Digging to sufficient Depth

One of the many blessings of the gospel is that it offers us protection in our daily lives. About 6 years ago I found myself in a precarious situation. I was in the east Iraqi desert with my Marine Corps unit. We were miles away from the nearest friendly unit and were outside of the protective blanket of artillery. We were left, quite literally, to defend ourselves. Shortly thereafter, we received word that approximately 50 Iraqi tanks were heading in our direction. As an infantryman, the prospect of going up against 1 tank, let alone 50, is debilitating. We had in our arsenal very few weapons that would have any effect on a tank. Our best defense then was to dig. The deeper the fighting position, or hole, the better. This effectively protects the infantryman against tanks. A tanks counters this by placing it's tracts on the fighting position and then spins the tank. Sadly, if the fighting position is not deep enough this act kills the infantryman in the hole. We stayed awake that entire eerie night. Every little noise sounded like that of distant tanks. Thankfully, the threat of Iraqi tanks bearing down on us never materialized. In our lives, the prospect of Satan bearing down on us can also be debilitating at times, and the threat of Satan's army bearing down on us very often does materialize. At the beginning of the school year I found myself very unprotected from such an army, and decided that a change needed to be made. I needed to dig deep into the foundation of the gospel. This year, a meaningful and sincere prayer is how I begin and end each day. I read scriptures before I go to bed and whenever I have time to spare throughout the day and I regularly attend institute classes. By immersing myself in things of the Spirit I have effectively dug my fighting position in the gospel. I can gladly state that my fighting position is of sufficient depth to protect me against just about anything that might be thrown my way. Digging a fighting position in the barren Iraqi desert required a lot of work, as does digging one in the gospel. Both fighting positions offered me protection, but a noteworthy side effect of digging a fighting position into the gospel of sufficient depth has allowed me to gain a closer relationship with Heavenly Father. Protection and a closer relationship with Heavenly Father... it's as sweet a deal as it sounds!