So it’s really easy to get frustrated with students. Especially when you have to ask them not to do the same things about 20 times a day. And I’ll admit sometimes I snap.

In the last few days I’ve really been challenged about it though. What right do I have to be annoyed at people at all when I most certainly don’t do what God tells me to all the time and some times just outright ignore Him. And when I’m getting annoyed at someone that’s me starting to rely on myself and not God, so something needs to change.

So if you’re finding it all too easy to get frustrated and annoyed at people, like me, take some very easy steps and you’ll find yourself in a much better place.

Step 1: Pray for them – Don’t just pray “God stop them annoying me” though, and even if it’s tempting the good old “smite them down oh mighty smiter” isn’t really going to achieve anything. Pray for their home situations, their work and their lives in general and keep it to yourself.

Step 2: Pray for yourself – It’s easy to say that because it’s them annoying you it’s clearly their problem that needs fixed but it’s not, it’s your problem too. Pray that you’ll be able to show them the same love and patience that God has shown you.

This will hopefully change both your opinion of them and their opinion of you. I can honestly say it’s worked for me so hopefully it can work for you too because after all, it’s always better to rely on God in times like this.

UPDATE FROM CHRIS:

And prayer works…?!  This bunch of students were the very essence of helpfulness today, assisting in delivering 500 flyers for Saturday’s Book Club to all the TQ apartments!

I suppose I should start by introducing myself, my name is Timmy and I am currently working as an intern in The Dock. I started volunteering here way back in March when the café opened. I heard about it through my mum who is one of the chaplains in the Titanic Quarter along with Chris. When she said they were going to be opening the café I said I could help out some time no problem as I had plenty of time off Uni during the week.

After graduating though I started the very exciting process of looking for a job all the while thought that there was something else that didn’t involve electronics or software engineering, which I just finished 5 years of studying for a masters in. Sure enough Chris asked if I would consider becoming an intern in the dock, a Tegan 2.0 if you will, and I accepted on the spot!

I have now been here since August and am loving it, even the overwhelming moments where it seems every student for the Belfast Met, which is just across the road, decides to come all at the same time. But the students are great, I’m having a great time getting to know them and really didn’t expect that to be something I would be doing as we hadn’t really had any students before September!

Today we had a stall in the Christmas Fair in the Met which was being run by two lovely CFC interns Scott and Allie who help us out on a Wednesday.

They were trying to tell all the students about us and try to explain that we’re not a free café, we’re an honesty box café and the only one in Belfast, possibly the world, to boot. But we do love all the students and we would be a pretty quiet and boring place without them!

-Timmy