We will fail, but we will not FAIL

Laman tried and FAILED to get the brass plates from Laban.

End of story, right?!

They aren’t going to be able to get these plates back. They tried with their best effort, and they failed. There’s no way Laban will let them take the plates. They’ve got the proof. It’s just the way it is!

Nephi says, “My brethren were about to return unto my father in the wilderness.”

That’s it! They tried, they failed, time to go back and tell their father.

But Nephi wasn’t going to let that happen.

He knew this was a commandment, or personal assignment, from the Lord, so he wasn’t going to go back until they accomplished the task.

Failure wasn’t an option for Nephi.

But WHY wasn’t failure an option? Is Nephi just super awesome and tenacious? He’s just a good guy who didn’t like to give up?

Or did he understand something more?

This is where famous Nephi 3:7 comes in. 

Nephi KNEW the Lord would not let them fail. He KNEW it because it was an errand from the Lord. This wasn’t just Nephi being a go-getter, this was Nephi demonstrating the ultimate FAITH. 

This is actually an empowering concept for me.

What if we lived our lives as if ultimate failure wasn’t an option?

Sure, we might “fail” to get the plates a few times, but we know in the end we will ultimately get them.

What if we knew we COULD figure out how to be a better mom? It will just take lots of effort and trial and error.

What if we knew we COULD become better at serving people around us willingly? We just have to keep practicing and trying over and over.

What if we knew we COULD learn to love the scriptures/General Conference/Come Follow Me/attending the temple? It will just take some time and effort to work through it.

I think there is power in KNOWING that the Lord really does provide a way for us to accomplish the things he commands. This means we cannot fail – as long as we keep trying and stop putting limitations on how much he will help us become better.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black