"If
I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love,
I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of
prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.If
I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the
flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast,
it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not
delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always
hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it
will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when
perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I
talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I
became a man (woman), I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in
a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part;
then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope
and love.
But the greatest of these is love." - (1 Corinthians 13 NIV)
Happy Terrific Tuesday!!!
I'm excited to write this love series because God
wants me to share with you what love is truly about. We have various kinds of
love. We have family love, platonic love, humanitarian love, romantic love, and
then we have the ultimate love: God's love.
Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with
the four types of love I recently named. They're fine, but they're
conditional. Eventually, at some point-in-time, these kinds of love run dry.
Truthfully speaking, people can flip-flop in their personalities. They love you
today and hate you tomorrow. But it's important to remember that God's love
doesn't change.
I want to focus on this for a while because I
desire for you to know that God's love is always available and
you never have to worry about God leaving you nor forsaking you.
The first attribute of love I want to discuss is patience.
Boy, patience is extremely under-rated
in our modern world. We're so anxious about everything, we don't have
the time to stop and appreciate life. We're constantly demanding for right now.
We're brainwashed to believe that having patience is a dull quality, which no
one uses anymore. (Believe me, I know there are still patient people out there,
but just walk with me on this!)
We're overly critical if some folks don't do
things the way we like it. And this kind of attitude is sad, really,
because our actions are screaming out that lacking patience is the way to be. I
don’t want to be misconstrued, but I completely understand that some of us
struggle in this area of obtaining patience. Believe me, when I'm extremely
tired, my patience is short-fused at times. I'm not saying
this should be an excuse, nevertheless, I know how I am when I don't get enough
rest. On a good note, I'm happy that God has blessed me to develop patience gracefully.
I will explain to you why having patience is a blessed
quality, and I pray this will shed some insight in your life, if you are
struggling in this area, and it will assist you in possessing high tolerance
throughout your life.
When we develop this exquisite quality of being
patient toward others, we're sending non-verbal signals to the other party of
how we're dealing with them. We're letting them know that they're worth our
time and they're not a waste of space.
When we use patience to our benefit, this newly
found character that Jesus is calling us to have, it will show us how to be more
gracious in our verbal and physical expression.
Patience also teaches us to pace ourselves in
situations we encounter with on a daily basis. I'm not saying we should move
like a turtle! Nonetheless, whenever we're moving in a steadily pace, we
usually perform our tasks in a more efficient manner. The job is well done and
others will be pleased with our performances in life, and when we perform to
our best ability, this effect usually leaves a lasting impression.
I remember when I used to work in retail jobs,
and retail is the worst, God would test me to see how I would
react in certain situations. Granted, there were some days I would pass the
test and other days I would fail. I'm not ashamed to admit it, because I'm
chuckling about it while typing this. I believe God is silently asking me through
these situations, "Why am I moving too fast?" or "Why am I
acting so hasty, when there is no urgent reason to catch a heart attack?"
Is it truly a detrimental situation when I know that home is waiting for me
once I arrive to my apartment?
If you're laughing at what I'm saying, then
you're most likely seeing where I'm going with this or this
had happened to you as well.
But seriously, why do we rush to get home after
leaving work? Why do we rush while running errands? Why do we respond abruptly
toward others because they don't operate the same as us? Are we being unfair to
others who view the world differently when we’re lacking patience? Absolutely.
Impatience often turns into rude behavior, which
is highly unpleasant and it can hinder us from being our best, and it will
constantly show us at our worst!
Being impatient screams out we don't have time
for anyone or anything, if it has nothing to do with us. Whenever it's all
about us, we’re convinced that patience should submit itself to our ways. It's either
our way or the highway. And this flawed attitude reflects a poor outlook on
life. Impatience results to inconsiderate behavior. We're not mindful of how we
respond to others or how we treat them. We become irate and nasty.
Here are some tips where you can increase your
patience (if you don't know some of them already):
If you're in a long line and it seems like it
won't budge, listen to music. This is a great way to kill impatience.
It helps get your mind off how long you're waiting and it takes your mind to
think about pleasant things, and you become cheerful in the process. (I always
listen to music when I'm in line, I find myself being more at ease!)
Read a book or an e-book, if you're not a music
lover.
Strike up a conversation with a friend, if you
have your buddies with you, or even with a stranger. It doesn't cost a dime to
be kind. However, if a person looks at you like you're on a different planet,
then attend to your own affairs.
Make a list of what makes you impatience and find
positive solutions to help you to remember that patience truly is a virtue.
If you find yourself struggling with patience, I
encourage you to pray and ask God to show you what is causing your tolerance
level to decrease. And once God shows you what it is, He will give you wisdom
on how to adjust your busy lifestyle. Busyness comes in many forms. Don't be
deceived on what is qualified as being "busy."
But what I love about the Lord is, He doesn't
lose his cool with us. He doesn't condemn us when we're falling short in this
area, and He doesn't make us feel like it's over, if we have blown it.
He sees and knows about all our struggles. He
takes the time to polish us while the rust soon fades away from our hearts. He
blesses us with His dynamic aroma of love, which captivates us to being better
individuals. He takes the veils off our eyes, so we can see where we're making
error with other people and ourselves.
He doesn't give up on us because we lack in areas
we need help in. He loves us unconditionally and He loves us to gently remind
us when we're losing sight on what's truly important.
Prayer: Father, I admit I
struggle in this area and it's making me behave in ways that I didn't think is
possible. Forgive me when I fall short of not being gracious toward others. Forgive
me when I'm rush through life and not taking the time to appreciate all this
beauty You created on Earth. Bless me with Your Wisdom and Understanding to
respond correctly, which will glorify You. Bless me to remember how much You
love me, even when I act unpleasant at times. Thank You for giving me another
chance to make the wrong right. And most of all, thank You for showing me what
true patience is all about. After all, I
commend You greatly for putting up with me. In Jesus' Name, Amen.