Hope

Nicole with her Grandfather

Hermana Wilbur received sad news this week that her grandfather passed away.  In her words, "Yesterday, I received a phone call from President Woodbury about Papa.  Of course, I cried, but I received comforting words from my mission president.  He said that now I can work even harder to be a good missionary because he's watching.  I know that's true, and that I have one more person that is cheering me on up there."

Before hearing of this sad news, Nicole had the chance to read the talk "The Infinite Power of Hope" by President Uchtdorf.  Here are a few messages from that talk that inspired her:

• "Hope is a gift of the Spirit.  It is a hope that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the power of His Resurrection, we shall be raised unto life eternal and this because of our faith in the Savior.  This kind of hope is both a principle of promise as well as a commandment, and, as with all commandments, 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.  The hope of salvation is like a protective helmet; it is the foundation of our faith and an anchor to our souls."
• "Hope is like a 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...Is it possible to imagine a more glorious future than the one prepared for us by our Heavenly Father?"
• 1 Corinthians 2:9 reads:  "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him."

Nicole continues, "I know Papa loved Heavenly Father very much and I have hope in this scripture, that Papa is happy because he is in the care of our Heavenly Father without mortal pains and worries.  I am thankful for Papa's example to me.  For his expressions of love, for his kisses, for showing me perseverance, love, respect, hard work, gentlemanly manners, for dancing with me, for reminding me of my true worth and beauty when I couldn't recognize it myself, for his smile, for his testimony, for how much he loved Nana.  I miss him, but I know he's with me and that I will see him again.