Like Father Lehi 1 Nephi - 2 Nephi

Drawing by Chris White 

Everyday I see new evidence that the Lord loves us -Really loves us. He has promised that if we will ask, with sincerity, that he will never leave us alone and that he will protect us and guide us to our promised land -like he did Lehi. In my class tonight we discussed this very principle. We talked about prophets and how the Lord uses prophets to establish his Kingdom on the earth. We talked about Lehi and how we can be like Lehi. 

We learned that prophets teach us about spiritual truths, bear testimony of the divinity of Jesus Christ and write the word of God into what we call Holy Scripture. Through prophets we have the power and authority given to men to act in God's name for the salvation of his children -  the priesthood. They teach us wonderful patterns of behavior and principles of truth: like prayer, revelation, forgiveness, patience, temperance, etc. Prophets help us understand our relationship to God as we seek to obtain eternal life. The relationship between God and his prophets is a good one to model after. 

So I asked the class to read the first few books of Nephi and to look for Lehi's relationship with the Lord.  I found a few clues that I thought were pretty good, but as is usually the case when the spirit of God takes over the lesson, together we all found some that surprised us. And tonight the teacher became the student. 

Not a Prophet?

As a Jewish merchant and citizen of Jerusalem
Lehi listened to the many prophets as they
testified of Jerusalem's destruction. 

As we listed many of Lehi's roles and characteristics on the board, one sister said, "and he wasn't a prophet." I asked her why she believed this and she described very accurately how he had been listening to the prophets prophesy, so how could he be a prophet? Okay... I didn't see that before. So we read on and discovered that indeed, in the beginning of his story, before he left Jerusalem, he was a merchant, a father, a Jew, a citizen of Jerusalem, a student of Hebrew but he probably was not always a prophet. Wow. 

Called to be a prophet  

But he believed the prophets! That set him apart. And because he believed, he gained a conviction to follow the pattern that prophets follow. He had to ask. So (if) he wasn't a prophet in verse 5 when he knelt by the rock and prayed "with all of his heart, in behalf of his people," certainly by verse 6 when he beheld a pillar of fire, he was on his way. I don't know about you, but I have never seen a pillar of fire "dwell" before me on a rock when I prayed. I believe this was his calling. God needed him to do what only Lehi could do. He would be called in his dispensation to lead a nation to a promised land. 

                  

We talked about the unlikeliness of being called as a prophet. Don't think so. But still there are things that we are called to do that only we can do. Things that the Lord knows. So no matter who we think we are, our wealth, our station, our place in life, God made it plain to Lehi that he knew who Lehi was and that there was a work meant solely for Lehi to do. Are we any different? Does God not have a job for each of us? A job that only we can do that will change the course of our family's life?

Prayerful 

Prayer - sincere heartfelt prayer - can open the heavens. Lehi was so filled with the spirit of God because of all he heard and saw, in answer to his prayer, that he trembled. Soon he had to go home. When he got home he fell on his bed and had a vision.  His spirit had been touched by the truth of testimony and he had to know. He had to pray and ask for himself. And when he prayed he found out that God had a lot more in store for him than he might have thought. But mostly he found out that God loved him and that he didn't have to perish with all of Jerusalem. But .. he would have to share his new knowledge. and that's where life began to change for him and his family. 

Filled with the Spirit of Revelation 

At home he was thus so “overcome with the Spirit and the things which he had seen, that he was carried away into a "vision.” (vs7-8) While caught up in his vision in which he sees God and his apostles, he is given a book that foretells of Jerusalem's destruction. He rejoices that he will not have to be destroyed. Why? Because he knows the truth. And now that he knows the truth he can obediently follow God's spiritual direction that will lead him to a promised land.  

He thus had his confirmation of prophesy concerning the people and place that he had called home his entire life.

Later the Liahona is given to Lehi to direct their travels. Like a compass it worked strictly by the power of revelation and the Holy Spirit. When Lehi fails to ask God, the Liahona fails to work. Lehi was the only one who could use it. Not even Nephi could usurp his father in this calling as a prophet to interpret the direction his people were to travel.

