Patience

Patience with others is love.  Patience with self is hope.  Patience with God is faith. ~ Adel Bestavros

Patience doesn't always come easy.  Often times, we have to really dig deep to find some.  Maybe you have a coworker that gets on your nerves.  Or perhaps you have a child that is convinced they are smarter than you.  Maybe you are waiting to hear good news.  Or perhaps you feel bad news finds you too often.  Whatever tests your patience, you get to choose how you react. 

It is so easy to react negatively to a situation.  We blurt out hateful words in anger and frustration.  Our feelings, literally explode out of us.  But if we took a moment to pause, our word choice would be quite different.  (Proverbs  14:29 Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly.)   By pausing and finding even a sliver of patience, we are showing wisdom and understanding.  We make it clear, that despite our anger, we care enough to speak respectfully.  When we neglect to pause, we find ourselves regretting our words and actions.

Unfortunately, we often find ourselves extending more patience to friends and acquaintances.  Our family, on the other hand, does not always get the same courtesy.  I believe that it is because we feel more comfortable around them and we drop our walls.  But these are the people we hold most dear to us.  They are the ones we would lay our life down for.  I don't know about you, but I definitely need to practice pausing with my family.  Sometimes my kids just push the right button and I get angry quickly.  But if I want to teach them the virtue of patience, I need to model it daily in our home. (Romans 15:5  May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had).

Do struggle with being patient?  What tricks do you have to calm down before exploding?

Grab a latte, put up your feet, and join the discussion!