were tossed upon the waves of the sea before the wind" (verse 5). It seems very trusting and faithful to throw yourself into that sort of uncertain situation and trust God to take you someplace good, and I think risking so much also is reflected in how thankful and grateful they were at the end of the journey.
Maybe it is that way for us as well... the more we trust God in our lives, the more capacity we have for gratitude and understanding the mind-blowing miracles that God does for us. If we stand on the shore and say no thank you to God's offer to lead us to a promised land, then not only will we not get to the promised land, but we will also not gain the depth of faith, trust, and even love and gratitude that we could have if we were willing to cast ourselves upon the water.
Today, let's trust in God, and let's think about whether we are holding ourselves back from learning something important by not trusting him just a little bit more.
