This morning I was reading from the Book of Mormon in the second chapter of Ether. In verse 18 the Brother of Jared says, “O Lord, I have performed the work which thou hast commanded me, and I have made the barges according as thou hast directed me.” So the Lord had instructed the Brother of Jared on how to construct the barges which would allow them to cross the mighty ocean. But then in verse 19, the Brother of Jared asks, “And behold, O Lord, in them there is no light; whither shall we steer? And also we shall perish, for in them we cannot breathe, save it is the air which is in them; therefore we shall perish.” And then the Lord gives the Brother of Jared the answer to his concern about being able to breath in these water-tight barges, that he should make a hole in the top and the bottom of the barges to let in air as needed.

It struck me today that the Lord did not include the design of the holes in the top and the bottom of the barges in His original plans for the barges which the Brother of Jared had built “according as thou hast directed.” He waited until the Brother of Jared asked about the need for air before giving enlightenment to solve that problem. This makes me wonder how often we might not receive ideas nor direction on particular issues because we haven’t yet understood that we have a particular need. And the Lord may be waiting for us to come to an understanding of our real needs so that we will ask Him for help and direction about the things that really matter in our lives. And how do we come to understand our true needs? In our petitions with the Lord, we may need to break our habits of asking for help with our needs, as we understand them, and instead ask Him to show us what our true needs are.

Morning Moon