There is an old proverb that says “Patience attracts happiness; it brings near that which is far.” I remember as a young child getting so excited when September would roll in because that was when the new cartoons and television series for the upcoming fall season would be premiered on each of the broadcast stations. During the first week or so in September the TV Guide magazine would highlight each company’s night for their sneak peek into what was in store for that channels lineup. I remember thinking, "Oh I can't wait for Thursday nights at 8:30 on channel 6 for this or that show" and Saturday morning lineups would have me channel surfing between the three network channels of ABC, CBS, and NBC to make sure I wasn't going to miss a new cartoon that would be airing on Saturday mornings. Even after the premier sneak peek into each network’s fall lineup, it would still be a week or two before the shows actually started. Commercials teasing viewers about the new show were broadcast building excitement and anticipation of the drama, comedy, or variety show that was soon to air.
Waiting on television shows is a distant memory today. It used to be that you could only find cartoons to watch on Saturday mornings. By noon on Saturday, sports began to fill the channels programming and during the week animated educational programming on PBS channel 2 was pretty much the only offer available. That gave me something to wait on, something to anticipate, something to look forward to, and something to wait on. With the introduction of cable TV, the world changed, and now with satellites and streaming services those days of waiting on a day or even a time of day to watch a show are foregone memories of those from my elder generation. So many things in life have changed in much the same way as the advent of "on demand" television viewing. Waiting in line at the drive thru behind one car seems like an inconvenience in our rush, rush world. Having to go through three or four prompts on a service phone call to ultimately reach a "real person" brings out the worst in us when we want our device fixed NOW. Waiting our turn in line, wanting to merge into the left-hand lane on the highway only to have a "slow" car hindering the change of lanes, makes some folks irritable to the point of rage. Really?
Maybe in our goal to make things more accessible and to improve service to limit the customer's wait time, we have actually done damage to the value of patience. The idea behind the phrase, patience is a virtue, is that we grow while we wait. None of us wants to endure trials or tragedies. I do not believe we would have a large outpouring of individuals signing up for the "waiting game" in our fast food, on demand society. It appears convenience has come to mean anything that pleases me when I want to be pleased. I'd label it the "Give it to me now " generation.
Whatever you go through in life illness, relationship pains, hardships, or trials of varying magnitudes are growth opportunities to build your patience capacity. Nobody is saying that those situations are made easier because you all of a sudden take on the mindset that I'm growing through this situation in my life, but when you begin to understand that what God wants to do through you is bigger than what is happening to you at the particular moment is life changing. What we are struggling with, suddenly becomes what we are learning through or where we are headed due to the life situations we endure. Patience doesn't make the hurt easier when we are suffering, it just makes us lean on our faith and build our trust in the One that made us for "such a time as this" Esther 4:14.
Picking fruits and vegetables from a garden provides a rewarding meal of which a restaurant can't compare. The produce of the garden must first take a journey from seed to seedling, from tiny plant to a blooming vine, and finally from hard, green nubs to red, ripe, juicy fruit. The patience that it takes to see that process through makes the fruit even better when eaten. The same is true as we endure and persevere through life's trials and tribulations. Once we have learned to embrace adversity and grow in it and through it, we then will take on a totally different mindset of learning through life's trials, instead of waiting on the fix to happen magically. Grow in your struggles, don't miss out on a great opportunity to grow! "... and so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him." II Corinthians 3:18.
Gain some patience today, grow where you are and embrace the moment, who knows you may have been born for just such a time as this!
Coach Carter
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