
Lord, make me an instrument of your 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;
O divine Master,
grant that I may not so much see to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
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.
– Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi
When the state of the world is overwhelming, the grief is too heavy to carry, and all else fails, I have a tendency to fall back on familiar favorites for comfort — like running, baking, and praying. And when days like today make it tough to piece together a prayer of my own, again, I fall back on familiar favorites and look to someone else for words to express what I can’t. So today, that someone is you, St. Francis – and I thank you. Please pray for us.
The above photo was a bit of Valentine aftermath found in the slushy muck of a run earlier this week. Which feels appropriate, somehow. Love can endure even the harshest of circumstances.