1 Nephi 7
1 Nephi 7
Every time I read this chapter I think to myself, "Why didn't Nephi just let Laman and Lemuel and their group of murmurs go back home?" Really. What would Nephi's life have been like without murder attempts, contention and physical abuse?
I wonder if Nephi could have seen the future, do you think he would have been so eager and eloquent in his plea for them to ave faith and stay? I know he grieved for them....but still.
That being said....
I love this chapter. There is so much in it: faith (12,17), forgiveness (21), choice (15), the power of the Lord to do all things (12) , faithfulness to the Lord (13), teaching by the Spirit (15), the power of faithful prayer (17, 18), thanksgiving (22).
Amazing chapter.
I am always impressed by Nephi's willingness - desire - to forgive his brothers, then still he preached to them and tried to help them as best he could.
I'm not sure if it is stated anywhere in the BoM that Nephi had harsh feelings towards his brothers. If you find one, let me know.
One interesting thing I noted was in verse 17. When Nephi was in a bind (literally) he didn't pray and ask "What should I do?" Nephi had a plan and presented it to the Lord. (please give me strength so I can burst these bands.)
I think sometimes, in our effort to seek God's will in our lives, we cripple ourselves by repeating, "What should I do?" Most times Hes expects us to use our minds and the resources He has already given us to come up with our own righteous solutions. Then take those to Him for His approval and assistance.
Nephi knew the Lord gave him strength. He spoke of that in 4:31. So, Nephi took what he knew and came up with a righteous solution to his problem (he didn't pray that Laman and Lemuel's would drop to the floor in writhing pain, etc. The solution was within himself- not the removal of the problem), presented it to the Lord, and the Lord saw fit to grant it- because Nephi had the faith enough to ask.
I love that!
PONDER QUESTION: Isn't it interesting how the families matched up perfectly in number of single men to single women. Especially when you consider the addition of Zoram. If he had not joined Nephi, one of the daughters of Ishmael would not have husband. This testifies to me that the Lord truly is the Great Choreographer. He is working things in our behalf right now in other places, setting people up for us to meet, softening hearts, creating future opportunities for us. As you look back in your life, are there times when everything just "came together"? Can you see the Lord's choreography in your life?
Every time I read this chapter I think to myself, "Why didn't Nephi just let Laman and Lemuel and their group of murmurs go back home?" Really. What would Nephi's life have been like without murder attempts, contention and physical abuse?
I wonder if Nephi could have seen the future, do you think he would have been so eager and eloquent in his plea for them to ave faith and stay? I know he grieved for them....but still.
That being said....
I love this chapter. There is so much in it: faith (12,17), forgiveness (21), choice (15), the power of the Lord to do all things (12) , faithfulness to the Lord (13), teaching by the Spirit (15), the power of faithful prayer (17, 18), thanksgiving (22).
Amazing chapter.
I am always impressed by Nephi's willingness - desire - to forgive his brothers, then still he preached to them and tried to help them as best he could.
I'm not sure if it is stated anywhere in the BoM that Nephi had harsh feelings towards his brothers. If you find one, let me know.
One interesting thing I noted was in verse 17. When Nephi was in a bind (literally) he didn't pray and ask "What should I do?" Nephi had a plan and presented it to the Lord. (please give me strength so I can burst these bands.)
I think sometimes, in our effort to seek God's will in our lives, we cripple ourselves by repeating, "What should I do?" Most times Hes expects us to use our minds and the resources He has already given us to come up with our own righteous solutions. Then take those to Him for His approval and assistance.
Nephi knew the Lord gave him strength. He spoke of that in 4:31. So, Nephi took what he knew and came up with a righteous solution to his problem (he didn't pray that Laman and Lemuel's would drop to the floor in writhing pain, etc. The solution was within himself- not the removal of the problem), presented it to the Lord, and the Lord saw fit to grant it- because Nephi had the faith enough to ask.
I love that!
PONDER QUESTION: Isn't it interesting how the families matched up perfectly in number of single men to single women. Especially when you consider the addition of Zoram. If he had not joined Nephi, one of the daughters of Ishmael would not have husband. This testifies to me that the Lord truly is the Great Choreographer. He is working things in our behalf right now in other places, setting people up for us to meet, softening hearts, creating future opportunities for us. As you look back in your life, are there times when everything just "came together"? Can you see the Lord's choreography in your life?
