Patience, That Word Again
Ξ September 29th, 2008 | → 2 Comments | ∇ Christian Living, Growing In The Lord |
Welcome back!
When I was a kid, I hated that word. It meant that I was not going to get what I wanted regardless of what it was. My parents were usually pretty busy folks so they really did not have time to stop and do things I selfishly wanted but I did not get that at the time. In fact, my father had a horrendous phrase he used when something I wanted to do did not fit into the time frame. He usually said “Let’s don’t and say we did”. Then he would tell me to be patient. I had no idea what the phrase meant but I hated it and the word “patience” since they always went together. Of course, now I realize that he was trying to do so many things in the short, short time he had at home that my requests probably seemed small to him. They were. I paid no attention to what they were doing. My patience was thin, to say the least. My father’s was better than mine.
Thinking again about my childhood, Christmas was way too far away most of the time. I had such a hard time waiting on it. No one would give me any hints on what I was getting. Being an only child (at the time), I had no competition for “the stuff” coming on that banner day! Having no concept of reality in those days, I started my Christmas lists in the summer time when the latest Sears and Penny’s catalogs came out. This gave my parents plenty of time to work out the amazing numbers of “stuff” I should get. Spoiled? Me? Nah.
A lack of patience for any reason takes us down a road we do not want to travel. We live in the “right now” time and generation. With the internet at our fingertips, there is very little that we can’t get right now. Actually, we are a fast food people with fast food thinking. And fast food thinking has been passed on to the next generation of young people who have little to no patience. They have little use for it. As a young adult, I really never heard of road rage but now, road rage is way too common. That happens when patience wears thin or is not there at all. The “I want it now!” generation does not even know what patience is.
(Jas 1:2-4) My brothers, count it all joy when you fall into different kinds of temptations, knowing that the trying of your faith works patience. But let patience have its perfect work, so that you may be perfect and entire, lacking nothing.
Are you kidding? God actually wants us to HAVE patience. Go figure. And He says we should count it a joy when we fall into temptations. I am usually trying so hard to get away from the temptations that I don’t have time to find the joy in it. But we must learn to have the patience to wait on the Father. Remember that He knows the end from the beginning. He knows what is going to happen. His will for our lives should be what we strive for. And with patience, we can have very happy lives.
However, if we do not learn this lesson on patience, God will continue to give that lesson until it’s learned. Unfortunately, that one is probably one of the hardest lessons to learn. A couple of centuries ago, people didn’t communicate except by one person taking a letter or a note from one place to the other. It took weeks, sometimes months to get to the destination. Even people living only a couple of miles apart might not receive word for days. Patience was pretty easy since there was nothing a person could do but wait. The lesson was very easily learned. Today, that is not the case. Our fast food thinking is causing lots of problems.
There is good news here! Patience has a reward. If you get into a temptation and exhibit the patience the Lord is trying to teach, faith grows. When faith grows, God works it out. You then lack nothing. Lack nothing. Sweet words to my ears. Is that the secret? It’s not really a secret but…yes. Out of patience, you receive joy, growing faith, resistance to temptations, lack for nothing. I would say that is a pretty good reward. I think I am going to work on my patience again. That word again. When we do work on it, we certainly will be happier.
