Patience part 5
If you can be patient, you can be yourself no matter what. You can check yourself before you wreck yourself. You can make sure things don't get into you, even as you go through things. We all have to go through things. That's what this life is. In this world we WILL have tribulation. That's just life, man. Stuff happens. Every single day. It's not about what happens though. It's about how you deal with what happens. How you handle it. And, because of Jesus--who IS our peace--we can be of good cheer. In the midst of our trials and tribulations. No matter what is going on around us, we can stay true to ourselves. Because the fire in us is always hotter than the fire we're in. Like those three Hebrews boys who were thrown into the fiery furnace. They weren't burned by the fire around them. In fact, the only thing that did get burned was their bonds got burned off. They didn't freak out in the midst of their trials and tribulations. They simply trusted God to keep them safe. And He did. Because even though three men were thrown into the fire... four men were IN the fire. And the forth was the Son of God! Jesus is always right there with us no matter what. Psalm 139:8 tells us, "If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there." Wherever we go, there we are. And there HE is. So we can be patient with each other. We can give people exactly what they need. And it starts with patience. With letting people be who they are instead of thinking we need to convince, or force, them to be who we think they ought to be. That's not our job. It is the job of the Holy Spirit to convict people. The Holy Spirit testifies of our true identity by testifying of Jesus. The Holy Spirit tells us who we really are by telling us who Jesus really is. And if the Holy Spirit can't "change" people--by revealing to them that they HAVE been conformed to the image of God's Son--what chance do I have? Especially when it's more likely that I'm trying to change them into who I WANT them to be, rather than necessarily who GOD wants them to be. You don't have to be who I want you to be. But it would be in your best interest to be who God wants you to be. Who He created you to be. My point is, when you stop trying to control people and just love them, that's when you can really build a bond. Or a connection. Or a relationship. That's when you can really influence people. Not by trying to get them to conform. But by freeing them. By letting them be who they are. By showing them who they REALLY are. Someone worthy of love. No matter what. And, guys, that takes patience. Because people WON'T always (or ever) be who YOU necessarily think they should be. And that's ok. They don't have to. You're not the boss of them. So be patient with people. Even while they are learning and growing. Because we are all always learning and growing. That's what life is all about; learning to love as we learn how we are loved. It takes time. It takes effort. It takes... patience.