Patience Part II

January 1, 2010 I stood on a Mt. Bonnell waiting for the sun to come up. It was light outside and I was looking East not seeing anything blinding peeking over the horizon. I started to doubt it was going to happen. (Like one should really doubt the rise of the sun!) Then the sun did what the sun does best, it said-Here I Am! It was bright and colorful!




See why I have a lot to learn about patience? I was doubting the rising of the sun, like I missed it somehow.

2009 was the year of Taking Action. I rather enjoyed it and got to experience a lot of great things. This year so far I am learning to be patient. It is going to be a great year, I am excited and love the momentum I have right now. But greatness also comes with waiting. Preach My Gospel defines patience as follows:

"Patience is the capacity to endure delay, trouble, opposition, or suffering without becoming angry, frustrated, or anxious. It is the ability to do God's will and accept His timing."

I tend to get quite anxious at times, so I figured I certainly don't have the patience thing down. I know that what I am waiting for, but sometimes I loose sight of it during the wait and start to doubt that it is ever going to happen.

My friend Elizabeth sent me a talk by Neil A. Maxwell ("A" stands for Alliteration- if you don't believe me just look at his opening statement- pedestrian principle:patience) called "Patience" given at a BYU Devotional in 1979. I highly recommend it, highly! Just one paragraph to share and you can read the rest yourself. Elder Maxwell enlightened me on the fact that impatience is related to overriding another's free agency, or ability to choose. I had never made that connection. He said-

Patience is not only a companion of faith but is also a friend to free agency. Inside our impatience there is sometimes an ugly reality: We are plainly irritated and inconvenienced by the need to make allowance for the free agency of others. In our impatience--which is not the same thing as divine discontent--we would override others, even though it is obvious that our individual differences and preferences are so irretrievably enmeshed with each other that the only resolution which preserves free agency is our patience and longsuffering with each other.

Hmmm, very interesting. So really to help overcome impatience I need to consider needs of others. This has given me a lot to think about and more to work on.

This week I had an experience that tested my patience. I failed the test, but got something today that I wanted and has given me a fresh start at practicing patience. I like second (or 50th) chances. I want to try to learn more about being patient and longsuffering with others. Today, that is key!

Thoughts? If anybody has quotes, talks, or scriptures related to patience, I'd love to hear them.