Day Twenty-one

1 Nephi 4:5-8

1 Nephi 4:5-6

5 And it was by night; and I caused that they should hide themselves without the walls. And after they had hid themselves, I, Nephi, crept into the city and went forth towards the house of Laban.

Dependence upon God

Today's happenings have brought to me some of the most sobering reflections of my whole life. During the last ten weeks that have elapsed since the momentous spiritual experience, in company with 13 of my brethren holding the holy apostleship, in an upper room of the temple, where members of the new Presidency of the Church were chosen and ordained, I have lived my whole life in retrospect and the days ahead in prospect, to some extent.

Throughout these weeks, I have recognized my limitations and have realized more than ever before my utter dependence upon Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, for strength beyond my natural strength and wisdom beyond man's wisdom and spiritual insight into problems that might be my responsibilities now. Only with God's help can I begin to fill the position to which I have been chosen by the President of the Church and the Quorum of the Twelve, and now sustained by the vast body of the priesthood of the Church and by the membership of the Church in this Tabernacle and by the many faithful beyond our sight, who have participated in the proceedings of this solemn assembly.

I find myself almost trembling with a sense of my own inadequacy when I recall the great leaders of this dispensation who have preceded us in leadership positions. As I have thought of this, through long hours of meditation and prayer, I sense the reality of the fact that one, such as I, does not take the place of those who have gone on before.

We who are called to occupy these positions merely fill the vacancies created by the passing of time. Those who have gone on before still hold their places in the eternal worlds and in the hearts of the hundreds of thousands whom they have served.

"Led by the Spirit"

More than ever before, I understand what the ancient prophet Nephi felt when he had been given the seemingly insurmountable task by his father, Lehi, to gain possession of the brass plates in which were contained the scriptures of the prophets of the Old Testament, as we now know them.

Nephi had written of this experience: ". . . I, Nephi, crept into the city and went forth towards the house of Laban.

"And I was led by the Spirit; not knowing beforehand the things which I should do" (1 Ne. 4:5-6).

I understand now more than ever before the poignant prayer of the suppliant:

"Lead, kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom;
Lead thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home;
Lead thou me on!
Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene—one step enough for me."

    —Hymns, No. 119

That, I too now sense very deeply.

I must go on many occasions, as did Nephi of old, being "led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do" (1 Ne. 4:6). Yes, though the night be dark, "I do not ask to see the distant scene—one step [is] enough for me."

President Harold B. Lee, "The Day in Which We Live",  April 1970

1 Nephi 4:6

6 And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do.

The gradual increase of light radiating from the rising sun is like receiving a message from God “line upon line, precept upon precept” (2 Nephi 28:30). Most frequently, revelation comes in small increments over time and is granted according to our desire, worthiness, and preparation. Such communications from Heavenly Father gradually and gently “distil upon [our souls] as the dews from heaven” (D&C 121:45). This pattern of revelation tends to be more common than rare and is evident in the experiences of Nephi as he tried several different approaches before successfully obtaining the plates of brass from Laban (see 1 Nephi 3–4). Ultimately, he was led by the Spirit to Jerusalem, “not knowing beforehand the things which [he] should do” (1 Nephi 4:6). And he did not learn how to build a ship of curious workmanship all at one time; rather, Nephi was shown by the Lord “from time to time after what manner [he] should work the timbers of the ship” (1 Nephi 18:1).

David A Bednar, "The Spirit of Revelation", April 2011

1 Nephi 4:7

7 Nevertheless I went forth, and as I came near unto the house of Laban I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was drunken with wine.

Now, brothers and sisters, how can these stories of faith be brought into our own lives? Faith is needed here as much as ever before. Little can we see. We know not what the morrow will bring. Accidents, sickness, even death seem to hover over us continually. Little do we know when they might strike.

It takes faith—unseeing faith—for young people to proceed immediately with their family responsibilities in the face of financial uncertainties. It takes faith for the young woman to bear her family instead of accepting employment, especially when schooling for the young husband is to be finished. It takes faith to observe the Sabbath when "time and a half" can be had working, when sales can be made, when merchandise can be sold. It takes a great faith to pay tithes when funds are scarce and demands are great. It takes faith to fast and have family prayers and to observe the Word of Wisdom. It takes faith to do ward teaching, stake missionary work, and other service, when sacrifice is required. It takes faith to fill foreign missions. But know this—that all these are of the planting, while faithful, devout families, spiritual security, peace, and eternal life are the harvests.

Remember that Abraham, Moses, Elijah, and others could not see clearly the end from the beginning. They also walked by faith and without sight. Remember again that no gates were open; Laban was not drunk (1 Ne. 4:7); and no earthly hope was justified at the moment Nephi exercised his faith and set out finally to get the plates. No asbestos clothes or other ordinary protective devices were in the fiery furnace to protect the three Hebrews from death (Dan. 3:20); there were no leather nor metal muzzles for the mouths of the lions when Daniel was locked in the den (Dan. 6:16).

Remember that there were no clouds in the sky nor any hydrometer in his hand when Elijah promised an immediate break in the long extended drought; though Joshua may have witnessed the miracle of the Red Sea, yet how could he by mortal means perceive that the flooding Jordan would back up for the exact time needed for the crossing, and then flow on its way to the Dead Sea.

Remember that there were no clouds in the sky, no evidence of rain, and no precedent for the deluge when Noah builded the ark according to commandment (Gen. 6:14). There was no ram in the thicket when Isaac and his father left for Moriah for the sacrifice (Gen. 22:13). Remember there were no towns and cities, no farms and gardens, no homes and storehouses, no blossoming desert in Utah when the persecuted pioneers crossed the plains. And remember that there were no heavenly beings in Palmyra, on the Susquehanna or on Cumorah when the soul-hungry Joseph slipped quietly into the Grove, knelt in prayer on the river bank, and climbed the slopes of the sacred hill.

But know this: that undaunted faith can stop the mouths of lions, make ineffective the fiery flames, make dry corridors through beds of rivers and seas. Unwavering faith can protect against deluge, terminate droughts, heal the sick, and bring heavenly manifestations. Indomitable faith can help us live the commandments and thereby bring blessings unnumbered with peace, perfection, and exaltation in the kingdom of God. May this be our desire to develop this kind of faith and may we finally attain the blessings which such perfect faith can bring, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Spencer W. Kimball, "Faith Precedes the Miracle" October 1952

1 Nephi 4:8

8 And when I came to him I found that it was Laban.