Giveaway

Have you left your hopeful summer comment to be eligible for a Cold Stone giveaway? Leave a comment on the post from the 27th. The comments are worth reading... so hopeful and thoughtful!

Faith to make me whole.

The context the gospel gives me helps my life to make sense.

We've been given the imperative to seek goodness and beauty. I love that about Mormonism.

Summer Hope

How is your summer going?

Mine has been lovely. Lots of fireworks, picnics, old friends and, for the first time, lots of camping: Girls Camp, Scout Camp, Cub Scout day camp. We are not big campers in our family (we're indoors-y) but I'm discovering/remembering that camping is an important part of the summer experience for most Mormons. 2010 is the summer that I learned to appreciate the value of camping.

I am beginning to wear out. Swimming at the pool has lost its charm. The green plants on the mountains are fading to parched brown. Our ambitious summer reading plans have turned into a chore. But the end is in sight.

To help get us all through the last, hot month of summer, Hopefully Mormon is sponsoring a pleasant giveaway: a $40 gift certificate to Cold Stone, to cool you off and lift your spirits. To enter, leave a comment on this post sharing what it is about summer that makes you feel hopeful (I need help thinking positive to get through the next few weeks). Please enter just once per person. We'll leave the giveaway open through the end of next week, Friday, August 6th, because we all know that internet time gets iffy during the road trips and sunburns that fill summer days.

In summary: $40 Cold Stone giveaway, comment here, enter until Friday, August 6th, at midnight MST.

What do I find hopeful about summer? Homegrown tomatoes, directly from the plant, eaten warm like an apple. If I could give that away, I would.

This giveaway is now closed! Thanks so much for participating.

Brother Brigham dreamed BIG. I dig that.

I am grateful for the pioneers. I live amid evidence of their testimony, and they still strengthen me daily.

Priesthood power... Priesthood blessings.

And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

When I am lost...I can find a route back home.

D&C 27:2

When my cup is drained and the world has left me tattered and torn, feeling of little worth, I read the wrods of my Father in Heaven, I remember the promises I made to Him, and He to me, and I sit in church and know and feel that all that matters is that He loves me.....and my cup is filled!

Alma 32:27

My testimony is of song. It brings an amazing spirit about it when listening to the right kind. Music strengthens my testimony best. Music helps me appreciate life more and it helps me see the beauty. 

Be Still My Soul is my favorite hymn. To me, it talks about all the troubles of this world and saying to leave to thy God so you can be still in your heart and He will take care of you and love you. Be Still My Soul makes me think of the atonement. I have a more deep appreciation for the atonement now knowing my Lord died for me because He loves me.

I know He is there every step of the way.

Nevertheless they stand fast in that liberty

wherewith God has made them free.

Alma 58:40

Happy Fourth of July!

I believe in Christ.

Everybody comes from a different place with a lot of different trials. You never know what people are going through and it makes the biggest difference to reach out to someone. I know that when I have had really hard times, the smallest things make the biggest difference, and that it is never too late to come back or ask for help.

D&C 123:13-17

No one can stop the light or the love of our Christ. No one can change our love or light of Christ. No one can break us or stop us from staying strong and courageous!

You don't know everything, but you know enough.
Come what may and love it.

Happy Father's Day

My dad and his testimony give me hope.

Dad. Thanks for teaching me to tie my tie. And all the other ways you taught me how to be a man.

When the men in our ward rallied to install a diaper changing station in the Men's Restroom, I knew I was in the right ward.

Happy Father's Day (June 20th)!

Be sure to click through for one of the best Father's Day talks ever: it's Holland, so you know you'll love it. My husband still gets a bit choked up whenever we talk about it.

"If the restoration is not yet complete, then other traditions have much to teach us. Not by way of confirming, corroborating, or verifying the truths we already have but by way of actually adding to the body of revealed doctrine we call precious and true."  -Terryl Givens

Peace of mind.

Continuing revelation gives me hope.

(June 8, 1978, the First Presidency announces President Kimball's revelation that all worthy men can hold the priesthood.)

made in His image

Milestone

We reached 100 followers today!  (Non-alcoholic) drinks all around!  Thank you all for visiting our site every day.  And thank you, thank you, thank you to all of you who have submitted Reasons for Hope.  If you've been thinking about sharing a little visual part of your testimony with us, now's the time!  Think of it as a 100-followers-day gift for us.

Love...Annie

The promise of an eternity with her is what keeps me going!

Heavenly Father sent me to a world full of green-topped trees,

flowers in sprintime,

back yards, gardens, mountains and streams,

and people to learn about it all with.

Teaching them was the only way the gospel made sense to me.

I find the doctrine of resurrection

supernatural and hopeful.

From Primary programs to youth conferences to ward choir performances to parenting...the Savior asks us to give our very best and He will make up the difference. Miracles haven't ceased. They are all around us every day...because of the Atonement.

There aren't very many women in the scriptures, but a lot of the ones we do get to read about struggle with infertility.  This helps me feel Heavenly Father's love even when my arms feel empty.

I came across this lovely quote on dandee's blog. A blog I find both hopeful and Mormon. She used it for a Relief Society "Reverencing Women" event, but clearly it is perfect for the new Young Women's value Virtue. I like the careful font work. And red is my favorite color.

Click over to her blog for a free PDF download!