Hello! “Where Can I Turn for Peace?” is the suggested hymn for the Book of Mormon lesson “I Will Prepare the Way before You” studying 1 Nephi 16–22. As I was arranging this hymn, the lyrics truly touched me and brought tears to my eyes. I had never thought before about how personal and heart wrenching these lyrics are. I am glad the Come Follow Me lesson offers this as a hymn to go with this lesson. There are so many ups and downs that happen for Lehi’s family during these sections. They all have to endure much, and as they do, (some enduring better than others) they are able to accomplish their journey with the Lord leading them, helping them and comforting them all along the way.
- 1 Nephi 17:13 And I will also be your light in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that ye shall keep my commandments; wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led.
- 17:3 And thus we see that the commandments of God must be fulfilled. And if it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God he doth nourish them, and strengthen them, and provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he has commanded them; wherefore, he did provide means for us while we did sojourn in the wilderness.
- 18:3 And I, Nephi, did go into the mount oft, and I did pray oft unto the Lord; wherefore the Lord showed unto me great things.
- 18:21 And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord; and after I had prayed the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm.
The Come Follow Me manual says:
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As Lehi’s family journeyed toward the promised land, the Lord made them this promise: “I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that ye shall keep my commandments” (1 Nephi 17:13). Clearly, that promise did not mean that the journey would be easy—family members still disagreed, bows broke, people struggled and died, and they still had to build a ship from raw materials. However, when the family faced adversity or tasks that seemed impossible, Nephi recognized that the Lord was never far away. He knew that God “doth nourish [the faithful], and strengthen them, and provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he has commanded them” (1 Nephi 17:3). If you ever wonder why bad things happen to good people like Nephi and his family, you may find insights in these chapters. But perhaps more important, you will see what good people do when bad things happen.
The scripture references for the hymn, “Where Can I Turn for Peace?”, are:
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Composers: Text: Emma Lou Thayne, 1924–2014. © 1973 IRI Music: Joleen G. Meredith, b. 1935. © 1973 IRI
Select images and film used within this music video come from churchofjesuschrist.org (“The Lord Guides Lehi’s Journey” “The Lord Commands Nephi to Build a Ship”, “Lehi’s Family Sails to the Promised Land”) Marilee Leishman, Art “Salt Lake Front Landscape”, “Jesus and the Woman” donated by Karolee Allen & and nature videography/photography donated by Steve Pierce.
I loved all that you wrote about this song, Marilee. And I loved the pace and presentation that allowed me to really concentrate on the lyrics.