I often read from great little book I have, Joyfully Living the Gospel Day by Day. Each day there is a gospel reading, a reflection and a prayer. The entry for April 16th is very good and I thought I should share it with you.

Gospel: A glad heart makes a cheerful face, but by grief of mind the spirit is cast down. -Proverbs 15:13

Reflection: A grain of sand finds its way inside the shell of an oyster. The intruder, though microscopic, is a source of irritation and pain to the soft body of the oyster. Unable to rid itself of the unwelcome pebble, the oyster seeks to reduce the irritation by coating it with layers of soft, iridescent mother-of-pearl material from its own shell. Over time, the oyster transforms a painful irritation into a beautiful pearl of great value.

Prayer: Dear Lord, please help me to make spiritual pearls of joy out of grains of the sorrow in my life.

When things are not going right, do your best to see the bright side of the situation and how you can change the situation so that it turns into something better than you ever expected. Many of the wonderful discoveries that have been made around the world,were made by mistake, through failed experiments, or unexpected results.

So go make pearls out of your challenges.