– Hope –

– from the bottom of the valleys and from the top of the mountains –

It was wonderful spending time with our senior missionaries at a two-day conference in Zakopane this past week. As a break from our meetings we spent an afternoon going to the tops of the Tatra Mountains. Truly, up here are some of the most beautiful sights to behold in Poland. There is something almost magical about mountains. Besides beauty, they provide serenity, vision, hope, a feeling of closeness to God. While there, the Tatra Mountains were covered in clouds the first day, but on the day of departure the sun broke through, revealing ‘Piękna Polska’-splendor. Mountains, with the bright skies above, and valleys with shadows below, give time to reflect, to ponder, to appreciate, and with all the beauty around, everything seems to say: Surely there is a God! There is a scripture which explains this ‘mountain mood’ well: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” (James 1:17)

High above Zakopane, with wonderful views of mountains and valleys below, one surely feels on top of the world. On another previous visit, the wind blew and the clouds billowed, and all around as far as the eye could see were stormy clouds casting gloomy shadows on the valleys below. This, too, was a breathtaking sight. No one on earth could create such scenes. Nothing compares to the intensity and exhilaration felt when we are actually on top of a mountain.

We will experience mountain-top highs in life—and we will walk through some deep valleys. The same is true for our missions. We cannot always experience life on top of the world, but the mountain top moments Heavenly Father grants us—spiritually and through the splendor of his world—will give us reminders of His love when we walk the inevitable valleys that are part of the human journey. When we can we should take time to remember some of those special moments God has given to us in our lives, both moments of light and moments of shadows, and be ready to face anything with hope, optimism, and confidence! We should thank our Heavenly Father for the moments in our lives and during our mission that bring joy—and thank him for the great memories which helped us get through those moments that caused us pain. We can lean on Him when we are on top of the world and when walking through the valleys.

We wish you another wonderful week, hopefully with great success. We love you!

President & Sister Engbjerg.