Great thoughts, I like how you mentioned he is the "Great Choreographer." The miracle of how God led me to my wife is just one example. The cliff notes version is I was driving down I-15 S towards Manti and the Spirit told me to stop and visit a cemetery I saw on the side of the road. There was a man there that spoke to me of some amazing things and bore his testimony that the right girl was out there for me and that I would find her. A few weeks later I did! (I was in the middle of having my heart broken by another girl so it was very timely and needed)
ReplyDeleteThe verse I really like (13) says: And if it so be that we are faithful to him, we shall obtain the land of promise; and ye shall know at some future period that the word of the Lord shall be fulfilled...
If we are faithful, we shall know at some future people that it was the Lord working. This is very similar to what Sariah went through. She obeyed all of her husband's commands and later on received a witness that it was the Lord who had commanded it. (1 Nephi 5:8) This is a call to all of us to keep the faith and know that all of our questions will be answered one day.
The thing I appreciated about this chapter was the lesson on the power of siblings. Nephi was the younger brother, but his powerful example to his siblings was awesome. I know with my kids, there are times that a sibling can make a point or get something done better than I can.
ReplyDeleteAs far as choreographing? Uh- daily! =) But yes, there are many examples throughout my life where... if this... then that... then this... didn't happen... then that... or that... or this... wouldn't have either.
Verse 13, “…if it so be that we are faithful to him, we shall obtain the land of promise.” What is our “land of promise”? We could think of it as eternal life. But I like to think of the nearer future. Our “promised land” could be any righteous desire of our hearts. What Nephi and his family wanted was to make it to the land of promise. But to make it there they needed to keep showing their faith unto God. I believe God is able, and wants, to give us all the righteous desires of our hearts - even if we don't really know what those desires are. But we must continue to show faith in Him.
ReplyDeleteAlso, when Nephi and his brothers made it back with Ishmael and his family, they gave thanks unto God and offered sacrifice unto Him. What do we give as our “sacrifice” to thank God for the things he blesses us with every day?
I'm reading this a little late in the day, but greatly appreciate and learn from the other comments.
ReplyDelete"The Great Choreographer", He has been in Scott's (DH) & my life with many parallels and many blessings that we can now see, but weren't able to in the mist of them.
This chapter and the next few impress me with the wiliness of Laman and Lemuel. Yes, I did say wiliness! They didn't retreat, they stayed with their family even when they had the opportunities to stay in Jerusalem. They did listen to Lehi and I believe that they were influenced by his instruction, though they had a hard time obeying. Otherwise, why would they have even gone into the wilderness the first, second, third time or even got onto the ship? I wonder if I hear, and don't obey because I haven't allowed the Spirit to confirm the truth? I think that L&L needed to be allowed to express their agency and great mistakes for opposition, and maybe this was part of Father's plan for us all to learn.
I am very interested in reading thoughts about this chapter. I think I am shallowly (a word? Haha!) focused on the rebellious hearts of Laman and Lemuel. I don’t understand rebellion! Are people born with a rebellious attitude? I mean, they were raised by the same parents. How does one child become hardhearted and have such a rebellious nature and another has the type of faith that could move mountains (or loose tightly secured bands)? I am with Nephi in wondering how Laman and Lemuel could possibly forget seeing an angel? How could they forget being delivered from the hands of Laban? I mean, we all get tired and lazy and selfish, but to be so openly rebellious against God to want to leave your brother for dead? I just don’t understand it… Is it fear? Is it selfishness? Is it in their “nature” (born that way)? Is it the choices? What causes some to be openly rebellious and harden their harts against God and others to be full of incredible unwavering faith?
ReplyDeleteRegarding the Lord being the great choreographer in my life, I hope you don’t mind if I share a very personal experience. And, I hope you don’t mind this is LONG. I had to split it into two parts to fit…
ReplyDeleteJust over two years ago, my husband and I went through a financial hardship due to major medical issues and a change of income that led us to bankruptcy, including the loss of our home and acreage in the country. Here we were (are) these middle-aged people who should nearly have a house paid off and should be looking forward to traveling or doing whatever we set our hearts and minds to do in our “older” age. But, instead, we were faced with starting over.
