the invincible name of Christ.

Aside from forums, which are speeches solely focused on intellectual edification, BYU regularly hosts devotionals (speeches on religious topics). Devotional speakers frequently use research, patterns, or other aspects of their scholarly backgrounds to testify of God and His Beloved Son. It's deeply inspiring to hear how accountants, scientists, politicians, philosophers, and many others navigate the unique, faith-trying questions that their careers can sometimes present and simultaneously find undeniable instances of God's hand in their occupational and/or research focuses.

Last Tuesday's devotional speaker was Justin Collings, an associate dean and professor of law at BYU. He holds a JD and Ph.D. in history from Yale University and speaks fluent German and Italian (and has a working knowledge of French, too). Collings was a law clerk in the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit during 2012-2013 and he is an author of two Oxford University Press-published books.

With this educational background, Collings is incredibly well-read — and that was very apparent in the adjectives, metaphors, and art/history references he made in his speech. He didn't throw out random moments from history. You could tell he understood the background of the historical figures and events he referenced and was very intentional with the connotation of each describing word he used. Furthermore, Collings had nearly 50 sources for 11-pages worth of material. With all this considered, I decided to take his speech very seriously, and ponder on the words and examples he used.

Collings ended his speech by stating: "in the invincible name of Jesus Christ, amen."

Latter-day Saints typically close their remarks with a simple "in the name of Jesus Christ, amen." Sometimes, they'll attach other titles of Christ to the beginning of their conclusion, but that's not a typical practice. And I've never heard anyone end a testimony or speech by describing Christ as invincible.

But that description has stuck with me. For weeks, actually. (I got to read the devotional before it was presented.)

Christ is invincible. I agree. But do we — do I — treat him like he is?

Do we realize that because he overcame the impossible — death and all the sins, pains, and mistakes of the world — that He can overcome anything impossible in our lives, too?

Because you aren't invincible. And that's okay. You're not meant to be! But sometimes we go into survival mode. Literally. The physiological result of stress is the fight-or-flight response, an overflow of hormones to help us stand our ground or run away. And because stress is a common experience, we can often convince ourselves that we're the only person we can rely on. We think we have to be invincible.

But I believe there is so much power — power that can help us overcome what's typically labeled impossible — in seeking Christ.

There is power — invincibility, if you will — in believing in his abilities. Because he can offer absolute, perfect

empathy

healing

upliftment

strength

understanding

perspective

guidance and

enlightenment to you.

He can bring all kinds of power into your life.

Christ is too powerful to be overcome by anything, and he can offer power to us through his atonement, grace, and love. After all, his atonement is frequently referred to as "the enabling power."

What do you wish you had the power to do, right now? What do you feel like you need more of? The atonement and his grace can enable you to:

learn (and re-learn)

remember

trust again

truly repent

testify

heal

inspire

listen to promptings

forgive

connect

love

resolve

accomplish

grow

lead.

When we exercise faith, approach God with a humble heart, and extend diligent efforts to exercise spiritual habits, we can utilize the power of Christ's atonement and notice how his grace is supplementing our inadequacies.

I'm not invincible, but I know someone who is. So,"I glory in my Jesus."(2 Nephi 33:6)

My Jesus.

My Jesus, who lets me be close to him.

My Jesus, who wants to give all of us additional power so that we don't just survive, but flourish during our mortal experience.

In the invincible name of Jesus Christ,

amen.