The Well In the Wildnerness

By Hal Edwards

     About the time I was joining the Church, our congregation took a trip to the Kirtland Temple.  We did various projects to help with the costs as they hired a bus and driver to get us there.

     Anyway, I remember being in church while we were preparing for the trip.  I was thinking about the preparation required to have a spiritual experience on this trip, when I saw in a vision a dry, dusty place.  There was a hole in the ground built up with flat stones around the top a foot or so high.  There were other stones lying around the area.

     This hole seemed to be a well.  Looking inside, I saw that there was cool, refreshing water, even though outside of the well the ground was dry and dusty.  The water was just low enough in the well to be out of reach.  I thirsted for a drink of that water.

     Suddenly the thought came to my mind that if I picked up some of the smooth, loose stones lying about and put them in the well, I could get the water level to rise.  The more stones I placed in the well, the higher the water would come until I could reach it enough to drink of it.

     Then I realized this was how preparation for a spiritual experience works.  The more you put into it, by fasting, prayer, and study, the more God is able to reach you to give you a blessing.

      I always remember this experience when I’m studying, although I’m sad to say I don’t always prepare as much as I should.