How can I keep from singing your name?

Psalm 106:1 "Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever."

I am reading through the book of Psalms because lately I've found that I need some encouragement.  
Today started out as any regular day here in Kiev, Ukraine, but several things happened that were interesting.

I spent the morning reading scripture and preparing for my English club on Thursday.  My fiancee Oles, asked me to meet him for lunch, so I managed to find my way by the metro (the long way but the easiest way) to meet him near his office.   

Evidence of God's grace today #1:
When I got there, we sat on a bench in a park and talked for about 20 minutes before he had to go back, and we thanked God for the wisdom that He gave Oles in deciding to start this job.  Just last night Oles had to decide between jobs at two companies, and each had their own risk associated with them, and he felt so broken and in need of wisdom from God.  When e woke up this morning, prayed and read scripture he flipped a coin three times, and got the same answer three times.  So, he went with the answer god gave him and chose to stay at the company he's with now. 
In case you're wondering, in Ukraine, companies can easily cheat their employees and pay them less than they deserve, so we are praying that this company will be honest and we trust God that He will protect Oles from harm.  

Evidence of God's grace today #2:
On my way back home I got on the public transportation bus, which is about $0.20 and the cheapest way to get around.  
Here's a picture of the bus:

About half way on my trip some guy tapped me on the shoulder and asked me something in Russian.  He signaled to me to give him something, but I was listening to worship music and didn't understand him anyways.  Then he showed me a badge, and I was a little surprised.  I thought, "maybe he's one of those traffic cops, except he checks to make sure people have paid for their bus ticket."  Anyways, I instinctively pulled out my ticket, which I had paid for and made the "stamp" on to prove I had paid for this trip on the bus.  He looked at my ticket for about 5 seconds and made a small tear at the top and then gave it back to me and moved on to the next person on the bus.  I was so relieved and confused about what was happening, and all I could think about was "Thank you Lord that I didn't have any trouble from this guy!"  The rest of that bus ride was uneventful, thank the Lord.  

Here's what the public transportation tickets look like here:

Evidence of God's grace today #3:
So, after that had happened, I was in an excellent mood.  I was beaming with happiness and thankfulness to God.  On my way home, I decided to stop at the store and pick up some milk. Upon entering the store I forgot that I had bought a water bottle earlier at lunch, and here in Ukraine you have to put any previously bought products in a locker.  It seems to me that they believe everybody will steal food or products if they have the opportunity.

So, I got in line to check out, and I've never had any problems until today with a cashier.  After she rung up my products she pointed to my shoulder bag and asked me something.  I didn't understand her, so I just said "Niet" which is the phonetic way to say "no", in Russian.  She didn't understand why I was saying "no" to her, and she had this very serious look on her face.  
THEN, I realized she was pointing to my water bottle, which had about an inch sticking out of the top of my bag.  I thought "Oh my gosh, she probably thinks I am stealing this from their store."
So anyways, I told her I don't understand, and she realized I didn't speak Russian and called over a manager.  Well, he didn't speak English either, so they had me wait at the register for about 5 minutes while they tried to get someone who spoke English.  
In my broken Russian/English (I call it "Ranglish") I tried to tell them I bought it in the metro earlier.  

Eventually they said I could go, and the cashier had a good laugh at the situation and probably smiled for the first time today.  (No body smiles here, everyone is so sad looking all the time because they probably don't have God in their lives).

So after that, I praised the Lord, that He AGAIN protected me from a potentially bad situation.  On the way back home I listened to this song by Chris Tomlin "How can I keep from singing your name?"  I was so happy and so joyful, I just couldn't stop smiling and praising God.

Here's the lyrics:

There is an endless song
Echoes in my soul
I hear the music ring

And though the storms may come
I am holding on
To the rock I cling

How can I keep from singing Your praise
How can I ever say enough
How amazing is Your love
How can I keep from shouting Your name
I know I am loved by the King
And it makes my heart want to sing

I will lift my eyes
In the darkest night
For I know my Savior lives

And I will walk with You
Knowing You'll see me through
And sing the songs You give

I can sing in the troubled times
Sing when I win
I can sing when I lose my step
And fall down again
I can sing 'cause You pick me up
Sing 'cause You're there
I can sing 'cause You hear me, Lord
When I call to You in prayer
I can sing with my last breath
Sing for I know
That I'll sing with the angels
And the saints around the throne

...

The words "I know I am loved by the King, And it makes my heart want to sing" just kept ringing in my ears and resonating in my heart.  

Everyday I feel pressures from this culture, these people, these languages (Russian and Ukrainian) and ministry responsibilities.  But God constantly lifts me out of despair.  He even prevents me from really getting to the point of despair!  God is so amazing, and because I am loved by the King, my heart is singing all the time of his awesomeness!

It's days like this that I realize how much God wants me to be here, and how much He is taking care of me here in this strange place!

I'll update more soon about what's happening in ministry! :)