5 But behold, my sons and my daughters, I cannot go down to my grave save I should leave a blessing upon you; for behold, I know that if ye are brought up in the way ye should go ye will not depart from it.
I admire Lehi as a father and as a grandfather. He recognized that he had limited control over the choices of his children, but he was steady in his leadership. He taught them the consequences of sin, and he urged them to be righteous, but he also respected their agency and expressed confidence in them. The sons of Laman and Lemuel had not been “brought up in the way they should go,” but Lehi’s desire before his death was to bless them–not to express disappointment or anger, but to give them encouragement to choose righteousness and happiness. I love Lehi’s consistent, heartfelt but not overzealous leadership, and his respect for the sovereignty of his children and grandchildren over their own souls.
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