Real Faith Trusts God When Nothing Works - Lessons about God from George Washington's Life!

What if one of the clearest lessons about God doesn’t come from a pulpit, but from a battlefield? We take a fresh look at George Washington and the word he returned to again and again: providence. Not luck. Not vibes. The steady belief that God’s hand can guide outcomes even when the situation looks impossible.

We connect Washington’s story to LDS doctrine and modern revelation, especially how God speaks through the mind and heart in quiet impressions rather than constant spectacle. From Valley Forge to victory, we talk about what real faith looks like when nothing is working, and why “small and simple things” often show up long before the miracle feels obvious. Then we get practical: how to notice those promptings, how to act on them, and how that changes the way you move through fear, uncertainty, and decision-making.

We also dig into gratitude as spiritual power, not polite behavior, and why gratitude protects us from pride and spiritual blindness. From there, Washington’s refusal to seize a crown becomes a vivid case study in moral agency: just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should. We tie that to humility, teachability, and leadership as stewardship and service, echoing the Doctrine and Covenants teaching on persuasion, longsuffering, and gentleness.

We close with a personal question: have you ever made it through something you shouldn’t have survived, something that feels more like providence than coincidence? If you’re still here, God’s not finished with you yet. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs hope, and leave a review that tells us where you’ve seen God preparing you.

Transcript

Why Washington Kept Saying Providence

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What if one of the greatest lessons about God didn't come from a prophet, didn't come from the Bible, didn't come from one of your traditional religious sources, but from a general. A man surrounded by war, uncertainty, impossible odds, yet who kept referring to one thing over and over and over again. That he and our country was saved by providence. Providence meaning God. God's plan. Today we're talking about George Washington and what his life quietly and powerfully teaches us about God, agency, and who we're meant to become. And we're not stopping at history. We're going to connect his life directly to doctrine, LDS doctrine, modern revelation, and what it means for you right now. How can you apply this in your life? So, Washington, he didn't preach sermons, he didn't claim visions. He lived his life and did what he thought was best. But he constantly spoke about providence, a guiding force shaping outcomes beyond human control. In the darkest days of the Revolutionary War, when his army was starving, freezing at Valley Forge, and on the brink of collapse, he didn't give up. Why? He didn't give up because he believed that God was still working even when nothing looked like it. That aligns powerfully with what we learn today. In LDS theology, God often works through small and simple things. We are taught that through small and simple things are great things brought to pass. And that's talked about in the Book of Mormon. So God's hand is usually very subtle before it's undeniable. And

God’s Guidance Feels Subtle

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with that opener, this is Todd Talks, Spirit by Design, where I help you design the life that a spiritual life that you desire that will prepare you for the second coming. Modern revelation teaches us that God is in your mind and in your heart. That's how he talks to us. That he's not always the lightning that strikes. It comes very much in impressions. And I've tried teaching that many times over the last uh several months, that we receive impressions all the time from the Lord. And it's learning to read them, recognize them, and act on them, that's when it's most important. He's not always in the burning bush. He's in the quiet, still small voice in your mind. Washington lived like that was true. Do you?

Gratitude That Changes Your Trajectory

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After victory in battle. After victory against the British, the greatest force ever known. Washington didn't spike the ball, as we like to say. He called for a national day of prayer and thanksgiving. Because he understood something that we sometimes forget. Victory without gratitude leads to pride. Pride leads to spiritual blindness. Gratitude isn't optional. I want you to understand that. Gratitude is transformational. I've talked in the past about a gratitude notebook where you write down things that you're grateful for every day, and it literally changes your mind, and you start seeing more and more things to be grateful for. President Russell M. Nelson taught that gratitude can literally change your spiritual trajectory. Gratitude isn't just polite, it's power. It's power for change. Washington didn't just win battles. He stayed grounded spiritually after them. That's why he called for a day of prayer,

Agency And Refusing A Crown

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days of prayer and thanksgiving. Washington didn't just fight for freedom. He believed that our freedoms came from God. And this is where it connects deeply to one of the core doctrines of the restored gospel, the doctrine of agency. I've talked about how we received our agency. It's one of the main reasons we were sent here to this earth. That agency is moral agency, is central to God's plan. Here's the part we often skip. Agency isn't just a gift, it's a responsibility. Washington could have taken power. Many expected him to, many expected him to declare himself king. Instead, he stepped down. Why? Because he understood something eternal. That something, just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should. Agency aligned with God becomes freedom. Agency without God becomes chaos. You know, Washington was a very humble man. He constantly redirected praise. He didn't say, look what I did. He said, look what God allowed. That echoes a foundational truth, that God gives us gifts but expects us to remain humble. Ether 12 teaches that weakness becomes strength through our humility. God gives us weaknesses so that we can be humbled, and those weaknesses he then turns into strengths. Did you know God can do more with a humble man than a talented, proud one? Washington wasn't perfect, but he was teachable. That's what made him usable. There's a story I've told from my personal experience about a guy that I flew with, and after flying with him for a while, I wrote up several pages of negative feedback because he was unteachable. A couple years later, after he was humbled, very much so through leadership smacking him down a number of times, I got to fly with him again and then go back to the same duty officer and say, hey, he's ready to progress because he's finally