Goodly Parent

Lets back it up a bit. Lehi was also a goodly parent, (1 Nephi 1:1) who taught his sons and particularly Nephi knowledge and  the culture and learning of the Jews through Egyptian Hebrew(1 N 1:2). He cared about the welfare of his family. He cared about the welfare of his neighbors. He questioned. He asked. He listened. He received. He educated his family and he worried about what would become of them. He was a father filled with great love and dedication to his family. Else why would he have prayed? If his heart was not set on the things of an eternal nature, why would he have cared?

Dreamer and Visionary- A Prophet 

So in our class we talked about what makes a prophet a prophet. Lehi had asked to know. And when he asked God gave him: a pillar of fire, the spirit of God, a vision, revelation, understanding, a book that filled him with the Spirit, dreams, and knowledge about how our actions affect the paths that we are on. There are many of us who dream but this does not make us a prophet. Dreams need the power of revelation to be interpreted in truth. As a literal descendent of Joseph of Egypt, his propensity for vision and dreams came naturally. 

Lehi's dreams and his visions give him guidance and strength in truth. Through his dreams and visions we learn of the tree of life, the dark and dreary wastelands, the large and spacious buildings, the iron rod, the book of life, God and his twelve apostles, the tender mercies of the Lord, the need to depart and travel towards the promised land, and many other truths.

Lehi accepted his call to be a prophet when he courageously shared all that he had learned with anyone who would hear. Even though they had stoned and killed the prophets before him, he was not afraid. He understood that the "tender mercies" would give him "the power of deliverance." (vs 20) The revealed truth of God is powerful. It moved Lehi to change. It moves us all to change. It is the basis for the gospel of Jesus Christ.     

Grateful 

Lehi reverenced God. His reverence for God and his omnipotent power is expressed in verse 14 and 15 when upon the realization of his Father’s love for him he extols his gratitude and praise upon God. He realizes God's love, power, goodness and mercy for him. He understands that God will not "suffer those who come unto 'him' that they shall perish." (1N1:14) As long as he gives all of his faith and obedience to God, God will protect him from destruction - destruction from stoning or from the destruction of Jerusalem. Who wouldn't be grateful at the realization of this source of eternal life?

Optimistic

It was pointed out to me that Lehi, through all of his difficulties in Jerusalem, in prophesying, in leading his family always looked forward to where they were going. He didn't get bogged down with where they had been, where they were, or the problems they faced. (Okay he did murmur once when Nephi broke his bow. He was hungry(1N1:6)) Lehi's constant communication with the Lord kept him happy and optimistic about life. (My favorite prophet has always been President Gordan B. Hinckley because he exuded the epitome of optimism.) Even before his death Lehi could only bless his children with positive words of hope and prosperity. He is a man who gives full credence tot he promises that God has given him. His seed - though they will have difficulty - will not be utterly destroyed because God had made him a promise. 

Faithful and Obedient -

The first thing he does upon leaving Jerusalem and setting up camp is to build an altar to God and offer sacrifice and worship. (1 N 2:1) Religious rites keep our minds and bodies obedient to the laws of heaven. Lehi shows his obedience in many ways. I have to believe that he, like Nephi, was also of goodly parents who taught him the importance of strict obedience and respect for God's higher laws. 

Compassion and Sorrow

Is it possible to have Godly mercy extended to you and you yourself not want to do the same for others? Lehi knew that all he had heard was true and he wanted to help protect those with whom he lived and did business with, those with whom he had grown old with and raised his family with. But he was mocked and “cast out” (vs 20). In 2 N 1:17 we learn that his heart was sorrowful for the fear that his family would be cut off and destroyed forever. I imagine it was difficult for him to learn that his children did not share his deep understanding of God's love. 

Family Problems

Even Sariah murmured and two of his sons were disrespectful and rude. Were they not taught like Nephi? Sariah called him a visionary man and complained, but Lehi comforted her. He did not rebuke her. He did not become frustrated and distraught, he comforted her. He was a good husband and a strong family leader. Why? Because he drew his strength from his undeniable faith in God.  Consider what he has asked Sariah to do? 

• Leave the only home they had ever known. 
• Leave their family and friends,
• Leave their material possessions, wealth, clothing 
• Bear at least two more sons in the wilderness, away from the strength of community
• Travel to an unknown destination 
• Make your sons return at the peril of their lives to retrieve a book of history

Now consider how he can convince her and his sons that this is the right thing to do. He has no visual aid, no map, no travel guide, no plan. He only has his faith in God and this is what he must use to comfort and lead his family. 

