1 Nephi 17

As I read Nephi's account in the land of Bountiful, I decided this morning to enter a talk I gave in a recent stake conference on the topic:

A short time after Nephi and his family had arrived in the Promised Land, Nephi recalls that because–
"…the Lord commanded me, wherefore I did make plates of ore that I might engraven upon them the record of my people…" (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 19:1)

Thus receiving this commandment, he began writing a record of his people. But then years later, interesting enough, he writes –

"…I knew not at the time when I made them that I should be commanded of the Lord to make these plates…" (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 19:2)

Obviously, it is these plates made years later, which Mormon called the small plates of Nephi. Of this latter record, Nephi shares that –

"…after I had made these plates by way of commandment, I, Nephi, received a commandment that the ministry and the prophecies, the more plain and precious parts of them, should be written upon these plates..." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 19:3)

As we study the first two books of the small plates, it becomes apparent that Nephi felt impressed that he should return and again, re-write some of the more sacred and precious events that had transpired in their journey to the Promised Land so many years before, so –

"…that the things which were written should be kept for the instruction of my people, who should possess the land, and also for otherwise purposes, which purposes are known unto the Lord." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 19:3)

Thus, by looking back or remembering many of the plain and precious events that had transpired in Nephi’s life is how we now possess 1st and 2nd Nephi. "Remember, remember" seems to be a constant theme throughout the Book of Mormon.

One of the sacred events that Nephi chose to again write about was when –

"…we did come to the land which we called Bountiful…And we beheld the sea, which we called Irreantum, which, being interpreted, is many waters." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:5)

It was after living on the shores of Irreantum for many days, the Nephi recalls that –

"…the voice of the Lord came unto me, saying: Arise, and get thee into the mountain…
8 And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Thou shalt construct a ship, after the manner which I shall show thee, that I may carry thy people across these waters." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:7 - 8)

I have often wondered if Nephi might have responded…"really"…"you got to be kidding"…"I don’t know anything about building a boat". Obviously, if he had responded in such manner, either he had later forgot that part or he just chose not to mention it. But he immediately responded after being shown the manner to build the ship was –

"…Lord, whither shall I go that I may find ore to molten, that I may make tools to construct the ship after the manner which thou hast shown unto me?" (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:9)

With that type of response, you would have expect that Nephi must have had some level of experience in tool making, construction, and using his hands, for he tells us that – 3

"…the Lord told me whither I should go to find ore, that I might make tools." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:10)

With this information, Nephi went to work and –

"…did make a bellows wherewith to blow the fire, of the skins of beasts...." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:11)

And he says –

"…I did make tools of the ore which I did molten out of the rock." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:16)

I wonder if one of the reasons Nephi felt it so important to include this event in this more sacred record was because of the opposition he faced from his brethren for –

"…when my brethren saw that I was about to build a ship, they began to murmur against me, saying: Our brother is a fool, for he thinketh that he can build a ship; yea, and he also thinketh that he can cross these great waters." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:17)

This must have been very difficult and discouraging for Nephi for as he began to be sorrowful because of the hardness of their hearts, they continued to mock him, saying –

"…we knew that ye could not construct a ship, for we knew that ye were lacking in judgment; wherefore, thou canst not accomplish so great a work." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:19)

And with their mockery, they absolutely refused to help him. But in great faith, Nephi challenged them –

"…If God had commanded me to do all things I could do them. If he should command me that I should say unto this water, be thou earth, it should be earth; and if I should say it, it would be done.

51 And now, if the Lord has such great power, and has wrought so many miracles among the children of men, how is it that he cannot instruct me, that I should build a ship?" (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:50 - 51)

And so, in order to provide a little motivation for his rebellious brethren, the Lord commanded Nephi–

"…Stretch forth thine hand again unto thy brethren, and…I will shock them…and this will I do, that they may know that I am the Lord their God.

