There is always hope.

As I work with and serve the missionaries, I sometimes try to help as a missionary goes through a difficult time for one reason or another. Perhaps one is experiencing homesickness, rejection, anxiety or worry, physical health problems, a “down” day, or a myriad of other problems that can beset any of us. It can be difficult to stay positive when it may seem that everything around us is falling to pieces. 

I’ve had cause to see that hope is the brightness that each of us carries deep in our hearts and can help us through troubled and dark times. I like to find talks that I can share with missionaries, family, or friends that can help us to see that we can draw on hope to get us through difficult situations.

I read one such talk this week from which I would like to share a few thoughts. In a BYU Devotional speech given in 1984 by Elder John H. Groberg of the Seventy titled There Is Always Hope, Elder Groberg shares some meaningful ideas.

The subject I wish to speak on is one that I hope you will appreciate. I know I do. It is simply this: there is always hope.

I have read and heard from different psychologists and teachers that we must hear something at least twenty times before we really hear it. But, in any event, to make sure we all hear, I will use the phrase “There is always hope” not just twenty, but at least thirty times this evening. I hope that you don’t get tired, but that you understand.

There is always hope. No matter how dismal things appear, no matter how problem-prone we seem to be, no matter what reversals and setbacks we suffer, there is always hope. Hope is the thing that keeps us going. We sing the hymn “We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet” all the time, but do we listen to the words? What do you feel when you sing “When dark clouds of trouble hang o’er us And threaten our peace to destroy, There is hope smiling brightly before us, And we know that deliverance is nigh” (Hymns, no. 196)? Do we really believe that?

Part of the thirteenth article of faith reads, “We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things.” Do we really believe that? Are we literally supposed to hope all things?

What do we mean by hope? What is hope? Why should we have hope? What do we hope for? What are some of the signs of true hope? How do we get more hope? Let’s take these questions and discuss them.

What is hope? I suppose that it is like trying to define faith or love; it is very difficult, but we can use some examples. As near as I can tell, hope is light. It is a light within us that pierces the darkness of doubt and discouragement and taps into the light (hope) of all creation—even the Savior.

I think that in some instances we may be able to substitute the word hope for light and get some understanding in the scriptures, i.e., we talk about Christ as being the light of the world—he is the hope of the world (see Mosiah 16:9).

You will have to think of your own definition, but one other is:

And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light [be filled with hope], and there shall be no darkness in you [no discouragement]; and that body which is filled with light [filled with hope] comprehendeth all things [isn’t that what the article of faith says, we hope all things?]. [D&C 88:67]

Hope, in a word, is the Savior. Hope is a part of the deity in us that attaches us to the Savior. Don’t let that thread be cut. No matter how tenuous or thin it might be, there is always hope.

Where does hope come from? Why should we have hope? Why do we keep on hoping even after we blow our diet or get a bad grade or lose a close game or get turned down in some way or another?

In all ages of time and in all dispensations, people have felt a need for hope. 

Why do we keep on hoping? They say, “Hope springs eternal,” and it’s good it does, for it gives us something to live for, to strive for, to hope for. But why? Why does hope spring eternal? Why do we keep coming back and back after so many defeats? Simply because God is eternal and God is hope (as well as love—and they may be the same) and we are his children. Therefore, as he is the embodiment of hope and has a fullness of hope, there is planted deep within each of us something we cannot deny, for it is part of the very essence of ourselves and that is what we all, in mortality, hope.

No matter what people try to say, it’s always there—that hope is within us. It just depends on how brightly we allow it to shine in our lives. The degree of “shining” (or the strength) of this hope that is in all of us is in direct proportion to our faith in God and particularly to our faith in (belief in, love of, hope in, etc.) Jesus Christ. Specifically then, the basis of all righteous hope is the person of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In him all hope has its existence. Without him there is no hope. But because he was and is and ever will be, there is always hope—hope in all areas. He is hope.

What are some of the signs of true hope? Calmness, optimism, or all those things that are the opposite of downheartedness or being disturbed. You can almost measure the level of hope you have in the Savior by the depth and frequency of depression and discouragement you allow yourself to sink into.

Just as discouragement and depression feed on themselves (can’t you just hear Satan saying, “You can’t do it, you are no good, you’ll never make it”—sometimes he says that right to your heart, and sometimes he uses others as his agents), so does hope regenerate itself. Can’t you likewise hear the Savior saying, “You can do it, you can make it, you are worth something. I laid down my life for you. I love you. I redeemed you. I paid for you because I know you can make it. You can come home. Trust me. Follow me.” Again, sometimes he speaks directly to our hearts and sometimes uses others as his agents. But there is always hope in him.

This is an excellent speech to help us see how hope, our Savior, can bring us peace and happiness in times of struggle. I wish I could share it all but it is lengthy. I pray that each of us will always have hope to see us through all aspects of our lives.

This has been another busy week of missionary interviews and devotionals. I went to Roseburg on Tuesday and Grants Pass on Wednesday. 

While in Grants Pass, Sister Crouch and I went to get pizza for lunch to take back to President and Sister Cornelius and the missionaries traveling with us.

Thursday and Friday, the interviews were local in Eugene so no distant travel.

There were devotionals on Tuesday and Friday and a dinner on Thursday for ward and stake missionary leaders. It was a time for the ward and stake leaders in the Eugene Stake to meet with our missionaries and mission leaders to develop relationships and to encourage a spirit of working together. 

Sister Barker and I helped with the dinner set up.

Dinner pics

Thursday I got a nice surprise when Koby Hansen came back to the mission to visit. He finished his mission just last month.

Springfield Zone missionaries enjoying pizza before interviews began on Friday

It has been a mix of rain, snow, and sunshine this week. I managed to walk every day but Saturday when the wind was blowing and it was snowing. The snow didn’t last long but I was a little lazy and talked myself into staying in. 

Sister Barker and I enjoyed a rainy morning walk

Sisters Barker and Crump

The ducks and geese are more prevalent now. I think we should be seeing babies in a month or so.

Saturday morning snow

I didn’t get many pictures this week to share but it has been a good week. Every day/week is good when I get to be with the missionaries. I have talked and texted with my family at home too so all in all, it has been a truly blessed time for me.

I pray that your coming week will be full of love and hope.

I love my Savior.

I love you my family and friends.