The Infinite Power of Hope

I know we're really not supposed to have "favorite" General Authorities. However, I do get excited when it is time for President Uchtdorf to speak. I think it's a combination of the awesome messages he gives and the fact that he has a German accent. I have a soft spot in my heart for German accents. :o) Whenever I listen to him speak, I am totally engaged in what he says. And, when I reread his messages, his voice is one that I can hear perfectly in my head.
In October 2008 he gave a talk in the Saturday Morning session of General Conference called "The Infinite Power of Hope". This talk struck me the first time I heard it and has been so powerful ever since. Last night I read it again and I wanted to share some parts that really stood out to me.

Hope is one leg of a three-legged stool, together with faith and charity. These three stabilize our lives regardless of the rough or uneven surfaces we might encounter at the time....Hope has the power to fill our lives with happiness....we have the responsibility to make it an active part of our lives and overcome the temptation to lose hope. Hope in our Heavenly Father's merciful plan of happiness leads to peace, mercy, rejoicing, and gladness....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 of fear.... Hope... is the abiding trust that the Lord will fulfill His promise to us. It is confidence that if we live according to God's laws and the words of His prophets now, 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....Hope sustains us through despair. Hope teaches that there is reason to rejoice even when all seems dark around us.

Check out the whole talk at http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-947-7,00.html

It's 1776 you uncultured fool!

I love American History. I love reading about it and learning new things (which is good because I've chosen to be a history teacher!). Last summer I was the assistant costume designer for Utah Festival Opera's production of 1776. In preparation, I read David McCullough's book 1776. I loved it! He is such a great author. It was a really good read and not overly-burdened with scholarly prose. Well, about a week ago, my mom told me that he is coming to Salt Lake to speak at a special event for Utah Teachers and she e-mailed the school district about getting some tickets. Guess what??? She got them. I am now the proud holder of two tickets to hear David McCullough speak at the Salt Lake Tabernacle next Saturday. I am really excited about this, even if I do have to sit on what I think are some of the most uncomfortable benches in the world!

7 Things to do Before I'm 30

I have a list of 7 things to do before I turn the big 3-0. It's a list of random goals that I want to accomplish in the coming years. I am excited to announce that number 5 on my list will be crossed of on July 17. It is all made possible by these two little pieces of paper:

It Happens

I started a blog about a month ago. Yesterday, through a series of computer glitches and changing of e-mails, I managed to delete it so here I go again. I'm really glad that I didn't have a lot of posts on it. I have tried my hand at blogging a few times before, but have been pretty unsuccessful. I hope this one is the difference. I really enjoy reading the blogs of my friends and family so I thought I'd give it one more go. I've had fun so far, even if I do have to start this one over again! After yesterday's fiasco, I thought about trying to repost as many entries as I could, but I think I'll scrap most of that and start fresh. There's no time like the present right? So here we go....