Surviving Disasters

We all have ways of coping with challenges. Some people freeze up or focus intensely on the issue at hand. You might know someone who laughs out loud, or cries. Other people get hysterical. Wow. You’re not going to believe this, but that just happened as I was writing these words. What are the chances of that? (No – it wasn’t me.)

We all have different coping strategies. And I have learned for myself that I am probably using several different coping mechanisms—but the one that comes to mind right now—I write. Weird, I know.

Mom tells me that writing a paper in college for her was like pulling teeth. She loathed it. She much rather take a multiple-choice test or complete a reading assignment in chapters from a book. But I derived then and still do now a great deal of satisfaction from writing…and reading well-written prose.

So what does that have to do with anything relevant to your life? Good question. Whether you like the narrative or not has nothing to do with it. Whether you are good at engraving your thoughts through the written word isn’t the point. The fact is you ARE good at something, and doing that well brings satisfaction, self-confidence, and joy to you and those around you.

Some may play the guitar or the piano. Others will paint or sing. Another may sew or plant or weed or clean…you get the idea. There are many good coping mechanisms.

Now you might say “Sure. There really isn’t anything that I am good at so this doesn’t apply to me.” And in that you would be wrong. We are told that we all have a gift—at least one. Doctrine and Covenants 46:11

Occasionally our gifts are less visible and, dare I say, common. But we must search them out nevertheless and magnify them. So you might think that your gifts are less valuable and less of a contribution to the whole. But again, you would error. Our gifts are given to profit all men and by sharing our gifts, we all benefit. Doctrine and Covenants 46:29

Now as we wrap up this thought, you might be thinking of several ways you could summarize it…helpful coping mechanisms, or sharing your gifts with mankind, or maybe struggles of dad and mom in college—all good attempts. But what I want you to remember from today’s message is much bigger and more influential than those and can be summarized in just two words “Be excellent.”

That’s how you survive the onslaught of life’s challenges. Unite with the Lord’s team and be the very best you can be…and that’s enough thanks to the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Whatever the challenge, uniting with the Lord means victory. Way to go team!