June 3rd, 2013

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Patience

Monday, June 3rd, 2013

I am on vacation this week.  See here.  My guest today is my “little sis.”  Well, actually I don’t have a sister…not a blood one anyway.  But if I was to have one, this young lady would be more than welcome to join my family.  Zee is a native of Ukraine and blogs here. I look forward to the day we will meet-here or in the air.  Here’s Zee.

A dear friend of mine once told me, “Never pray for patience.”

I looked up at him in surprise. “Why not?”

“Because it can only be learned by getting through trials.”

This conversation took place over seven years ago but since then I have learned the words of my friend were indeed wise.

Patience is one of the toughest virtues of all. And I am not simply talking about putting up with something, but waiting upon the right time to act. Waiting for an answer. Waiting for a sign of some sort. Waiting for something to happen.

Sometimes I wonder if hearing a “No” in response to a prayer is better than “Maybe.” Maybe can imply that a “Yes” is coming. At the same time, it might still bring a “No.” This uncertainty kills me. Yet, God is teaching me that all things come in their time. (Thankfully, He is a patient teacher who doesn’t get bothered with my constant nagging and asking “Are we there yet?” like the Donkey from Shrek.)

I can’t get a dialogue out of my head I have recently read in a book “Afloat” by Erin Healy.

“At least now you know you’re doing what you must do.”

“Is it enough?”

“Is it enough? That’s a question of a man who thinks waiting is the weaker activity. But patience requires the strength of Hercules.”

We are so used to acting. We want to do something, change things, move forward. It is what is expected from us by the society.

Yet sometimes we are called to “Be still and know that [God] is God.” (Psalm 46:10)

I live in a city populated by five million people. It is not as big as Moscow, Russia or New York, but it is big nonetheless. The hustle and bustle go on 24/7. Well, on Sunday mornings, as I walk to Church, the city is quiet because the majority is recovering after Friday night and Saturday. But still – cars are whizzing by on a highway in front of my apartment building, I can hear the elevator working in the middle of the night as people get back home from work or elsewhere. Trolleybusses are always full as well as all the other means of public transportation. It’s a constant GO GO GO. It is what is expected.

So when I read “Be still”… I look up and ask God, “But… there is so much to do!”

Yet it is in quietness I can hear Him and learn from Him. It is in stillness that I can glimpse His power instead of my weakness. It is counterintuitive, but, incredibly, it works.

Attention, all! See the marvels of God! He plants flowers and trees all over the earth, bans war from pole to pole, breaks all the weapons across his knee.

“Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me, your High God, above politics, above everything.”

Jacob-wrestling God fights for us, God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.

Psalm 46:8-11, MSG

Feel free to share your thoughts with Zee and the other readers.

As an aside: today (June 3rd) is my daughter Tami’s birthday.  Happy Birthday oldest daughter.  🙂