Rez Pez



Before Poplar



So a couple three weeks ago I was sitting in the computer lab and another missionary offered me a piece of delicious chocolate pez candy. Now, at the time I was day dreamin' of my time when I lived on the Fort Peck Rez, back in Poplar. Back in the day when McDonalds was a basic food group, Rez Dogs were our entourage, and where people could use suran wrap as a windshield. You know, the good times... I heartily accepted his generous offer and as I glanced sideways my Rez dream ladened mind changed the lettering on the wrapper from "Pez" to "Rez". My mind started Rezzin' out things in automatically. It was awesome.  Then I started to think what if we started to do that in the Gospel? The gospel offers us great teachings and, as we live them, they will just become a natural part of what we do. Jesus said "if ye love me, keep my commandments"



After Poplar

 (John 14:15). He also said, later in that same chapter, "....he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him." (John 14:21) I love the Rez. So I do Rez'd out stuff and I think Rez'd out stuff. I also love Jesus Christ, and I know that when we fill our heads and our hearts with the teachings and love of Christ we too will have those automatic thoughts of the gospel. We will do Christ-like things and think Christ-like thoughts. Stay firm in your love of Christ (and of the Rez) and we will go from thinking and doing to knowing and becoming!

Improvise, Adapt, and Overcome: Marine motto or eternal principle?



Improvising, adapting, and
overcoming since 1775.

Marines are pretty hardcore; they are in a lot of situations that require them to look at what they have to work with and overcome the challenges in their way. One of the unofficial motttos for some U.S. Marine units has been: "Improvise, adapt, and overcome." It seems to work for the Marines pretty well, so I thought I'd adapt it to a lesson in the gospel. 

We'll start off with improvising...

  

 



 

Not the kind of Marine I'm talking about.

Improvise

 So what can we take from this motto to apply in our lives? While there are some other principles that God has given us lets focus on a couple-three of the basics. Time to see what tools that you have at your disposal. While Marines have months of physical conditioning and weapons ranging from anti-tank guided missiles to sharp sticks, God has given us spiritual tools that are life changing and powerful. Below are some basic principles and ideas.

Prayer: Prayer is huge. Prayer is the way that we communicate with God. Through prayer, whether silently in our hearts or out loud with others, we can express our thanks to our Father in Heaven. We can also use prayer to ask God to help us with a struggle we face or to help us to find an answer to a particular problem. 

Reading the Scriptures: The Bible and the Book of Mormon are the word of God. In them we can find advice and guidance from a divine source. When we make scripture study part of our lives we become more receptive to God's Spirit and we become more sensitive to His promptings. We can also search the scriptures to find answers to our prayers.

Keeping the Sabbath Day Holy: Sunday is a special day. It is the day that God set apart to help us to remember Him. Blessings come to us as we keep God in our thoughts and remember to utilize His teachings in everything that we do. Attending Church is a wonderful way to remember God in our lives, grow our faith in His teachings, and experience more of His peace and love.

Adapt

 

A UNSC Marine explaining to Master Chief
 how to adapt to trials.

Adaptation is an eternal principle. We live in a world where things change all the time and while we do know that God has a plan for us sometimes we may not know the finer details, sometimes it feels like we don't know any details, and it can be easy to get lost or discouraged. But fear not, God knows whats going on in our lives and the principles that He has given us are eternal in nature, (principles like prayer, searching the scriptures, and keeping the Sabbath Day Holy) which pretty much means that they will work in any situation. Not only do they work in any situation but when we use them they help us to qualify for God's blessings! You may be thinking, "That's sounds awesome Elder Wood, but I don't have a belief in some of those things." Well, you're in luck, because God has provided a way for us to know for ourselves. God does not want us to follow His commandments out of blind obedience. He wants us to develop faith in Him and in His principles by living them and seeing for ourselves the blessings and happiness that follow using intelligent obedience. He has provided us the ability to think and to feel for ourselves that the truths that He gives us are true.



Overcome




Christ was able to overcome all
 things and, when we abide by
His teachings, we can too.

I know that when we are able to incorporate these and other truths from God in our lives that we can receive reliable, specific, careful guidance from God. I also know that when we do we can overcome any trial, hardship, challenge, or temptation that comes our way. I know this not only because I have heard of others who have been able to do the same thing, but because I have tried it myself and I know its true.