hurry hurry hurry, wait.

Patience

How much longer can this possibly take? I can see them, they appear to be working but how long does it take to fill a prescription? These are my thoughts as I peer impatiently into the little exterior pharmacy window. The minutes trickle by and I am slowly becoming convinced that they just don’t care how cold I am or how long I have been waiting. Perhaps they are placing bets to see how long I will stand in the freezing cold. After about ten minutes I have decided that I would give them a little piece of my mind, after all I’m the reason they have a job in the first place, right?

 Proverbs 15:18 says, “Hot heads stir up conflict, but patient people calm down strife.” (CEB)

   Patience is certainly an area I could grow in. There seems to be at least one or two instances in a day that just stretch me to my limits. It’s funny what my mind does in these situations. Being inconvenienced can lead to thoughts of ridiculous assumptions toward the other person. This is when I get annoyed. This is when I can react with unkindness.

Ephesians 4:2 says, “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient bearing with one another in love.”

   Being patient requires practice. It requires changing the way I think and valuing others more than myself. I know I am most impatient when I am in a hurry or I am late. Since I am responsible for my actions it may be beneficial for me to keep better tabs on my schedule. I also need to understand not everyone thinks or reacts the same way I do and that’s ok. To be patient I need to bear with others in love, being humble and gentle. The word bearing here means “to endure” or “to put up with”; I think that hits the nail right on the head. It may feel like work but showing love towards others through patience is what is most important.

   I finally did get my prescription and I really should be thankful that they took their time to get it right. I also decided not to give that pharmacist a piece of my mind and we ended up chatting about how people are in just too big of a hurry these days. I have to say I was a little ashamed.

   I know this will be something that I will work on for the rest of my life, circumstances and personalities guarantee plenty of opportunities for practice, but I sure wish I would hurry up and get it right.