Scribe

Lehi wrote. (1N1:16) The Lord commanded him to write and keep records of all that he had seen and heard and bear testimony of it. His record known as the plates of Lehi were first given to Joseph Smith and were part of the original small plates of Nephi.  The information on these plates were very similar to accounts given in the other sections of the small plates of Nephi so that when Martin Harris looses these plates of Lehi, the Lord does not have Joseph Smith re-translate them. 

His words were lost to the world.  2430 years after he leaves Jerusalem, the Lord restores them as the Book of Mormon and they act as a second witness to Jeremiah, the prophet of his time. Though we do not have the actual words, Joseph Smith was told that the essence of their teachings were contained in the other books of Nephi. 

 Leader

He understood what would be needed for their trek in the wilderness to the promised land. He was not leaving for fear for his life. He was leaving because the Lord commanded him to so that the Lord might preserve him and his family.  As a leader of a family he knew that they would need more than food and water and shelter to survive. They would need hope of a better tomorrow. This would come from the brass plates that contained the record of the Jews ( or the 1^st five books of the books of Moses  .ie. the Torah).

Leaders are not inherently strong, they receive strength from somewhere. Lehi's strength in leadership came from his deep understanding of scripture. Upon receiving the Brass plates, the first thing he does is to search them. (1 Neph 5:10.) Upon seeing the book in his vision, he reads it and is filled with the spirit of God.  As a leader he understood the power of positive reinforcement and he rehearses to his family the many things the Lord has done. (2N 1:1). He understood the need of physical provisions so he had his family pack seed of every kind. (1 N 8:1) He was humble and did not take credit for that which was God's. His humble submission to God's will gave him problem solving skills, insight, the ability to know the future, and how to comfort those whose faith was not like unto his own. 

Patriarch/Historian

As a patriarch he gave all of his children blessings, much like the tradition of Israel. As a historian and genealogist he recounted his family history to his children often. He understood the need for a people to have and share a common story. The rich culture of the plates of brass gave him a rich heritage from which to teach his children as well as the lineage of his family. I was surprised to realize that Lehi had most likely never read the fullness of the brass plates before. Even though Laban was his cousin, he had kept the plates but had not shared their significance nor their faith value. 

Lehi understood the need for the power of revelation. He understood that revelation begets revelation and that his ability to follow the Lord's guidance through the wilderness would require him to have the power of scripture. His life changed when he took that first step to listen, to learn, to live and to lead others to the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

We too can be like Lehi. We too can search the scriptures and harvest from them not just the stories but the power of revelation that lives within them. We too can accept the tender mercies of the Lord and receive the protection that comes to them that follow him.(1N1:20) We too can be like Lehi and find our own promises of the Lord. We can find our own promised land of truth and peace and prosperity. We can look for the patterns of the prophets, the peace that exudes from their words and their actions, and we can use the conviction of truth to change what needs to be changed in our own lives. 

Lehi has many notable characteristics. I am sure that others will find many more in the few verses that describe his relationship with God and his family. I am sure that as they do they will discover the power and wonder revelation brings into our lives. What a wonder it is that God loves us enough to call prophets who can see what we cannot. What a blessing it is to behold the Kingdom of God here on earth, to witness in the lives of those who testify. What a wonder God's love is to behold. 

Today I am thankful, like Lehi, for God's merciful love for me. And I too want to share. I want to try to be like the prophets that first inspired Lehi. I want to try to be like Father Lehi.

Seeds of every kind

1 Nephi 8

Yesterday I read and marked this chapter. It took me all day to figure out what it meant and how I could wrap my life around it. This is what I came up with.

Essentially the chapter is about Lehi's vision of the Tree of Life. I have read and discussed this chapter many times, but never have I understood that it really is about Lehi's seed. About his concern for his family and his desire that they all find Joy in this life. He is not content for them to find happiness. He wants for them to find Joy that comes from living close to the Lord. The Joy that he has felt and seen and understood, as the Lord opened up his visions and manifest himself unto him.

