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HOW
LONG DOES A GIRL HAVE TO WAIT FOR PATIENCE?!?
©
2001 Debbie Porter
"Patience is the ability
to idle your motor when you feel like stripping your gears."
~ Barbara Johnson ~
* * *
"Deb, has Matt been home
yet?"
Steve's question came just
moments after my eyes had headed to the clock for the fifth time in as many
minutes. No, Matthew hadn't been home since we left him at the shops almost
four hours earlier and although I wasn't terribly concerned, it was getting a
bit late.
Matt had shown great
restraint after Church that morning and tried very hard not to start dragging
us out the door as soon as it was over. He took the car keys and went to wait
in the car until we were ready to go. Everything inside him wanted to get
started on his plans for the rest of the day and as far as he was concerned,
anything else was just a distraction.
Not even the offer of going
to the Football or rock climbing with the Youth group that afternoon could
dissuade him, although he was momentarily tempted. In the end, the lure of the
Video Shop was much too strong for a 13-year-old boy to resist. He'd been
looking forward to borrowing a new release video game all day and when he
weighed the options that still came out on top.
"Even if the game's not
back yet, it doesn't matter," he'd cheerfully informed us as the car
stopped near the Shopping Center. "I'll just play with the one they have
on display until it turns up. There's six copies due back today."
With a wave Matt had jumped
out of the car and headed over to the Video Shop to claim his
"prize". We watched as he almost skipped across the pedestrian
crossing in front of us, then bounced confidently across the car-park.
The afternoon passed fairly
quickly and I only realized how late it was when I noticed that I was
listening for the sound of Matt's feet running down the driveway. That was
when the clock watching began.
Steve's question spurred me
to action. Collecting the keys from the kitchen counter I headed to the garage
saying, "I think I'll just wander down and see where he is."
Moments later I was heading
across the busy Sunday afternoon shopping center car-park, fairly certain of
finding Matt where I expected. Sure enough, I hadn't even walked through the
Video Shop door when the very downcast face of my son appeared before my eyes.
As he made his way toward me it wasn't hard to tell that his plans had all
fallen in tatters around his feet.
"Hi babe!" I smiled
encouragement and threw an arm around his shoulders. "Do you want to come
and get some groceries with me?"
Matt nodded with a sigh and
allowed me to steer him out of the Video Shop toward the Supermarket.
The fact that he was
disheartened was more than obvious. For almost four hours Matthew had waited
in that shop in the hope that someone would return one of the games he was
hoping for. But no one had. Even worse, the display game had been disconnected
for the day so there'd been nothing to keep him amused during his long, lonely
vigil.
To be honest, I would never
have thought Matt had the ability to wait that patiently for anything.
Patience has never been one of his strong points. The difference this time was
that the goal and reward for his patience seemed worth enduring the boredom of
the wait.
Of all the fruit of the
Spirit, I believe that this fruit of patience is one of the hardest to
cultivate in our lives. We live in a world that demands instant gratification.
Everything needs to be done yesterday and taking time to smell the roses just
doesn't rate very high on our daily "to do" lists.
We need patience
in our lives, yet most of us aren't eager to
go through the things that will develop this fruit. In this fast paced, high
tech society, waiting for anything doesn't come easily.
Yet the only way to grow
patience in our lives is to experience those times when the answers don't come
quickly.
The use of the word
"patience" in the list of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22),
could just as easily be translated as longsuffering, forbearance or fortitude.
It means that in spite of the way things look, we're willing to hold on and
wait for the promised answer. No matter how long it takes, we'll stand firm in
faith and believe that what we know to be true will come to pass.
Unfortunately we often become
discouraged because God's promises don't always happen straight away. We stand
in faith and believe, but as time goes by and the journey becomes harder, we
start to doubt and give up.
We often think of Job as
being the epitome of Biblical patience, yet the one who stands out to me is
Abraham. As it says in Hebrews:
"When God made his
promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he
swore by himself, saying, 'I will surely bless you and give you many
descendants.' And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was
promised."
(Hebrews 6:15 NIV)
When Abraham received God's
promise he still had a long wait before he'd see even the first part of it
fulfilled. At one point Abraham tried to help God along by having a child
through his wife's maidservant, but by taking matters into his own hands he
actually complicated everything. If God has promised something for our lives,
then we have to be patient as He pulls everything together to make this
promise a reality.
All God asks of us is that we
remain faithful as we wait. He also asks us to make sure that what we're
waiting for is the same as what He's promised.
As I talked to Matt about
what had happened that afternoon, he shared the fact that he'd prayed for God
to bring one of the games back to the store. His frustration was very real
when he said, "I waited and waited and was so patient. I kept thinking if
I just wait 15 minutes more God will make it turn up."
Putting a hand on my son's
shoulder I quietly asked, "Matt, did God promise you the video
game?"
"But Mom, they say that
if we wait patiently God will give us what we ask for."
"Yes," I began
carefully, not wanting to damage his precious faith yet wanting to make sure
it was founded on truth. "But we have to be sure that what we're asking
for is His will. After all, someone could wait patiently for God to give them
a famous movie star as their wife or husband, but it doesn't mean it's going
to happen."
The light of revelation
dawned on Matthew's face and with it came a groan from the bottom of his
boots.
"ARGH! I can't believe
I've wasted this whole afternoon when I could have gone to the footy or rock
climbing or just been at home having fun!"
Wasted? I don't think so. For
one thing he's shown that he has the ability to patiently wait for the things
that he passionately cares about. For another he's discovered a truth that
will last a lifetime. Then there's also the fact that the actual experience of
waiting patiently has added to the development of that fruit in his life.
We can have complete
assurance that God's promises to His children are most definitely worth
waiting for. All He requires of us is a little bit of faith and a whole lot of
patience.
"We do not want you to
become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what
has been promised."
(Hebrews 6:12 NIV)
* * *
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