“Were This All We Had Suffered We Would Not Murmur”

"Helaman was of a similar spirit [as Moroni]. Needing reinforcements too, he tries to think of all the possible reasons why he hasn’t received them—maybe Moroni has been unsuccessful and needs all the troops, or maybe there is some faction in the government—and adds that if Moroni needs the troops, then he (Helaman) doesn’t want to murmur. How different their spirits are from those of Laman and Lemuel and the Israelites.

“Why are good people reluctant to murmur? Perhaps part of the answer can be inferred from King Mosiah’s instructions to his people: ’And many more things did king Mosiah write unto them, unfolding unto them all the trials and troubles of a righteous king, yea, all the travails of soul for their people, and also all the murmurings of the people to their king; and he explained it all unto them. And he told them that these things ought not to be; but that the burden should come upon all the people, that every man might bear his part.’ (”Mosiah 29:33“Mosiah 29:34Mosiah 29:33-34.) What this tells me is that irresponsibility goes hand in hand with murmuring. It is easier to complain about the government, about the Church, about one’s spouse or children, than to help bear the responsibility for them. Responsible people look to themselves before complaining.” (Dennis and Sandra Packard, Feasting upon the Word, p. 221)