How do we react when things don’t turn out as we planned?
Notice the difference in Nephi’s reaction, to his brothers’ reactions, when he broke his bow.
1 Nephi 16: 18-23
18 And it came to pass that as I, Nephi, went forth to slay food, behold, I did break my bow, which was made of fine steel; and after I did break my bow, behold, my brethren were angry with me because of the loss of my bow, for we did obtain no food.
19 And it came to pass that we did return without food to our families, and being much fatigued, because of their journeying, they did suffer much for the want of food.
20 And it came to pass that Laman and Lemuel and the sons of Ishmael did begin to murmur exceedingly, because of their sufferings and afflictions in the wilderness; and also my father began to murmur against the Lord his God; yea, and they were all exceedingly sorrowful, even that they did murmur against the Lord.
21 Now it came to pass that I, Nephi, having been afflicted with my brethren because of the loss of my bow, and their bows having lost their springs, it began to be exceedingly difficult, yea, insomuch that we could obtain no food.
22 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did speak much unto my brethren, because they had hardened their hearts again, even unto complaining against the Lord their God.
23 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did make out of wood a bow, and out of a straight stick, an arrow; wherefore, I did arm myself with a bow and an arrow, with a sling and with stones. And I said unto my father: Whither shall I go to obtain food?
Laman and Lemuel chose to complain. They got angry and blamed Nephi, even though their bows had also lost their springs. They wasted their energy on complaining.
Nephi, on the other hand, saw no point in complaining. What good will that do? Instead, he went to work while prayerfully seeking the Lord’s help. He even sought advice from his father, whom he honored and respected.
Sometimes we find ourselves in less than ideal circumstances. There is wisdom in reflecting on our past and choices we made, in order to learn from them and improve. Yet, we do more harm than good when we simply wallow in the past, not allowing ourselves to learn and make the necessary changes for the future. Once we have constructively analyzed our circumstance, it is then time to move forward. We must council with the Lord, develop a plan of action, and get to work.
A friend of mine shared her wonderful experience with me. She was in a car accident that totaled her car. While waiting for a replacement vehicle, she had to use an uber often. This could have been very frustrating for her, but she chose to rely on the Lord and trust that this was part of His plan for her. She trusted that there must be reason that she was in this circumstance, and decided to make the best of it rather than complain. She started looking for opportunities to share the gospel with her uber drivers. During one such conversation, the gentleman felt the Spirit and through tears asked her how he could learn more. After a month of being taught by the missionaries, he was baptized. The outcome of this story could have been very different. Thankfully, she chose to have a Nephi-like attitude.
I know none of us are perfect. We may not be able to be like Nephi ALL the time. Yet, I can promise you that each time we do it will get easier and easier, until it is a part of who we are.
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