Enduring When Life Turns Brutal

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teachable. Let's be real. It was brutal. People died. There were betrayals, starvation, gangrene, foot rot, cold, frostbite, years of it. But George Washington stayed. This ties directly into a doctrine that we sometimes misunderstand. Enduring to the end. In LDS theology, faith isn't proven in comfort. It's proven in consistency. If you only trust God when things are working and going in your favor, you don't trust God yet. Washington trusted God when nothing was working. That's real faith. So Washington saw leadership as a duty, not a platform. Wish a lot more of our leaders today thought of it that way. The Lord teaches no power or influence can or ought to be maintained. Only by persuasion, longsuffering, and gentleness. Now, in that doctrine, he's talking about the priesthood, but it goes towards any leadership position. No power or influence can or ought to be maintained except by persuasion, longsuffering, and gentleness. Leadership is a duty, it's a service. It isn't about control, it's about accountability before God. You probably hopefully listen to my episodes about the Gaddiant and robbers in today's politics. That so many of our leaders are in it for power and glory and control over others. They're in it for themselves, not to be servants of the people. Whether you lead a company, a family, or just yourself, you are a steward, and God is watching what you do with that stewardship.

Preparation Before The Calling

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Washington didn't become who he was overnight. God shaped him long before the Revolutionary War ever started. We see that pattern all throughout the scriptures and through the doctrines of the gospel. Joseph Smith was taught before the first vision. Nephi was prepared before he built a ship. Those who he calls, the Lord qualifies. If God has a calling for you, he will prepare you before he reveals it. So if life feels like preparation right now, it probably is. Everyone has Valley Forge, a season where things feel cold, slow, uncertain. Washington had his. The question is, what will you do in yours? Will you quit or will you trust that God is still working, that he's working on you? Because here's the truth. The same God Washington trusted, the same God who restored the gospel through Joseph Smith, the same God who speaks through modern prophets today, is the God who is guiding your life right now. Providence isn't just history, it's happening. The question is, are you paying attention? Now,

The Battle He Could Not Survive

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I talked about Washington being prepared and preserved by God. Before Washington was a president, before he led the revolution, he was a young officer in the French and Indian War. There's a movie coming out about that in theaters this summer. There's another several different things. I know Glenn Beck said something about this time period of Washington's life. There's a moment that peep that stopped people in their tracks during the French and Indian War. During the Battle of Monongahela, Washington rode directly into chaos. Bullets flying, soldiers dropping all around him. Officers were being picked off one by one. He had three horses shot out from under him. He kept riding back and forth across the battlefield, delivering orders, rallying troops, completely exposed. After the battle, something incredible was discovered. Multiple bullet holes were found in his coat. Horses had been shot out for the under him, and nearly every officer around him was killed. But he was untouched. Years later, a Native American chief came to him and told him that he wanted to meet the great white officer, Washington, who could not be brought down. Every sharpshooter the Indians had had aimed directly at Washington. And these were Indians that never missed, and they couldn't bring him down. Was that luck? Or was that providence? I say when God has a purpose for you, your life is not just random. That doesn't mean you won't face danger. It means your mission isn't over until God says it is. In the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord tells Joseph Smith, Thy days are known and shall not be numbered less. Joseph Smith himself was preserved again and again until his mission was complete. Same pattern, different man, same God. One of the things that made Washington stand apart after moments like Battlefield experiences. He observed, he reflected, he believed. After that battle, the Monongahela battle, Washington didn't turn that experience surviving into ego. He turned it into reverence. Reverence to the Lord for preserving his life. That's rare. It's exactly what we teach that his humility is what allows God to

Providence In Your Story And Repentance

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keep working. Going along with George Washington in his life, have you ever had a moment you shouldn't have made it through? Something that looking back feels more like providence than coincidence? What if it wasn't luck? What if that was God preserving you? Because here's what Washington's life teaches us. You are not here by accident. You're not being guided randomly, and you are not preserved without purpose. The same God who preserved Washington, the same God who restored the gospel through Joseph Smith, the same God who speaks today is guiding you. Providence doesn't just protect, it prepares. So if you're still here, God's not finished with you yet. And that is the lesson to take with you in this episode of Todd Talks. God's not finished with you yet. Are you open to receiving from him and acting on it? I know it's not easy. I know sometimes we fall back into temptation. We fall back into our old ways of doing things. But do you get up? Do you repent? Do you turn to God and say, I'm here. What do you want me to do? And then act on that when he tells you. That is the important part. This is Todd Tox, and I hope you do a moment of reflection and think about George Washington's life and your life and how you can mirror him. Have a blessed day.