“Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.” Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Patience is so important!  It allows us to grow and to learn.  It allows us to practice diligence and true faith.

Patience also allows us to build trust, which really is a testament to our faith in God.  We have to learn to have faith even when things aren’t going how we want them: when times are rough, we are thankful for what we have; when everyone else is in despair, we have peace.  Those who have true faith are joyous even when the sky is gray, because they know the sun will come in God’s will.

“The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it.” Arnold H. Glasgow 

I know for me patience is one of the hardest things to deal with.  I want to know NOW!  Right now!  But the funny thing about God is that He isn’t on our time.  We’re on His time.  If it’s not in His timing for us to move forward, we’re not going to, and it’s most likely because there is still a lesson to be learned, a strength to be gained or a problem to be overcome.

Sometimes (actually, a lot of the time), I sit and I think about my future.  Where will I be?  What will I be doing?  Will I have accomplished anything?  Who will be with me?  Will I be near my family?  Will I be doing what I love?  All these questions cannot be answered, because that is not something a person on Earth can know.  But God does.  He knows where we’re going, what we’ll be doing, and who will be there along the way.  He knows who will be removed, who’s waiting for us and how long it’s going to take.  Yet He also knows what’s going to be required of us to get there.  We’re so busy sometimes trying to find the answers to our lives that we stop living out the questions, living out the most magical part of life: now.

“Patience is passion tamed.”  Lyman Abbott

I know we’re all mostly overly-eager about accomplishing things, whether it be earning all A’s, landing that promotion, sealing the deal on your dream job, overcoming an illness, or maybe it’s finding someone to share your life with.  Regardless of what we’re wanting to find, it’s always best to let God hold the reigns.  I always feel awkward and unfulfilled when things are forced in life.  It’s always better when things trickle along, so at one point you look back and say, “That’s why I had to wait!” or “Look at how God connected all those people and situations! I had no idea!”  God is humble; He isn’t screaming from the rooftops,

Nope, He’s awesome because He’s a God who surprises and delights His children.  And when he does, you look back and think, “He really is awesome, and I’m glad I waited.”

“The principle part of faith is patience.” George MacDonald