In Ether Chapter 12 it says: Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God.
I really like the idea of hope as an anchor, I think the imagery is very powerful. I haven't been in real boats... just canoes and powerboats, so I may have some of the details wrong... you'll just have to forgive me.
First of all, when you are anchored, you will still have all of the ups and downs of life. An anchored ship still rises and falls with the tide, and with each wave. In a bad storm it can still take a beating. In our lives, hope alone isn't enough to protect us from troubles, pain or suffering. Nor will it keep us from spiritual wandering, but it can keep us close to our beliefs, and when we reach the "end of our chain" it will pull us back towards the place we found safety.
While the anchor does keep the ship tethered to the same point, the ship itself can actually move around that tether. I would assume that during low tide, the ship can wander farther than usual due to the extra slack in the chain/rope to which the anchor is connected. In the darkest times of our lives, when we reach our lowest points, we may find ourselves far from where we started, but the hope that we have can draw us back and as we draw on that hope, we can bring ourselves back to safety.
Anchors work best in a safe harbor. Dropping an anchor in the deep ocean in the middle of a storm will do little if any good. The anchor has a pre-determined depth (the length of the chain) where it will work. If you are deeper than the anchor can reach, it cannot find a foundation where it can secure you. If we only try to hope... to exercise our hope when we are already in trouble, the hope may not be enough to save us. There is a saying that there is no such thing as a Athiest in a foxhole, however if you wait till you are in a foxhole to hope that there is a God, it would be difficult for that hope to motivate your life, nor would it offer as much comfort as someone who had tried and experienced the stability and strength that comes from living a christian life.
An anchor isn't a mooring, it is not impossible for the ship to move. It is more difficult, but the ship could feasibly drag the anchor across the ocean floor. Hope isn't enough to guarantee that we will never stray too far. If we have that hope for a better world, but we let whatever winds prevail drive us... we might end up so far from that better world that we can no longer see it.
