To Murmur or to Cry?

I wish more people posted on here so mine weren't stacked on top of each other. I've really enjoyed the contributions from past months. I guess everyone's really busy with the start of the school year and so forth. So, I'm finally getting to the planned post, three posts later. The Book of Mormon is just so rich!

The theme for the past couple of posts has been "Murmuring." Interestingly enough, Nephi gives us not just the answer to what we should do in response to murmuring (see "Why Do We Murmur?" below), but what to do instead of murmuring before it even starts.

We noted before that in I Nephi 2:11-12 Laman and Lemuel complained or "murmured" against their father, and that he responded by testifying in the power of the Spirit of truth, which confounded the spirit of murmuring in them. But what was Nephi up to during this time? In verse 16 he tells us:

"...having great desires to know of the mysteries of God; wherefore I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers."

Several interesting things catch my attention in this little passage. First of all, right in the middle of the thing is a little, maybe unexpected, phrase, which gives us some insight. I think sometimes we just suppose that Nephi was a "good" boy and L&L were "bad" boys. Let's not forget what they got right. Okay, clearly they rejected the offer to "taste and know of the sweetness of the Savior," but they complied enough to sort of stay in the running: they did go into the wilderness with their father, even though they didn't want to; the did go back for the plates, and Laman even put himself on the line with the first appeal to Laban when he drew the short straw; they did humble themselves and repent on several mentioned occasions when moved by the spirit of testimony or other entreaty from either Lehi or Nephi or the daughters of Ishmael. Like rebellious adolescents, they probably thought they should get credit for these things. And we can afford to give it to them. Fact is--I think a lot of times we want credit for compliance even when we are at odds with the Spirit of the Lord. Sometimes we look at the account of Laman and Lemuel as a cautionary tale and fail to recognize how their example applies to us personally and directly.

But to keep things in context: Nephi notes that the Lord did visit him and did "soften" his heart. Not to put words in his mouth-- but this suggests to me that perhaps Nephi did not automatically comprehend and/or know of the truthfulness of all that his father had said. Of course, any person who's honest with himself will acknowledge that before the witness of the Spirit comes, there is a level of uncertainty as you rely solely on hope. So Nephi, like all of us, found it necessary to implore the Lord to strengthen his testimony and understanding of what was true. I find that empowering.

It is also worthy of note that the subsequent level of Nephi's conviction was not just a reflection of his "goodness," but of the goodness of the Lord, who gave Nephi that sureness because he asked for it. Just like you and I can ask for it, and hope with the same hope that we, too, will receive.

With the understanding that knowledge in the Spirit is not just self-talk or positive mental attitude, but an actual endowment or gift from the Lord, and that we, like Nephi, can ask for it and surely receive, I want to proceed to the other thing that I'm learning from this passage. It's the "wherefore." When the word "wherefore" is written in scripture, by a prophet, it is a key word that indicates a scientific formula. "Wherefore" might be translated or rephrased, "obviously, then...", or "it follows logically that...". In other words, because this, wherefore, that. What are the this and the that in this passage? Because Nephi had a great desire to know of the mysteries of God, wherefore he did cry unto the Lord and behold [the Lord] did visit him.

This reminds me of several other passages in the Book of Mormon. They represent a pretty good test of the assertion that this is a scientific formula with duplicable results.

1. The story of Enos:

   4 And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens.

   5 And there came a voice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed.

2. The story of Alma the Younger:
   

   18 Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.

   19 And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.

3. The story of King Laman, father of Lamoni:

   18 O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day. And now when the king had said these words, he was struck as if he were dead.

   23 ...And the king stood forth, and began to minister unto them. And he did minister unto them, insomuch that his whole household were converted unto the Lord.

All of these examples have the same thing in common: the individual has a real desire, and then "cries" unto the Lord. The Lord then responds in a personal and transformational way. This brings to mind Moroni's promise:

4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

But to bring this full circle, the point of this post was to note that while Laman and Lemuel were spending their energy speaking their concerns out loud to each other, their family and anyone in particular, Nephi channeled that energy into raising the same concerns directly to the Lord. Because Laman and Lemuel didn't know of the dealings of that God who had created them, wherefore, they murmured. Because Nephi had a desire to know the mysteries, wherefore he did cry unto the Lord. Which was more productive?

I love the example of Tevye in "The Fiddler on the Roof." He's sweet as pie to his wife Golda. When he has a frustration or a concern, he doesn't take it out on her. He has a real authentic heart-to-heart with the Lord. I think we tend to do just the opposite. We air our frustrations with the people around us who are frankly not able to fix it, or fix us, or soften our hearts, or embolden us to change--as the case may require. Then, when we pray, we multiply words and speak in niceties to the One who knows our hearts better than we know ourselves. He knows when we're frustrated, struggling with feeling rebellious or angry with Him, or rationalizing or not being truthful with ourselves. He knows. He knows all of it. Why not speak of it to Him with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, and allow Him to help us see and feel more clearly?

Today's lesson for me from the Book of Mormon was this: when I have frustrations, doubts or--whatever--I can choose, like Laman and Lemuel, to voice them to others around me, or I can choose, like Nephi, to cry unto the Lord. Which really amounts to one significant difference. Since He hears me whether I'm addressing Him directly or not, the difference is in whether or not I am listening to Him.

xoxo rd