Sunshine in the Rain

I love when it rains when the sun is shining. I've really been thinking about how that applies to life and have discovered that if I really look hard, even when my life is not going as I thought it should be, there is sunshine.

For the past two summers, I have had the amazing opportunity to spend some time in Romania on a mission trip. I'm not sure I can put into words how much I love the youth that I was able to meet and hang out with. This summer, I wasn't able to go (for reasons that were beyond my control - or I would have been there in a heartbeat). I missed being there so much. I missed seeing my kids and talking with them - building into their lives and showing them that God's love for them is so much bigger than my love for them could ever be. I missed being at the camp and worshipping a God who brings us together despite language and culture. I missed the church services where I could hear this cloud of prayer reaching to Heaven. I think I fell into a bit of a depression after finding out I wouldn't be able to go. The disappointment was huge - I felt as though I was in the "depths of despair" (to quote Anne Shirley from Green Gables!).

But, God gave me a balm for that disappointment. I was a conversationalist with some students from Hungary this summer - and I have grown to love them so much. I still miss my Romanian kids, but meeting the Hungarian students and getting to know them was a great blessing. Oliver, Daniel, Eszter and Laszlo have blessed me so much. I have learned a lot from them - probably more than they learned from me.

I'm praying and hoping that I will be able to go to Romania next summer. The ache to see Sammy, Damaris, Natania, Ane, Dora, Tabyta, Eunice, Emma, Mirella and Alice - to only name a few, is still so deep. The most amazing thing now though, is that maybe I can visit Hungary at the same time. I think God put these students in my life for a reason and I don't think I have discovered that reason yet.

I've discovered that sometimes we go through a season of disappointment, but at the end of it, God had a purpose. Perhaps this summer wasn't meant to be spent in Romania, but more to give me a yearning for God's purpose and to discover that the burden for the youth I met is still strong. If I had been in Romania, I would have missed out on meeting these amazing students from Hungary. A blessing in the midst of disappointment. Thank you, Jesus, for giving me eyes to see it.