“I always thank God for you because of the grace of God given to you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Corinthians 1:4 CSB
Today would have been Cody’s 26th birthday, of course I’m thankful for him today. One of the things Cody taught me most was patience. Cody could test my patience like few others. He had very strong opinions and did not mind voicing them. He also had no problem not doing something he didn’t want to do. God gave him a strong personality and used him to help me develop patience.
You may have heard someone say, “I need to pray for patience.” The typical response to this question is, “Don’t pray for patience, God will give you opportunities to practice it.” The truth is, patience is something we work on every day, whether we realize it or not. We are working on patience when we’re waiting for the kids to get in the car. We are working on patience when we’re stuck in traffic. We are working on patience when we’re waiting for our spouse to get home from work, or friend to come over for dinner. We are working on patience when we are waiting on the miracle. We are always working on patience.
Webster’s dictionary of 1828 defines patience perfectly. The suffering of afflictions, pain, toil, calamity, provocation or other evil, with a calm, unruffled temper; endurance without murmuring or fretfulness. In other words, patience is getting your feathers ruffled but no one knows it because you don’t show your frustration. Patience is when the kids get in the car after waiting five minutes, instead of yelling, we make sure they haven’t forgotten anything. Patience is when we’re stuck in traffic, instead of getting frustrated we thank God we’re exactly where He wants us to be, doing what He wants us to do. Patience is when our spouse or friend is an hour late for dinner, instead of giving them attitude, we hug them and ask how their day was. Patience is waiting on the miracle without giving up hope. Patience is staying focused on God and His purpose for our lives, not on our circumstances. God is always giving us the opportunity to practice patience. Whether we realize it or not is the question. What opportunities is God giving you today to practice patience? Most likely, it’s the people you love He uses the most, I know it is with me.
Today I’m thankful God used Cody to help me practice patience. What are you thankful for today?