(Words and Phrases)

seeds of every kind (vs 1) Seeds, if you have ever gardened, you know you do not have a 100% sprout rate. Even the ones that do sprout, are not guaranteed to produce good fruit. Try planting a few watermelon seeds. You may get 6 out 10 come up and then you may only get 1/2 of those that will actually bear you a watermelon. Its the law of averages. Things happen. Seeds not only come in every kind...(phylum) fruit, vegetable, wheat, grass, but they come in every kind such as good, bad, okay, strong, weak, immune, not immune, etc. We all have our gifts and what we bring to this world. Seeds are no different.

I have dreamed a dream (vs 2) What struck me here is that Lehi's family is busy gathering and perserving and packing seeds. Why is this important? If you have ever had a dream that you really really remember, you often remember it because of something you did the day before. It is a subconscious message. I think what might have happened is that as Lehi was packing seeds, he began to wonder how many of these will bear us fruit? Will we have food enough? And what about my fruit? What kind of fruit will they bear? Maybe he said a prayer asking for guidance to help his children?

rejoice in the Lord (vs.3) When I rejoice, I have a spiritual high. To rejoice means to have joy. Joy (for me) comes from doing right, and from doing something that aligns itself with God's word. Joy for me comes from serving others and God.

Lehi sees the contrast in his children. He knows that Nephi understands the Joy he has felt and will always want to taste it. But Laman and Lemuel, he fears that they have already been carried away into the ways of Jerusalem. Into the dark and dreary wilderness. They were the eldest. They would have been the most integrated into the customs and habits of Jerusalem.

I fear exceedingly (vs 4) Where does fear come from? For me it comes from the lack of faith. Lehi says he has little faith in his older sons ability to want and desire that which is good. These sons (again) have been raised to love the valuable things that Jerusalem offered. Lehi had never lived anywhere else and so his family members were there. I think it is interesting that no other members of Lehi's family came with them. No brothers, (Laman's Lemuels Uncles) no sisters.. no distant cousins? Why? Maybe they were the ones who wanted to kill him? Maybe they were the ones who led the mob? Anger runs deepest in families. I don't know. I'm speculating here, but I do not that anger brings fear... and fear has a base in our past.

Think about it... I might be onto something here. No one really wants to kill someone they don't know. I have been in fast food restaurants before when a preacher has come in and warned us to repent (as we stood in line). Most everyone said hello and then stared straight ahead not giving him the time of day. Those who spoke to him could not shake him. What if that preacher had been a close relative? Would I have been embarrassed for his actions and how they made me appear in a public place? Especially if I didn't agree with him. I think that Lehi's fear goes much deeper than Lamen's and Lemuel's recent selfish behavior. I believe that there were family ties that were causing great disturbance within his soul. He was striving to protect his children from a toxic relationship in Jerusalem!

dark and dreary wilderness (vs. 4) Anger if you have ever welcomed it, brings a dark and dreary feeling upon you. Anger and selfishness brings loneliness and confusion, and the inability to discern truth. I can't help but wonder why Lamen and Lemuel so readily chose to be angry when their father was anything but angry? He has admonished them to be like a fountain, to be steadfast like a valley. He has taught them the ways of the Lord. In my mind there was someone, something else that Laman and Lemuel adhered to that was not in keeping with the Lord.

Ahhh... as the eldest sons Laman and Lemuel stood to inherit all of their father's wealth, the same wealth that Laban stole and was left behind, never to be of value again. Their hopes and dreams came through the merchants, apprenticeship, the ties that would give them a future. What future would the wilderness bring them?

We moved once when my daughter was 16. it was very very difficult. Mostly because she had so many dreams and hopes of driving with her friends, of getting a local job, of dates with boyfriends, etc. She was devastated with the move because she had to start all over again. Lamen and Lemuel were taken completely out of civilization and made to live with their family. They did not have another civilization to look forward to, except for the one of their own making and it seems that their father approved of Nephi's ideas more....Lehi's younger sons did not know what they were missing. They would have been too young to have learned to love the ways of the world.

THEIR DARK AND DREARY WILDERNESS revolved around their lost desires.

I saw a man (vs 5) I am not sure but for all these years I believed that Lehi saw an angel. Or that the personage he saw was Jesus. In looking closer at this and considering that this was a dream... it says that he saw a man. Well he had seen a man, a Prophet...Back in Jerusalem. He had listened to the prophet and prayed. The prophet wore white because of his purity and righteousness.

