Problem Solving

I was reading in Ether 2 and thought this exchange between God and Mahonri-Moriancumer (the brother of Jared) was interesting.

18 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared cried unto the Lord, saying: O Lord, I have performed the work which thou hast commanded me, and I have made the barges according as thou hast directed me.

19 And behold, O Lord, in them there is no light; whither shall we steer? And also we shall perish, for in them we cannot breathe, save it is the air which is in them; therefore we shall perish.

Here is the answer the Lord gives him for his second problem:

20 And the Lord said unto the brother of Jared: Behold, thou shalt make a hole in the top, and also in the bottom; and when thou shalt suffer for air thou shalt unstop the hole and receive air. And if it be so that the water come in upon thee, behold, ye shall stop the hole, that ye may not perish in the flood.

He gives him the solution to the problem. The brother of Jared asks, and he receives.

It is different for the first problem. This time, the solution is not given to him. The Lord tells the BoJ to come up with a solution and bring it to him. He wants him to study and figure things out.

23 And the Lord said unto the brother of Jared: What will ye that I should do that ye may have light in your vessels?...

25 ... Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?

Sometimes when we receive revelation or inspiration, the Lord gives us the information we need. Sometimes He gives us just enough information so that we can find the answer we need, and sometimes He wants us to learn by figuring things out on our own. Sometimes there is more than one way to do something and He lets us do it our way.

I think it is interesting to think that there were probably a lot of different ways that the BoJ could have come up with for the barges to have light. The Lord tells him He will light them, but wants the BoJ to come up with the way He wants Him to do it. In this way, the BoJ struggles, learns, and figures things out while receiving inspiration along the way.

I think the reason that the Lord told him point blank how to make air holes in the barges is that that was a matter of life and death. The light issue was still very important but not as much as receiving air.

This interchange between the brother of Jared and the Lord reminds me of these scriptures:

Doctrine and Covenants 9:7

7 Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.

Doctrine and Covenants 9:8

8 But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.

It also makes me think of this scripture:

2 Nephi 28:30

30 For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more;