The Power of Hope

I've been reading Elder Uchdorf's talk recently The Infinite Power of Hope. I have loved every one of Elder Uchdorf's talks, in fact, his talk titled Lift where you Stand, is what motivated me to choose LIFT as my personal theme this year. How have I been doing with that theme by the way?

Don't ask. I'm afraid I've not been much of a "Lifter" this past year.

Perhaps I should have chosen HOPE as my theme for 2009.

I find that I go through these little periods in life where everything seems to require more trust. More Hope. I feel like right now, for example there are many things I find myself Hoping for in any given day. In fact sometimes it seems as though there are so many things I'm hoping for that by the end of the day I'm a frazzled ball of stress imagining all the "what ifs" and all that could go wrong with our plans.

My plan.

In the back of my mind, amidst all the errands, and cleaning and phone calls I am always thinking of one of the following:

Hoping that the offer we received on our home goes through without any glitches.

Hoping that the home we really love and want can be ours, and that it doesn't get snatched up as we wait.

Hoping that this baby will come soon. :)

Hoping that it will be healthy. ...and cute.

Hoping that my volleyball coach husband will actually be able to be there when it is born. Therefore, hoping that his boys lose every game POSSIBLE! (jks)

I know that my worries and circumstances are much less bleak then those of others. In fact, minor in comparison. I find myself hoping for them too.

Like the woman I know who is in the middle of chemotherapy. Hoping she has more good days then bad.

Or my neighbor who has just been told that there is a medical problem but she must wait to speak with the specialist- two weeks from now. Hoping it is nothing too serious.

I love what Elder Uchdorf says about Hope.
"Hope is like the beam of sunlight rising up and above the horizon of our present circumstances. It pierces the darkness with a brilliant dawn. It encourages and inspires us to place our trust in the loving care of an eternal Heavenly Father, who has prepared a way for those who seek for eternal truth in a world of relativism, confusion, and fear."

"Hope is not knowledge, ...it is confidence that if we live accordingly we will receive desired blessings in the future. It is believing and expecting that our prayers will be answered. It is manifest in confidence, optimism, enthusiasm, and patient perseverance."

Whenever I read this talk I find myself asking afterwards, "what am I worrying about anyways?" So much of what we worry about is out of our hands.

And in much better hands then ours.