I followed him (vs. 6) Lehi did follow the prophets that came to Jerusalem. He did follow their guidance and he himself prayed. By following the prophets that the Lord had sent to Jerusalem, he found that he himself was in a dark and dreary waste? It does not say that the prophet (the man in white) was in a dark and dreary waste. It says that Lehi was. I think we have all felt this dark and dreary waste. Anywhere that is without God is dark and dreary.

multitude of tender mercies (vs 7) - Lehi had to first recognize where he was in relation to the Prophets of the Lord. He probably thought, I am okay. I am doing good. I go to church. I love God, so what is wrong? The point here is

1. Until he listened to the prophet he could not follow

2. Once he began to follow, he began to look at his world (it was darkness compared to the whiteness of the prophet)

3. Once he realized where he was, he prayed for the Lord's tender mercies.

That's enough for today.

I want to emphasize that much of what I write does not come to me until I begin to write it. I read this chapter at least three times yesterday. But only today when I began to write about it did the seeds of wisdom begin to grow within me and I was made aware of the Lord's tender mercies in my life.

I invite anyone to comment and even write with me.

"Even In A Dream" 1 Nephi 2:1-12

1 Nephi 2

I dream. I know that everyone does not dream, or at least remember what we dream. It has been explained to me that we all dream. It is a biological fact. So I wonder, why do some of us not remember? What keeps us separated from our sub-consciousness that we can not remember anything that happened to us while we sleep? I wonder if it might be our desires?

Desires it seems set our goals, our schedules, our tasks, our "to do" list, our priorities. Desires it seems become the barometer for our consciousness. Speaking from my own personal experience, I have noted that when I am driven to accomplish, when life has taken hold of me and has caused me to focus more on earthly success, I dream less. Or, I don't remember my dreams. I don't have time. I have too much to do. Too much else crowding out my subconscious mind.

Lehi dreamed. When Nephi described his father's reasoning for leaving Jerusalem, Nephi said it was because of a dream. Lamen and Lemuel, however called it "vain imaginations of his heart."

What is the difference? What did Lamen and Lemuel value that caused them to see their father's leadership in such a negative connotations? What did Nephi value that helped him see it as "direction from God?"

Phrases and Words

(these are my comments on phrases of words that jump out at me)

even in a dream (vs 1, 2)

thou hast been faithful (vs2) - We know. In our hearts, we know when we do good. We know also when we do wrong. The difference lies in how we react to each. When we do right, we are apt to continue doing right. Similarly when we do wrong we are apt to continue. The difference is that doing right relies upon our convictions. Doing wrong relies upon the lowest common denominator that we associate with. Our convictions are closely related to our desires.

When I read this phrase "thou hast been faithful" I realize that the Lord does honor his covenants with us. When we are faithful we are promised protection, guidance, and acceptance. If Lehi had loved anything more than goodness, obedience, or the understanding of God's higher purpose it wouldn't have worked. He would have second guessed himself and not followed through. God would not have honored his convenants.

Herein lies the beauty of this story. How do you know its the Lord in your dreams? How do you know the Lord? You know! We all know goodness. It's not always what we know, sometimes its what we love most.

What is a dream? Is it something we aspire to? Is it something we gain grater insight from? Is it something we find ourselves in? Dreams uniquely are our own. Like our relationships with faith, with God, with our own conscience. Dreams help us find our path. When we do or see evil, our dreams warn us. When we hope for and see good, our dreams guide us.

600 B.C. (vs 4) - I wonder what else took place in 600 B.C. At this time in history the calendar works backward. So the century is from 600 B.C - 501 B.C. So as we move closer toward the birth of Christ we are counting down in years. Lehi leaves Jerusalem around 600 B.C. and in about 587 (13 years) Nebuchadnezzar II captures Jerusalem. He carries away it's people to Babylon or various other cities within the Neo Babylonian Empire. This empire was also called Chaldean.

land of his inheritance (vs 4)- family, hills, dales, familiar places, memories, friends, acquaintances, anything that would make you feel connected to society and feel like you had a life. What was so wrong in Jerusalem that Lehi lost all feelings of being connected with everything he had grown accustomed to in his life?

