Daily Thoughts

In the Old Testament David says the troubles of his heart are many and asks the Lord to bring him out of his distresses and look upon his pain and affliction, having mercy on him and forgiving him for all his sins. Ps. 25: 16-18 "Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged: O bring thou me out of my distresses. Look upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins."


In the Book of Mormon I read about how Lehi's oldest sons, Laman and Lemuel were stiffnecked and murmured against the Lord, refusing to believe the prophesies of their father that Jeruselem would be destroyed and complaining that they'd had to leave it and leave all their riches behind. They did not understand the workings of the Lord. Lehi had to speak powerfully to them, filled with the Spirit, to confound them so they would stop uttering against him and do as he asked. 1 Ne. 2: 11-14 "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. Neither did they believe that Jerusalem, that great city, could be destroyed according to the words of the prophets. And they were like unto the Jews who were at Jerusalem, who sought to take away the life of my father. And it came to pass that my father did speak unto them in the valley of Lemuel, with power, being filled with the Spirit, until their frames did shake before him. And he did confound them, that they durst not utter against him; wherefore, they did as he commanded them."

Along these same lines on the subject of murmuring, some verses with a thought booklet say that the Lord punished the wicked Israelites who murmured against Him by making them wander in the wilderness for 40 years until all the evil people had died off, before allowing them to possess the promised land. Murmuring against the Lord has serious consequences and needs to be avoided. We might think the Israelites were foolish for not trusting in the Lord after all He had done for them, but aren't we the same way at times? The Lord has done much for us. But do we sometimes doubt His promises or question why things in our lives are happening the way they are? Num. 14: 26-35 "And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the Lord, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you: Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness ; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me, Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in this wilderness. And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness. After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. I the Lord have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die."