Earlier this week, my family and I were walking on the grounds of a chapel in St. Augustine, FL.  While strolling through this beautifully manicured piece of our nation’s history, I came across a statue of St. Francis of Assisi, who is highly revered in the Catholic church.  Next to the statue was a prayer that is often associated with St.Francis.  As I read the prayer, my heart was immediately grabbed by how closely this prayer parallels the heartfelt service offered by Inheritance of Hope volunteers.

All of the families who attend the Legacy Retreats do so in the midst of a very tumultuous and challenging time.  This prayer poignantly represents what the staff and volunteers of IOH feel toward the families they are blessed to serve for a few meaningful days.

Prayer of St. Francis

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 seek to be consoled, as to console;

To be understood, as to understand;

To be loved, as to love;

For it is in the giving that we receive; it is in the pardoning that we are pardoned;

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

I pray that all of the families we serve on the Legacy Retreats are able to experience the deep desire of all the staff and volunteers:  to love others as Christ loved us.