gold, silver, precious things - Jerusalem had become prosperous because of trad with other nations. This trade led to the great diversity and the watering down of their religious beliefs. It really comes back to what do we desire most in life? Prosperity or Joy? What was truly valuable to him?

he came down ... into the wilderness (v5) - Lehi left civilization, a better way of life, to go into the wilderness. He came down out of Jerusalem, out of Judaea. Why would Lehi leave the safety of his homeland? Why would he leave the security of friendships? My guess is that he would leave only if he recognized they were no longer safe. Was there imminent danger? Yes, for his life. What happens to those who spread bad karma? It comes back to them. Would you want to be in the same place with someone who you know is going to get their bad karma returned to them? He was seeking for a better way. But why did he believe he would find it in the wilderness? In the Bible the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years until they had left behind all of the bad karma of the Egyptians. It was the Lord's way of helping them learn to rely upon Him for guidance. In the wilderness they could not turn to others for help, they had to figure things out. If they were to survive, they had to have faith in God. Also. God had commanded him. He did not necessarily know why, but he knew God and he know that all good comes from God.

he pitched his tent (vs5) This seemingly simple phrase hold more meaning than one might think. To pitch a tent means more than to put up a tent. It means to set it up and fix it into a definite position. When we camp I know the position of my tent is crucial to how well I sleep. Lehi pitched (purposefully set and fixed) his tent in a valley, by a river. Here he had water to bathe, to drink, to wash, to cook with. Here in a valley he was protected from the dessert storms, the wind the weather and the harshness of the wilderness.

He set up protection, he stopped and rested and what was the first thing he did?

built an altar (vs7) First things first. 1. Built an altar 2. made an offering 3. gave thanks. This really made be think.

Could I have given thanks? Would I have murmured? 3 days out it would have been easy to turn back. How do I react to the change the Lord brings into my life?

fountain (vs 9) - When I think of a fountain I think of downtown Cleveland where there is a burst of water that pours out of a statue. A fountain really means "source". Webster says it is a "source of desirable quality". When Lehi says to his son that he wishes that he would always run to the source of righteousness, he is asking that his son will always desire to bring forth good.

foolish imaginations (vs 11) This is a well known phrase. As I think about Lehi I am reminded that Nephi called his father's beliefs a dream. Lamen and Lemuel however, now that they are three days out in the wilderness and the excitement of the adventure has died down, call it "foolish imaginations of his heart". This is really a defining moment for everyone. When we are faced with challenges that will take us from our comfort zone, our way of life, our addictions, our routines, what do we call the "word of the Lord" (vs 3)? Is it a dream? A desire to live righteously? Is it vain imaginations that don't know reality from fantasy?

In the end there is no one answer. To those who have their hearts set upon the "real" world, the earthly riches, the comforts of this world, it is vain imaginations. Why? Because if you can't see anything more than what is in front of you, if you can't see the spiritual world that your conscience possesses then it is all in vain. But to those that believe in the dream, To those who have the ability to let their conscious mind live and breath and not be silenced by all of the demands of a capitalistic society, then dreams are real. Why? Because dreams represent the true spiritual nature of our being.

Like I said at the beginning. We know. We know truth when we see it. If we don't then we should listen more carefully. God brings goodness. God brings light. God brings hope and safety and security. These are things that Lehi left Jerusalem for. Jerusalem had lost its way and they had killed the prophets who would help them find their conscience.

When one's conscience dies so does his dream... When one's conscience dies it is replaced with desires for wealth, and fame and strength and power.

As a mother of a large family, I have to believe that Lehi felt the need to leave Jerusalem because he felt the weight of his parental responsibilities slipping away. The first thing he does three days out is to pull his children aside and tell them how much he loves them. What a beautiful statement"... "Oh that you might always be running toward the source of all goodness." Oh that I love you so much that all I ever wanted for you was to run to the God and see of his goodness.

I hope that I will run to God daily. I hope that I will run to the source so that I will not be carried away or lost in the wilderness of life. How do I teach my children to do this? How do I teach them to understand God's love for us? How do I teach them that we are not unlike Lehi in our journeys, in our ability to listen to the prophets, in our ability to find direction within our dreams of righteousness. I think I teach them by doing what Lehi did, letting God's love direct me, "even in a dream".