Preparation

I had to sit in for one of the teachers all week and listen to and grade student presentations. The class was Natural Disasters, 3 sections worth. The students projects were on some of the natural disasters that we've had in the U.S. in the last 100 years or so, like Galvaston Hurricane, Peshtigo Fires, Tri-State Tornados, and Hurricane Katrina.

I listened to stats of death, destruction and mayhem. I saw video clips and heard human interest stories. It was quite sobering.

Today we talked in class about what is the very most important kind of preparation that anyone can do to prepare for these kinds of events. Some students suggested education, and although this is very important we decided that it really wasn't number 1.

You can be as educated as is humanly possible about how to protect yourself against disaster. You can have supplies stored up, know the safest places to go, and how to best protect yourself.

But that is no guarantee that you won't die if a flood, volcano, hurricane or tornado hits. The best kind of protection ultimately is spiritual protection. If the worst happens and you don't make it through the disaster, if you are spiritually prepared to meet God, then everything will be okay.

"If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear." D&C 38:30