That which will form my days:

For those who have been concerned over my lack of hope (as I was - be assured), and also do not check my facebook page on a regular basis, I would like to share a Wall-to-Wall with a friend that helped.

It began on October 16, with me posting my status as: "Chelsea is wondering: What is hope and why should I use my energy on "having" it?"

The next day, Kristina Wilcox commented: "Tough day?"

Sayy: "Not really. I just realized that Christ lists three things, "Faith, Hope, and Charity." Faith and Charity are really big things. But what is hope? Is it just like wishing real hard? I don't understand it. And yet I know it has to be something worthwhile or Christ would not have mentioned it, and his diciples would not have recorded it. Search for knowledge, ya know?"

KW: "Ah, I see. Pres. Monson talked a lot about faith, hope and charity in Conference and how they are all closely related... I haven't listened to the talk since... but I will definitely be studying that one myself to gain more insight.

If I might put my two-cents in, (in my limited experience and youth) I think that hope has more to do with the thought(heart) process, faith has more to do with action, and charity is a type of action (the ultimate & desired reaction) that results of hope & faith....all very connected to each other...they each strengthen the other.

If I don't have hope, I rarely act in faith. If I by chance I step out in faith before I have obtained the hope, the hope is not far behind as I look forward to the promised fruits of my actions.

Yes? No? Thoughts?"

Sayy: "Believe it or not, that makes total sense. Thank you for sharing that with me.

It takes what I thought hope was ( a weak and selfish sort of wish) and instead makes it a responsible choice. I like responsibility. I like not having my relationship with Christ be all mystical and wish-like.

So Hope is the state of mind we live in that supports faith. Like living with gratitude or a positive attitude. It is optimism with knowledge rather than optimism in ignorance or pessimissm.

Hope creates the desire to learn more, to be more, to gain more through faith and action. This is openeing my mind.What was the talk, do you remember? I suppose I could just look it up on LDS.org.

Seriously, Kristina, thank you for your help and insight. It has been very helpfull. And hopeful."

KW: "Every time I read your post I get chills.... Wow! Who knew the Lord would answer my prayers through my new-found friend and Facebook!"

Sayy: "I'm confused. I thought YOU were helping ME. Is there something else going on here? ;)"

KW: "Definitely!!!"

So there it is. I now understand hope as "an attitude of gratitude", basically living the law of attraction. Christ taught the law of attraction! To have hope is to shape everyday with gratitude and thankfulness, thereby bringing more to be grateful and thankful for!

Now it doesn't feel meaningless and pointless when I express hope. Now it is an active choice. Every day I can choose to live forward or backward: with hope or shrouded in dispair. Hope will lead me on. Hope will shape my future. It is a great gift, a great tool and now I know how to use it.

Thanks, KW. Those of us who know you know you and your husband are going through a tough and hectic time. I thank you and him for working so hard for a worthy purpose. Take courage and live with hope! Thanks for taking the time to teach me what it means!