We talked a little about hurry yesterday, and how it can be the enemy of patience. John Wooten who was a basketball coach at UCLA had a saying that many of his players remember well. He would say, be quick, but don’t hurry. Often it is very important to act quickly, but to be hasty can be wasted energy. We have probably all learned that haste makes waste. That was probably one of my dad’s favorite saying. Slow and steady wins the race. Be methodical, and exercise patience with everyone. When we love with authentic love, patience can increase the pleasure we have in our relationships. Kids spell love TIME, but adults do too. When we take time for the relationships we have in our life, we are really saying I love you enough to take the time necessary to value you. When we exercise patience in tough situations we will reap the benefits of in the long run. Bailing out, pressuring up, and walking out mad is all too common in our world. It we want to let patience have her perfect work, it means work, and work takes time, a lot of the time. In his book, Love as a Way of Life, Gary Chapman states, “choosing to be patient can be one of the most efficient choices we make.” If we think hurrying around makes us more efficient, we are probably all wrong! So how can you react in situations when you are tempted to make a hasty decision, or hastily respond? We can choose patience. This one characteristic of a loving person has the potential to change not only circumstances we face, but change us. Why not make the choice today, to let patience have her perfect work in you, and become a person who is known for patience, or perhaps better said, a person who is known for letting God’s love operate in you by being a patient person!
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