At the opening of 1 Nephi 15, after Nephi returned from having his vision, he found his brothers "disputing one with another" about what Lehi had told them. Nephi was exhausted. He had just seen the destruction of his people, and was overwhelmed at the great Plan of Redemption that he had just witnessed. And now he returned to see his brothers arguing.
Remember what he asked them? "Have ye inquired of the Lord?" (v. 8). And what was their response? "We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us" (v. 9). This answer probably left Nephi utterly flabbergasted. How could they possibly not understand that they could ask the Lord and receive the information they needed? Of course the Lord would talk to Laman and Lemuel! But they were not obedient. They were hard-hearted, quick to anger, and filled with doubt. Their wickedness was like a degenerative disease that became worse and worse until there was nothing but emptiness and cynicism left in their hearts. But Nephi saw that this could have been a turning point for them, so he encouraged them to pray and learn for themselves.
As human beings, we all know the general result we want. Most of us want good outcomes as often as possible. What we lack, more often than not, is the understanding of how to get from where we are now to where we want to be. Because the path is unclear, we end up disagreeing about the means and methods to employ to get where we want to go. We disagree on what the consequences might be if we employ "Method A" or "Method B." Laman and Lemuel likely wanted a similar outcome as Nephi and Lehi—to inherit a good land, to have security in their families, and to live successful lives. However, I do not think they were on board with exactly what needed to be done along the way and what the end results should specifically look like. They certainly had their disagreements about the methods that they would use, some of which were founded in their cultural experience. When they said, "the Lord does not reveal those things to us," it’s not that they necessarily thought He wouldn’t reveal those things to them at all, but maybe they did not see themselves as recipients of revelation. Within the cultural context of Laman and Lemuel’s world, the high priest of the temple or certain prophets like Moses or Isaiah received revelation. Perhaps they were saying, "the high priest can go into the Holy of Holies and receive revelation, but that’s not our job." What they were missing, of course, was the reality and importance of individual, personal revelation.
Now, what about you? When was the last time in your prayers you said, "Heavenly Father, teach me something?" We spend a lot of time with the Lord saying, "please bless … ," "thank you for … ," "I’m worried about my children … ," or "help me find a job." All these things are completely fine in prayers. However, Nephi was a great example. He prayed for his people, for his family, and for his own grace. He prayed for all of those same things we do, but he also said, "Heavenly Father, please teach me something. Please help me understand something better." I think the Lord expects us to do that. He is very generous with answers to those kinds of questions. As we develop that attitude—the attitude of "please help me understand something about the gospel better"—we will have more light to live by, more light to help us understand pros and cons. The Lord wants and needs us to have more light. He needs us to shine brighter than ever before.
Book of Mormon Central, "Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge: Act in Faith (1 Nephi 2:16)," KnoWhy 260 (January 11, 2017).