Believe. Hope. Endure.

This year the Youth Theme has been the 13th Article of Faith:

"We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we  ^hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." 

 I think this has been so relevant to me this year. I've had so much time to think about who I am, what I want and where I'm headed. I feel like I'm so much more confident in that than I was last year. I have far more hope for my future than I ever have because I believe I have a Saviour who loves me and He will help me endure any thing that I have to go through. 

I didn't go into this year thinking it would be a tough one and I have been my own worst enemy in making it so! Most of my problems have been of my own creation. Yet, I've grown up a lot this year and have made huge steps forward. One thing I've really learned how to do is to let things go. I used to let resentment build up if someone offended me but I have realised this year how pointless that is. 

We live in a world of people and we must believe in them as we believe in ourselves; we must hope for happiness for all even if it means sometimes enduring the mistakes that people make that affect us negatively. Our lives would be less rich if it wasn't for the people in our lives- even the ones that make things difficult sometimes. I know that I am my own biggest stumbling block and I feel the need to be kinder to other people as I realise that they are the author of their own problems too! The main thing is- we're all looking for a solution. It's amazing the things that would be solved by merely taking a few minutes out to talk to someone privately and discuss with them any issues we may have. Often we may be surprised to find that the people we perceive as being our enemies do not perceive us as such. 

Endurance requires us all to stand together, run a little faster, reach a little further and love a little more. It is my belief and hope that this can and will be achieved. One person can change the world so much. It's a thought that has always inspired me... the idea that we never know how far-reaching our ripples will be. The main thing is that we take every opportunity to make those ripples positive and that we ensure that our grievances and annoyances don't fall into the pool with quite such a big splash! I know I can do better in this and I'm going to. I'm pleased for the chances I've had thus far in life to be an influence for good- though they may not be as numerous as the mistakes I've made! I'm grateful I can grow and learn and be better. 

I'm grateful we all can. 

I'm grateful for an endless amount of fresh starts for all of us. 

believe . hope . endure