Jacob 1

(August 13, 2014)

                As I read this chapter, my mind was drawn to Nephi and his actions in crafting the Gold Plates.  It is clear from the limited history that we have that Nephi was a skilled metalworker.  We see that by his crafting of the two sets of plates, and we see that by his preparation of weapons of war for the Nephites, and we see that all the way back to when he prepared his forge and made tools for the ship.

                If we were to catalogue skills that the Lord might need in a prophet of God, I don’t think many of us would instantly leap to metalworking.  And yet, here is this prophet who was able to accomplish the Lord’s work in large part because he was so skilled in a relatively mundane profession.  Presumably he spent his youth learning this trade – what if he had been lazy or undisciplined?

                In my life, I often wish that I could devote myself in my career to the Lord.  But Nephi’s example shows that whatever our vocation, the Lord can and will make use of that – but He requires us to become the best we can become at our chosen profession in order for us to accomplish the greatest amount He can with us.  It may seem that time spent at work is not time spent serving God, but on the contrary if we perform our profession with determination, develop our skills, and become the best we can be – and do so with integrity – the Lord will find a use for that and we will find opportunities to serve Him.