54 And it came to pass that I stretched forth my hand unto my brethren, and… the Lord did shake them…

55 And now, they said: We know of a surety that the Lord is with thee, for we know that it is the power of the Lord that has shaken us." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 17:53 - 55)

And thus with a little bit of shaking, Nephi remembers –

"…they did worship the Lord, and did go forth with me; and we did work timbers of curious workmanship. And [this is important] the Lord did show me from time to time after what manner I should work the timbers of the ship." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 18:1)

As Nephi, recalled this precious event, he specifically acknowledged –

"…I, Nephi, did not work the timbers after the manner which was learned by men, neither did I build the ship after the manner of men; but I did build it after the manner which the Lord had shown unto me; wherefore, it was not after the manner of men." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 18:2)

In my mind, those words I "did not work the timbers after the manner which was learned by men" could be easily interpreted two ways.

First, it may be considered that the ship was not constructed in a manner of that which was typical or of the same appearance or structure of ships in Nephi’s day, or second, that Nephi had no idea how to build a ship, and the means by which he learned how to build a ship came from the Lord, not man, thus the ship was not built after the manner of men. The apostle Paul taught much the same idea to the Galatians –

"I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.
12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." (New Testament | Galatians 1:11 - 12)

Nephi also recalled during this period that I –

"…did go into the mount oft, and I did pray oft unto the Lord; wherefore the Lord showed unto me great things.

4 And it came to pass that after I had finished the ship, according to the word of the Lord, my brethren beheld that it was good, and that the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine; wherefore, they did humble themselves again before the Lord." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 18:3 - 4)

Obviously the ship was built well enough that it served its ultimate purpose as they arrived in the Promised Land. After that, we never hear any more concerning the ship.

Some might think this revelatory experience of Nephi has little application in our lives. Who here this morning has ever been commanded to build a boat? But I believe, much like Nephi, each of us have had a similar revelatory experience in some small degree or another…of which I will take the liberty to call, a "build a boat" experience.

Such experiences might have come in the planning of a major activity such as a handcart trek, a conference, a roadshow or a significant service project. It may have come from a long term experience such as a mission,

raising a family, or a significant calling. Many of you may have had a "build a boat" experience even in the process of preparing a lesson or talk.

In my mind, a "build a boat" experience is when we receive revelation in order to complete a specific assignment, task, or calling. As Oliver Cowdery sought the task of translation, the Lord taught him the concerning the manner of revelation saying –

"…I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.

3 Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation…" (Doctrine and Covenants | Section 8:2 - 3)

I want to specifically emphasize the Lord’s instruction, that the spirit of revelation comes into the mind and into the heart…not just into your heart. It reminds me of Enos, when he prayed all day and into the night for the salvation of his soul, he relates –

"…there came a voice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed.’’ (Book of Mormon | Enos 1:5)

As his prayers then turned to the welfare of brethren he, then records –

"…behold, the voice of the Lord came into my mind again…" (Book of Mormon | Enos 1:10)

Obviously, as Enos experienced the spirit of revelation, he received it both in his mind and in his heart.

Of the spirit of revelation, the Prophet Joseph Smith explained –

"A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas, so that by noticing it, you may find it fulfilled the same day or soon; (i.e.) those things that were presented unto your minds by the Spirit of God, will come to pass; and thus by learning the Spirit of God and understanding it, you may grow into the principle of revelation, until you become perfect in Christ Jesus." (TPJS – p.151)

Truman G. Madsen added –

"Knowledge of God and divine things comes through the Spirit. Revelation includes…the flow of pure intelligence into mind and heart. Such direct communications are essential to the religious life of every person." (Teachings of Joseph Smith, Truman G. Madsen)

I should also add that the scriptures are full of divers of way or differing means the Holy Ghost delivers or communicates revelation to our mind and heart. There is no set fixed pattern or way. Everyone is different. How the Spirit will tell us in our mind and our heart most likely will depend on the individual Gifts of the Spirit we possess.

This morning, I would like to share a personal "build a boat" experience It occurred shortly after I was called to the stake high council. But in my case, it wasn’t about a boat; it was about a spring water collection system, believe it or not. Doesn’t sound much like a spiritual experience, does it?

