First Baptist Church of Herndon

Patience Now!

Linda Soller | Jan 28, 2013

It’s a regular January day and I am on my way to work. I find myself behind a gray minivan going 30 in a 35 mile an hour zone. We’ve both just come through a four way stop and I figure the driver will come up to the speed limit soon, but Nooooo! All the way down the road, about five miles of it, the driver continues below the speed limit. I feel myself getting antsy. The cars behind me start to stack up. We approach the road where I turn and sure enough the van turns too - sad face. Wait, it continues to go 30 miles an hour, but now the speed limit is only 25 miles per hour. I think, maybe the van only goes at 30 miles an hour no matter what. But at the next intersection it stops in between lanes waiting to go straight not leaving room for those of us to move up and proceed to turn right. This driver is oblivious to the rest of us and I prayed, “Dear Lord give me patience, NOW.” Some days are just like that.

In our modern world with so much available so fast it’s easy to become impatient. The pace of life promotes impatience. They would have us believe that everyone wants the faster phone, speedy internet connection, immediate gratification, and the fastest food. You must admit there’s a bit of brain washing going on here. There was a time when we survived by hand written communication, and now and then a mystical thing called a typewriter was found sitting in an office. I know this because I seem to be the only person in my office who can change the ribbon. Modern man is good at working himself in to frenzy. Children are anxious to be grown-ups and then when they are they often act out their lost childhood. That’s a topic for another day.

Patience is not an easy skill to master. Even generally patient people can fall off the wagon and lose it from time to time. But what better time is there to start working on our patience than today? After all if we wait to start we’ll simply open ourselves to more opportunities to suffer the anxiety that impatience brings. The Bible is full of stories that teach us to be patient. Forty years wandering in the wilderness is nothing if not a lesson in patience. Centuries of waiting for the Messiah required patience.

That January morning I waited, I didn’t beep, I didn’t enter the ditch to try and make my right hand turn. When I finally turned on to the next road, no longer behind the irritating minivan, I had to smile. God had answered my prayer. Later that day he had to help me again, but I’m trying. Remember patience is a virtue!

Have a great week :o) Linda