Here I was running late for work, caught behind a house in the road.
Yes, a house.
I think if I were to give a headline to my week it might be:
Frantic woman, caught behind slow moving house, continues to wait for something to happen, with no end in sight.
And it's only Tuesday.
Waiting. It seems like that is all I've been doing lately and I can't catch a break. I'm waiting for my better half to find another job. Waiting for us to somehow fit into this strange new place. Waiting for my projects to work. Waiting to gain some credibility in a new environment. Waiting to not be mistaken as a student. Waiting to figure out what we are really supposed to be doing here.
Why do I constantly have to keep learning about this so called valuable virtue called patience? Isn't that just a nice way of saying, "Sit back, it's going to take a while. Hope you can stand the wait."
Usually I can't. Probably because I'm a product of the 21st century. Instant gratification with a side of impatience.
Dave Ramsey likes to say "Anticipation increases happiness." That's like my grandma saying "Time heals everything." You know it's true but in the moment you don't really want to hear it.
hat is so great about waiting?
In the quiet of this morning I caught myself taking a step back and really thinking about this question. I thought about all the positive and absolutely wonderful things in my life that I have waited on, that were so worth it. I've waited on acceptance letters that brought unbelievable opportunities and experiences. I waited on my better half to ask me on a date. (7 years later, I'm really glad I waited on that one). I've worked hard (blood, sweat, and tears) and waited on a degree that finally came. I waited on initial relationships to grow and develop, resulting in deep, long-lasting friendships. I have waited on planes to arrive to hug the neck of a dear friend. I waited on my baby brother to come home from the hospital. I waited on happiness to fill the hole brought on by unavoidable grief.
Looking back in my rearview mirror all of those things were well worth the sleepless nights wondering if it was every going to happen. Hindsight is 20/20 right?
Maybe that's the approach I could afford to take this week. Changing my attitude of impatience to one of expectation. And who knows, our situation maybe well worth the wait.
Fighting impatience,
4 comments:
laughing... boy can I relate- but whatever you do DON'T PRAY FOR PATIENCE!! I don't remember the reference, but the verse is "tribulation worketh patience" ... He sends all sorts of things our way to teach us what we need most! :)
and btw- I wouldn't recommend that you ever pray He'll "give you the heart of a servant" either!!! (another story another day)
good luck lady- have a wonderful rest of the week!
Thanks. That's what I'm afraid of, praying for patience and the Lord granting LOTS of opportunities for me to practice :) No better time than the present, I guess.
Oh you made me lauuuugh! A house in the road. It reminds me of Arkansas. We had a 23 mile commute through the backwoods to get to work. We would often get stuck waiting for a cow to move out of the road or for a tractor to mozey on up the road to the next field up.
Patience and slowing down.... Good stuff!
Cheers,
Tanja
Thanks Tanja! So glad you enjoyed the post. Deep South living is interesting, but we are slowly getting used to it!
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