"Now this he spake because of the stiffneckedness of Laman and Lemuel; for behold they did murmur in many things against their father, because he was a visionary man, and had led them out of the land of Jerusalem, to leave the land of their inheritance, and their gold, and their silver, and their precious things, to perish in the wilderness. And this they said he had done because of the foolish imaginations of his heart.
And thus Laman and Lemuel, being the eldest, did murmur against their father. And they did murmur because they knew not the dealings of that God who had created them."
1 Nephi 2:11-12
I wonder how many of us do this same thing... I know it isn't pleasant to relate to the bad guy, but seriously. You live in this beautiful mansion with all the worldly possessions that you could ever want and your father says that he had a dream that you have to go camping... forever. Leave your house, not even sell it or anything... just leave. Wouldn't you wonder what was up as well? ... I think it is actually pretty natural to wonder, and probably be a little freaked out. The crux of the issue is the second verse here though... they knew not the dealings of God. Well, neither do we really, right? ... but Nephi was there too, and he wondered too. And instead of freaking out all the way, he got on his knees and he asked God what was up. We can do the same thing in our lives when there are things that freak us out and concern us. We *can* know the dealings of God, at least as they concern us personally. And asking is the key. If we don't ask, but just assume that our dad is crazy... we might be wrong. And sometimes we don't ask because we can't accept the answer. Maybe there is a little bit of that here too. But either way, the answer is the same. We have to be humble, go to God, and be willing to accept whatever he tells us. That acceptance part is hard sometimes. In this case because they were giving up their whole lives... friends, stuff, activities... and sometimes God asks that of us too. We have to give up everything for him. ... But there is always a promised land as well, waiting for us in the end. Something better than we lost. ... Just like Job. :)
And thus Laman and Lemuel, being the eldest, did murmur against their father. And they did murmur because they knew not the dealings of that God who had created them."
1 Nephi 2:11-12
I wonder how many of us do this same thing... I know it isn't pleasant to relate to the bad guy, but seriously. You live in this beautiful mansion with all the worldly possessions that you could ever want and your father says that he had a dream that you have to go camping... forever. Leave your house, not even sell it or anything... just leave. Wouldn't you wonder what was up as well? ... I think it is actually pretty natural to wonder, and probably be a little freaked out. The crux of the issue is the second verse here though... they knew not the dealings of God. Well, neither do we really, right? ... but Nephi was there too, and he wondered too. And instead of freaking out all the way, he got on his knees and he asked God what was up. We can do the same thing in our lives when there are things that freak us out and concern us. We *can* know the dealings of God, at least as they concern us personally. And asking is the key. If we don't ask, but just assume that our dad is crazy... we might be wrong. And sometimes we don't ask because we can't accept the answer. Maybe there is a little bit of that here too. But either way, the answer is the same. We have to be humble, go to God, and be willing to accept whatever he tells us. That acceptance part is hard sometimes. In this case because they were giving up their whole lives... friends, stuff, activities... and sometimes God asks that of us too. We have to give up everything for him. ... But there is always a promised land as well, waiting for us in the end. Something better than we lost. ... Just like Job. :)
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