As the time approached that we were to be out of our house, the thought came to me that I needed to “put it out there” that I was considering employment. Our home teacher, at the time, was a Dentist. I casually asked him if his office was looking for a receptionist or if he knew of anyone who was hiring office help. He disappointedly stated that they had just hired a new receptionist, but he would keep his ears open and let me know if he heard anything. Well, two days later he called me. There was an oral surgeon who was opening a new office in the city we were moving to. My home teacher gave me the phone number and encouraged me to call to set up an interview time. I did. On the way to the interview, I had an overwhelming calmness and assurance that I was going to get the job. I was able to interview with confidence. I got the job and started the next day! That was two years ago.
Halloween morning of 2011, I woke up with numbness in my left arm, neck, shoulder, face and head area. I thought to myself, “Hmm…maybe I should not have asked our family friend to push on and “pop” my upper back/neck the night before.” A couple of days went by with no change in my symptoms. My husband asked how long I was going to wait to see a doctor. I scheduled an appointment for that Wednesday afternoon. My MRI of the neck was scheduled for Fri. Upon review of my MRI, my doctor called with concerns and an order that I should head straight to the ER, as she was not able to determine from the MRI the severity or emergent level of the injury to my neck. I did as she directed. The ER doc contacted my husband’s neurosurgeon. He directed that I go home and rest for the weekend and I was to see him at his office Monday morning. At that appointment, he pointed out the severity of the ruptured disc in my neck and stated surgery was the only option, which we scheduled for mid December (to give me time to make preparations at work for what was going require about a 3-month absence).
In the meantime, my boss had shared with his father and brother (who also both work in the dental field) my situation and described my symptoms. His brother expressed concern about the numbness in my face and wondered if those symptoms were really from the discs in my neck or if they were more cranial-based. I called my neurosurgeon’s PA (since my surgeon was out of town) and asked if he thought it was reasonable to get an MRI scan of my head. He ordered it on Friday morning before work on 11.11.11. I then received a call later that day asking me to return after work for another scan with contrast, which I did. Apparently, the doctor reading the scan “saw something” and wanted another MRI, but with contrast. I was concerned, but knew I had to wait until Monday for the results to be sent to my doctor.
Monday morning, I received the call at work. I answered the phone. I could hear the serious tone in the PA’s voice as he said, “Lavinda, I have the results of the MRI….They say you have MS!” WHAT?! At first, I couldn’t speak. The words would not come. I thought for sure there must be a mistake. He confirmed there was no mistake. It was multiple sclerosis, the same thing my husband was diagnosed with 10 years prior. What were the chances? He recommended a neurologist for me and we canceled my neck surgery. Continued…
Cont....It has been just over a year since that devastating phone call. My most recent MRI taken last month shows the disease is stable. The medication and change of eating habits is working. My neck still needs surgery, but I am putting that off as long as possible with exercises I learned in P.T.
ReplyDeleteThe orchestrated part: Because I was prompted to talk to my home teacher, he told me a about a job possibility. I was offered the job and because I am working where I am, my boss’s brother became aware of and questioned symptoms I was having, prompting me to contact my doctor who ordered an MRI of my brain, which showed I have MS. If the diagnosis had not been found when it was, I would have gone through with a neck surgery that potentially could have exacerbated my MS and who knows where I would be today, physically? And, because I found out so soon about the MS, I have been taking medication for a year and this disease is stabilized. To say I am grateful for the Lord’s hand/orchestration in my life...is an UNDERSTATEMENT.
Holy Cow Lavinda!!! I am an awful friend. I had not idea. I am so sorry! You are so amazing, and faithful. Thank you so much for sharing this with me. I am so grateful that He took care of you, and still is. What a blessing you are to me and those around you!
DeleteThanks to everyone for your comments! I don't have time today to respond to each one individually. I'm on my way out the door on a two-day trip with my husband. I appreciate your insights and continue to learn so much! I'll be back tomorrow!!
ReplyDeleteHave a great get-away!
ReplyDelete