January Bishopric Message

A Perfect Brightness of Hope
Written by Brother Jim Ballard, 1st Counselor, Bishopric

At the beginning of a new year, it is natural for us to ponder the past and to wonder what the future holds. As we consider the upcoming year, we should look forward with optimism and with hope.

What Is Hope?  

In his October 2008 conference address, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf defined hope. “Hope is not knowledge, but rather 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.”

Where Do We Find Hope?
The Apostle Paul indicated that the scriptures were written that we “might have hope” (Romans 15:4). Mormon wrote a letter to his son Moroni stating that hope comes from the Comforter, the Holy Ghost (Moroni 8:26). Like faith, hope can be cultivated. We attain hope by doing things that invite the Spirit into our lives.  

Why Is Hope Important?

Pessimism, doubt and despair are the opposite of hope. These negative emotions lead us away, not toward, our Father in Heaven. President Uchtdorf: “Hope, on the other hand, 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 has the power to fill our lives with happiness. 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.” 

It is my prayer that during this new year, and always, we will follow Nephi’s admonition to: “Press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life” (2 Nephi 31:20).

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Click here to read, listen to or watch President Uchtdorf's talk in its entirety.  

November Bishopric Message

Written by Brother Travis Wilde

Over the UEA break, we took some time to sneak up to a family cabin.  We always love to be away from the crazy rush of our lives, and spend some time together.  For me, this is time away from my phone, the internet, work, and other distractions of life.  Being away from the daily grind allows me to think about other things, like, finishing chinking the logs, plumbing issues that need to be addressed, and a leaky roof that I am too afraid to climb on.  This trip was a little bit different.  It was colder and that meant more time in the cabin.  The main source of heat in the cabin is a pot-belly stove.  Having a fire to heat the cabin requires frequent checking on how the logs are burning.

This particular trip it took a while to heat up the cabin and get it comfortable inside.  Sally and the kids had gone up early in the day and left me to work and come up later.  When I arrived, I found them huddled around the fire reading.  They had the fire going but it didn't seem to be heating up the cabin very well.  I quickly discovered the problem - they only had a few logs on the fire.  I explained to them that it was important to stack the fire full of wood to get the maximum heat.  After a short time, the cabin got considerable warmer.  Before going to bed that night, I once again stacked the stove full of wood to keep us warm.  Sometime during the night, Sally woke me up and said, "Travis, I need you to light the fire.  It went out."  In my slumber I asked if it was all the way out.  She told me all the wood had burned down.  Luckily for me, when I opened up the stove and blew on the ashes, I saw what I knew would be there - hot ashes.  Within a short time of putting some more wood on the fire and blowing on the ashes, the fire lit back to life. 

I couldn't fall back asleep after being up for a bit.  I couldn't help but think about the experience.  For some reason, in the middle of the night, I had an epiphany.  The cabin fireplace was truly a symbol of my testimony of others.  As I thought about the experience and how important it was to "stack" the fireplace, I wondered what wood I was adding to my fire.  Was my fire putting out enough heat to be of benefit to myself and others?  I realized how important it was for me to continue to check on my fire and make sure I was continuing to add fuel to my testimony.  I thought about how, when the fire appeared to be died out, with a little coaxing, the fire could quickly be brought back to life. 

The prophet Alma asked, "If ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?" (Alma 5:26)  Our testimonies of the Gospel of Jesus Christ need our constant attention.  May we continue to put the fuel on our fires, so our testimonies might give the light and warmth to ourselves and others.