Upon being called to the high council, I was given the responsibility over physical facilities. That was probably a safe responsibility for someone who felt quite inadequate in spiritual matters.

A short time after I was assigned, I was handed a report that had been requested by the Church concerning the present water collection system at Brighton Meadows. It had recently been prepared by an engineer specializing in water delivery systems.

For those that might not know, Brighton Meadows is a recreational property originally purchased by this stake, now owned by the Church, where now serve as the agent stake for that property.

That report concluded that the existing water system was highly deficient in design with major concerns of possible E.coli contamination. The report explained that E.coli sometimes flourishes when foliage, plant root, and ground water infiltrate drinking water systems.

The report also suggested that the present was collection system was also inadequate in meeting the demands of the increasing need for more girl camps in the Church. The engineer had noted that there were apparently three spring heads in the area where the present system was only collecting two.

I will admit that I had taken some physics and hydraulics in college but those classes were more related to just the flow of water. To be honest, I had no idea how a spring water collection system would be designed or how they even worked. I knew about as much about water collections systems as probably most of you do.

As I studied the report, I kept thinking, okay…so what am I suppose to do? Who do I call? And who is supposed to pay for this? I decided the best thing for me to do is just go up to Brighton Meadows and see how the spring water was being collected.

To be honest, I was somewhat surprised to see how simple the present system was. The water would trickle out of two spring heads onto the ground, flow downhill in two small ditches filled with foliage and then into an open pipe. Obviously, the only storage of water was limited to the amount of water that was in the underground water pipes servicing four stake recreational properties and their campgrounds.

I don’t mean to over simplify this. But before I go any further, I want you to know how much I greatly honor and respect those that initially developed these recreational properties. They did it with very little money and a great deal of consecrated work and sacrifice. I am amazed what they accomplished with so very little while at the same time, understanding that their original intent was to supply just enough water for their own stake annual use and that was it.

But obviously, with the Church expansive requirements for more and more girl camps, this system was now was highly deficient and inadequate per the recommendations of the engineers report.

I can remember pondering the requirements of the report one day at my office when all of sudden a distinct picture began to develop in my mind of a spring water collection system…one that would satisfy much of the requirements of the report. I could see the design clearly in my mind.

I couldn’t believe it…it was as if I was receiving pure intelligence. It had to be pure intelligence because I am not that smart.

Suddenly, I could envision a large water retention system comprised of water tight single-ply roofing membrane, one on the bottom creating a bowl like structure filled we clean crushed gravel which would allow a great deal of water retention, and another member placed on top to seal any entry of contaminate ground water.

The thought came that I could excavate this deep into the earth away from any foliage or roots and I could also place a layer of soil on top to protect the membranes from intruders and contaminates like the moose and deer.

The more I thought about it, I was shown how to create an overflow, because the springs are constantly running and supplying water.

And then came the challenge, how do I get the water of three springs to enter into this water storage facility. Again, it became clear that after excavating and locating the spring heads, I would cut a hole in the fabric to allow the spring water to in and I could pack the surrounding springhead with bentonite clay so that no other contaminate ground water would be allowed in.

Obviously, we would have to get the collected spring water to the existing water pipeline. Again a picture entered my mind that at the lowest point of the storage, I would install a delivery pipe sealed to the lower membrane. And I could install manhole and lid so I could get access to the drain any time as needed. This way we could also tell when the spring collection facility was full.

I don’t mean to get too wrapped up in detail but the following Sunday, with a little excitement, I presented this picture to President Blunck. Talk about a man of faith. Unlike Laman and Lemuel who laughed and mocked Nephi telling him he could not build ship, President Blunck did not laugh, but in fact, he listened intently a provided a great deal of support. That in itself is amazing.

Where Nephi knew a little bit about making tools, I admit that I had a little bit of experience in construction. I prayerfully began looking into where I might find the materials and resources to make this happen. Just as Nephi was shown where to find ore, amazingly, a door was opened wide and I had little difficulty in obtaining the labor and materials to accomplish the work.

