A Study of the Book of Mormon

Alma 19:1-11 In this group of  verses, King Lamoni has been overpowered  by the influence of the Holy Spirit and has laid prostrate for 2 days. The queen summons Ammon to inquire of him the state her husband's well-being so that she could know what to do. The queen explains to Ammon that the servants of her husband regarded him as "a prophet of a holy God " and that he had "power to do many might works in his name. " On this premise, on the testimony of the servants of her husband, the queen asks Ammon for guidance. Verse 6 reads as such: Now, this was what Ammon desired, for he knew that king Lamoni was under the power of God; he knew that the dark veil of unbelief was being cast away from his mind, and the light which did light up his mind, which was the light of the glory of God, which was a marvelous light of his goodness—yea, this light had infused such joy into his soul, the cloud of darkness having been dispelled, and that the light of everlasting l...

1 Nephi 17:16-22 Up until here, Nephi's preparations to build a boat had been purely intangible,though necessary. They consisted of communications with the Lord -- spiritual preparation. However, when Nephi starts to make tools for the construction of the ship, his brothers take note. Their disbelief is that they do not think that Nephi can construct a ship. Nephi says that they complained though because they didn't want to work. So there are two obstacles for Nephi to overcome. First, he needed to persuade them that he could build a boat. Second, he needed to solicit their help in doing it -- he needed his brothers' help. When Nephi mourns because of their disbelief, he is not mourning because he thought he could build a boat as his brothers so perceived it, but he is mourning because they do not believe. They lacked the perspective looking back and the vision to move forward. Their perceptions of their last eight years in the wilderness was miserable. Nephi's brothers...