First Night: Austin

I've had something really great taught to me pretty powerfully in the last 36 hours. It's great that God can make us feel so good. Prayer becomes easy, emotional and powerful. It's a great feeling. These are times of consolation.

But there's also the flip side, those times of desolation, where God is absent, seemingly uncaring, maybe I wonder if He even exists. But I've been reading, and C.S. Lewis was always convinced that it was in these times that our genuine prayer is most impressive and pleasing to God. If I can pray when I dont feel God at all. If I can genuinely try to talk to him in my worst moments when its the last thing I want to do, I am no longer living out my religion selfishly. I found today that when I do this, even in those little moments of desolation, it can turn my whole day around. 

Also, we got the chance to go to confession tonight. Talking to the priest before I had told him hardly a thing, his recommendation for me was to read a certain book. It happened to be that same CS Lewis book. Well that blew my mind. I can only blow off so many things as coincidence, eventually, I have to accept that there is a very carefully made plan for all of us, even down to details as small as what books we read. 

Also thanks to Toan, whose dedication to the Blessed Sacrament was the reason I went to this awesome church below and met that priest in the first place.

Thanks be to God. -Austin