To me, the most amazing thing of all was President Blunck, with great faith, allowed me to tear out the existing system and move forward with this new design. I now wonder how much anxiety he must have gone through at the time…as well as probably a lot of prayers.

Nephi also admitted that the Lord did show him from time to time after what manner I should work the timbers of the ship." In the same manner, as this work proceeded, I confess that I too was shown how I should proceed with the work including the means to drain all the contaminated ground water under and away from the collection system that seemed to flow all year.

Well the work began, and within a short time we had excavated approximately a large fifty by fifty foot square section and located the spring heads. We then installed the lower fabric and cut the holes at each spring and packed it with bentonite clay.

One of my major concerns was the hope that there would be enough natural head pressure in the springs, in that the water entered from the bottom, that there would sufficient pressure to fill the retention system. The following day I returned to find the largest, clearest, and full swimming pool that I had ever hoped for. Was I excited! Just so you know, I didn’t go swimming in the drinking water.

But I also have to confess, that the Lord’s work never seems to proceed without some significant obstacles because the following day I returned to find that several excavated earthen walls that we had relied so heavily on to hold the fabric in place, had become so saturated with ground water that they had collapsed which caused a monumental challenge. I knew this would continue to happen so we had to move quickly.

Because I have limited time here this morning…and I don’t want to bore you, I will just comment that with a great deal of hard work, hand excavating, and using stakes and come-alongs, we were able to pull back the fabric and eventually complete the work.

Unlike Nephi, I didn’t have to reach out and shock anyone to get the help I needed. But I will say that there were a few of us that were really shocked when it actually worked.

I must also mention that the following early spring, President Blunck and Steve Smith returned from the property to report that there was no water in the collections system. I just about had a heart attack and it just made me sick. I began wondering, had the fabric somehow slipped away the spring heads.

To my great relief, we all went back up a week or two later and found the spring collection system totally full of water. We learned then that the spring aquifers must be deep enough in mountain that it takes a while for the winter water to begin flowing.

Several years later, as Ed Bates knows, the State of Utah got involved. It was now a requirement that all drinking water systems for recreational camps had to meet state drinking water standards. As with working with any bureaucracy, that in itself at times can be quite frustrating. At one time they mentioned that the lid on the access manhole did not meet homeland security and needed to be replaced...don’t get me started on that one.

One of the demands to meet state approval was that it was necessary to submit design drawings of the water collection system approved and stamped by a licensed architect and engineer…which requirement led us having to meet with design professionals on several occasions to describe and draw how the collection system was designed and constructed.

I must mention that, as we went through this process, we heard many comments such as "how in the world did you come up with this design", "this design is quite unique", "this is ingenious". And of course "we would never think of designing and constructing a water collection system in this manner". I would often think, "Neither would I"…because I always knew whose design it was. Much like Nephi, I too acknowledge, that I did not construct this collection system –

"…after the manner which was learned by men, neither did I build the [water system] after the manner of men; but I did build it after the manner which the Lord had shown unto me; wherefore, it was not after the manner of men." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 18:2)

My intent this morning is not to call attention to myself. I decided to share this personal experience this morning for two reasons. The first is, because like Nephi, I too wanted to get this experience in writing that it might be had for my posterity. And second, I again want to suggest that I believe each of us have had again, what I call "build a boat" experiences in some large or small degree.

We are counseled "Remember, remember". As we do, even in the smallest of assignments, I believe the feelings, the thoughts, the enlightenments, the flow of intelligence, and the joy and satisfaction of the spirit of revelation will return to our memory and our testimonies will be strengthened. The Lord said the Oliver Cowdery –

"…if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things.

23 Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?" (Doctrine and Covenants | Section 6:22 - 23)

In closing, I would like to repeat –

"Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.

3 Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation…" (Doctrine and Covenants | Section 8:2 - 3)

This is as the Savior said, it a rock upon which His Church would be built.