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.









General Conference unwrapped...

So you may have heard of it. Its called General Conference. But what is it and how can you get the most out of it? Well, rest assured that is just what this blog is all about. So if you are reading this before a General Conference or if you're reading this after a General Conference just happened I can assure you that there'll be something that can help you to understand what it's all about.

So what is General Conference? General Conference is a time when the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are able to address the entire Church, and those that may not be members of the LDS Church that are interested in listening, all across the world and takes place two times during the year, once in April and again in October. The Conference center for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is located in Salt Lake City, Utah, near the Salt Lake temple. Speakers at General Conference prepare talks and messages to share with us months in advance and they seek direction from God to share things that will best help us not only until the next General Conference but also for the rest of our lives.



The First Presidency of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Left to Right: President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, President
Henry B. Eyring, and President Thomas S. Monson.





Why does this all matter? General Conference is important because its a time that we can hear the Prophet and other leaders of the Church. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints we believe that we have a living prophet upon the earth much like Moses, Noah, and Abraham. And Just like those prophets of old we believe that the prophet and other leaders of the Church receive significant revelation and direction from God to give to us. What a wonderful opportunity to hear the words of God! So as you listen to their words remember that those are the same words which God would share with us.

So we know what Conference is all about and we know that it has some important messages in there for us, so how do we get the most out of it? Well, just keep readin'. President Uchtdorf, one of the top leaders of the Church, gave us some counsel to help get the most out of General Conference. I'm going to shorten the information up a little for your reading pleasure but you can read the full version here.

1.) General Conference is a time to receive answers and direction from our Father in Heaven.
We can prepare questions that we want answered ahead of time and listen for the answers as we watch General Conference.

2.) Don't discount message because it sounds familiar.
If something sounds basic and like its a no-brainer maybe its something that needs to be worked on. Most often times I find myself looking for answers to other questions when really I need to work on something so simple and fundamental.

3.) The words shared at General Conference can act as a guide for the coming months.

The words that will be shared with us will be from God and we have the opportunity to hear them and to try them and see if they are true. So remember those things that you hear and remember to try them out during the coming months, I can promise that you will find great blessings as you do so.

So I'm excited for General Conference and for your opportunity to be able to view and experience it. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true and that God does have a prophet on the earth today that leads and guides this Church under Jesus Christ's direction. I know that if you follow the counsel that you receive that you feel a greater sense of peace and direction and with that I close with some words from President Uchtdorf himself. "Our merciful and loving Heavenly Father has not forsaken and will not forsake His children. Today, as well as in times past, He has appointed apostles and prophets. He continues to reveal His word to them. What a marvelous privilege it is to hear God’s messages for each of us during general conference! Let us prepare well for this great blessing of divine guidance delivered by His chosen servants."