8 And it came to pass that the wind did never cease to blow towards the promised land while they were upon the waters; and thus they were driven forth before the wind.
This story is one of my favorites in all of the Book of Mormon. I love how the the fierce winds caused the ocean to storm around the Jaredites and yet it never stopped leading them to their destination. 

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Sometimes we feel like God let’s serious trials come upon us like a fierce storm. And we are not sure why. We wonder how God could have let our perfect lives get blown so off course. Yet, the secret is that those fierce storms are always, or at least can always, blow us towards the promised land. 

Jared and his family understood that truth:

“9 And they did sing praises unto the Lord; yea, the brother of Jared did sing praises unto the Lord, and he did thank and praise the Lord all the day long; and when the night came, they did not cease to praise the Lord.”

They recognized the hand of the Lord in their Journey and so they did not grow bitter. They did not complain. They did not ask why me? Instead, they sang praises to the Lord. They sang praises amidst the storms and trials of life. They praised the God of the storms because they knew he was a good God.

We can learn much from their example of thankfulness.