Patience, Little One

I have been pondering the meaning of patience for quite some time. With each day that passes, the word patience grows in meaning and in my understanding. Talking with my wise child, Meghan has also provided me with some amazing insights. The concept of patience involves so much more than I can even now comprehend. It is huge. It plays a major role in our lives and in our progression.

I was one of those girls who thought I would be married right out of high school. It took a few years past that

to land this treasure of a husband.The wait for this wonderful guy brought me the joys of this family of mine.

Credit for this lettering:
http://www.kdelap.com/
http://www.kdelap.com/blog/2014/3/19/airport-delay

I used to think that patience was all about waiting; in a line, for a blessing, to gain something, until temper passes... patience is so much more.  Waiting is hard. Our culture has taught us to hate waiting even more than our little human brains already did.  We want the driver ahead of us to hurry, for the internet page to open faster, for the person we just texted to respond. Simple, simple things. What about the bigger things? What about a waiting for a diagnosis, and then a prognosis? How about finding a companion when all of your friends are married and having kids? What about watching someone you love suffer and praying for the agony to stop? There are some whoppers we have to wait for.

I think that patience builds faith. I will say right now that I am not a fan of having my faith built through patience, but I am always grateful on the other end of the waiting that I could get something out of it. Part of my problem is that I BELIEVE IN MIRACLES. I have seen so many of them, from the smallest of them right on up to the cancer removing, tumor disappearing, breathing restored doozies. I know miracles happen every single day, and because of them, I kind of expect them. God does grand things with His own power and also through the use of His angels on earth and otherwise. So I look for His miracles often.

While I know that there are instant miracles, I am learning that there really are things we have to wait for. God has to line so many things up. He has to send messages to all the people involved in a miracle, and many of us don't listen as well as we should. There are so many things that humans can learn while waiting for something-anything to happen. That is where the learning part of patience comes in. Patience is waiting for something-but dealing with what comes in the meantime. It is not losing hope and still finding miracles in the every day things. Patience is doing your best no matter what the outcome will be. Patience is accepting that someone else is in charge, that sometimes people don't change, and that many times if they do change, it takes longer than we wish. Patience is making the most of your time, and the best of your situation. It is accepting change. It is enduring to the end. It is understanding that you may not get what you wish, and moving forward anyway. Patience takes a lifetime to learn and put into practice, and I'm not sure we can learn the whole lesson of it in mortality. Part of patience is acceptance that this is how things are, at least for now.  That's hard. Knowing things can be fixed or healed or worked out or solved, but then having to accept that maybe that isn't the plan this time...now that is patience. Then realizing you have to put in some effort too...it' all part of this grand thing we call life. 

I have a long way to go. I will always look for and ask for the miracle first. But I am trying to trust that good comes out of EVERY situation, and hope that in the midst of my learning patience I can find some joy in doing so.