4 Life Principles I Learned as a Marine – Part 3

We all know life comes with problems, as much as we wish it didn’t.

In light of all the recent shootings and violence, today’s subject is a difficult topic. This post was written and planned long before the recent events in Paris and those in the US in Colorado Springs and San Bernadino. My heart and prayers go out to those families who have been impacted by these events.

The answer to our problems is not a rifle. The answer is Jesus (if you want to know more about that, email me). That said, let’s move forward with today’s post.

Here’s a quick review. Principle #1, teamwork; principle #2, fitness.

Principle #3: Weaponry

It would be poor strategy to send troops into battle unprotected and without weapons. To fight and win life’s difficulties, we can learn what weapons are available to us and be proficient with them. I use the term weapon in a symbolic sense only.

What tools do I have for life in general?

A support network is one of our best tools for when trouble hits. A support network consists of family, friends, and professionals you can turn to for help. The first person I go to in my network is God.

When you’re tired or ill, you don’t have the same mental, emotional, or physical stamina to face difficulties as you have when you are healthy and well rested. So eating healthy, getting adequate sleep, and exercising predisposes you to have a better attitude about overcoming your problems.

Our nervous system requires B-complex to function at its best. For a variety of reasons, we don’t get all the vitamins we need every day. Taking a quality supplement is a good defense for maintaining our health. I take a daily dose of just B-complex because without it my mood is in the pits. I take extra during the long hours of winter darkness.

What are the writer’s weapons?

As novelist and playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton said in his play Cardinal Richelieu in 1839,

“The pen is mightier than the sword.”

We write because we have a message to share. Our words are our strongest weapon, which makes it important for us to learn how to write well.

Other important resources include …

• Our attitude,
• our determination to persevere,
• a group of writer friends who can encourage us when we’re down (that support network I mentioned earlier).

How does this apply to our spiritual lives?

Satan is out to steal, kill, and destroy us. Therefore, the Bible tells to don our armor every day. Ephesians 6:12-17 tells us we have five pieces of armor and one weapon.

• The belt of truth. Jesus tells us in John 14:6 that He is the truth.
• The breastplate of righteousness. Our righteousness is the righteousness of Christ (1 Corinthians 1:30).
• The gospel of peace. Christ is our peace (Ephesians 2:14).
• The shield of faith. Our faith is in Christ, not in ourselves (Galatians 2:20).
• The helmet of salvation. We have salvation because Christ died for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3).
• Verse 17 tells us our weapon is a sword—the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. Jesus is the word (John 1:1, 14).

Jesus not only provided the armor and weapon, but He is our armor and our weapon.

When you write, pray for God’s guidance. Our writing can, and does, make a difference in the lives of those who read our books, whether we write fiction or nonfiction. I pray on a regular basis that God will put my book into the hands of the women who need it.

There are many other resources available to us as we face our problems. I hope reading this has opened your mind to consider the ways you can overcome life’s obstacles.

Just as a Marine must be proficient with his/her weapon, we, too, can be better prepared to meet the demands of everyday life and those of a writer by knowing what our weapons are and learning how to use them correctly.

Related posts

4 Life Principles I Learned as a Marine, Part 1
4 Life Principles I Learned as a Marine, Part 2