I Wanted a Clever Title but I Couldn't Come Up with One

There are things that you can make your day and there are things that can break a day. Then there are things that you hope will make your day, whether that be because they happen, don't happen, or because they are good news. But the point of all this is to say that things fail us, people fail us, we fail ourselves, but you want to know a secret, there is a thing/being that doesn't fail us. He brings our hearts back to the joy that they once had, He doesn't fail us. Let me give you a bit of an anecdote.

Today I was feeling like crap. We took a test on Wednesday over the Romanian language and to be quite frank it kicked my butt. I didn't feel overly good after taking it, and now I guess I'm not worried about the results but I am grateful that we are done learning language in a formal setting. Don't get me wrong I love the language but I have to learn on my own time (I think) so this formal learning of the language is pretty rough. But the toughest part is when it follows me home. My brain was fried upon arriving home but I still had to learn more of it upon arriving home (one of the joys of living with a Romanian family) so I found a lot of solace in going to sleep. But the morning came and guess what, I was still with my Romanian family, so guess what again, there was still more Romanian to learn. Needless to say I wanted none of it, my brain was still recuperating. So after breakfast I retreated to my room to gain my wits. I entered my room thinking that if I could speak my problems aloud that would help, so I did, I essentially spoke to myself and it helped but my frustration remained. “So,” I thought, “if speaking to myself helped a little maybe telling someone else will resolve my problem.” So it was off to the IMPACT building to express my feelings to my American friends who were in similar situations. Plus there is internet there so I could check if my Twins won which would definitely brighten my day if they had. When I got to the IMPACT building I told my story to first Zach and Marit, then later to Kelly, but no matter how many times I complained about my situation I didn't feel any better. And to add to things the Twins had lost.

So, so far my day had been pretty down in the dumps. Then there came the debrief (after a wonderful meal, which usually makes my entire day but really didn't, no offense guys). We had decided to talk about “The Prayer of Saint Francis” and, for those of you who don't know this prayer, it is practically impossible to pray this without being at peace. And that is exactly what happened to me. As I spoke the words of love that this saint had written down so many years ago my worries and frustrations seemed to fall away. Who would have thought that speaking to the creator of the universe, the creator of you and me, the all-knowing entity beyond any one of us, would bring me peace and harmony? That speaking to him/her would restore my joy?

I had failed myself in finding peace. Zach, Marit, and Kelly failed to give me complete relief from my frustration. The Twins lost. All these things failed me, but God stayed there the whole time waiting patiently for me to lay it before him, and when I did I finally felt the freedom I had been looking for. So if ever you feel trapped, let down, frustrated, or anything of the like speak to God about it. Here's a good start:

Lord make me an instrument of thy peace;

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

Where there is injury, pardon;

Where there is doubt, faith;

Where there is despair, hope;

Where there is darkness, light;

And where there is sadness, joy.

Oh divine master, grant that I may not so much seek

To be consoled as to console;

To be understood as to understand;

To be loved as to love with all my heart.

For it is in giving that we receive,

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.