Get off the Road!
Don’t you just love watching other people drive?! You don’t have to answer that out loud. It’s not always a sheer joy watching those in our town prove how they need a DMV refresher course. Stopping at yield signs (when there is no reason to do so), stopping at a green light, cruising in the left passing lane while going under the speed limit, or the all-time favorite, riding for miles with the turn signal on. How do you not hear the annoying clicking?! Oh, what fun!
I have said it before, but patience is not my greatest virtue. If I have somewhere to be, I’m going to arrive early. I’m not going to be late, for someone else’s time should be valued too, whether it’s a doctor's appointment or a family gathering. If I end up being late, I am frazzled. It sends my anxiety up a few notches, and then I have to work at calming myself down. So, I try with all my might to just be early or on time. But things happen, don’t they? A test for my patience always seems to come when I’m not in the mindset for a lesson.
Sometimes watching others drive makes me anxious, too. I sometimes wonder how some individuals passed their driving test and got a license. There are so many people who take this for granted, and countless people are hurt every day because of careless drivers.
As I was thinking about patience the other day, I was driving home from work. As with everyone, I’m sure, after a day’s work, you are ready to get home, take care of any responsibilities you may have, and relax in the evening before going to bed and getting up to do it all over again. As I was coming off the exit ramp heading home, the car in front of me was cruising. Not fast, might I add, but at a whopping 15mph. Let me preface by saying I take the exit at a safe speed, and it’s at least 2x the speed of the car in front of me. Their arm out the window, it was safe to say this individual was enjoying their afternoon cruise and was not in a hurry. Instantly, I said, “Get off the road!” It’s something about people just not going the posted speed limit that creates an annoyance inside. Again, patience is something I’m working on.
How do we become patient people? Those who take a deep breath and roll with the punches of life? I don’t think it necessarily means we just become calloused to time and show up whenever and wherever we wish, but rather that our spirit doesn’t feel rushed. We are enjoying the moments and taking in life's pleasures, making sure not to miss the little blessings along the way. This doesn’t mean I forgo being on time if that’s important to me; rather, I appreciate the safety and security of getting from point A to point B. Now that I have a precious toddler riding along with me, I am more in tune with others driving around me and the speed I’m traveling. Her safety is just as important as, if not more important than, mine. Her needs are coming before mine since she’s been entrusted to me for care.
Abraham became the father of many nations, but not without a lesson in patience. He endured a tough road and was going to sacrifice his own son because he was obeying God. In all that he dealt with, God blessed him greatly at just the right time. He patiently endured a lifetime of ups and downs because he trusted that God was in control.
Maybe you are like me, and you don’t enjoy the carefree drivers out on the road. Let’s be challenged together to pay better attention to all that is going on around us and take a deep breath as we travel. I know it may mean we stop at a yield sign every now and then, or have someone try to cut us off at a road construction zone, even though they’ve seen the same signs you have for the past five miles. Perhaps there is a reward up ahead for those of us who persevere with a patient spirit. I know it’s hard; I struggle with patience every single day, but I’m striving to become closer to God and have Him continue to work in my heart so that those around me can feel His same peace and presence. God is at work in all areas of our lives, even the ones that may drive us crazy!
Hebrews 6:11-15
Now we desire each of you to demonstrate the same diligence for the full assurance of your hope until the end, so that you won’t become lazy but will be imitators of those who inherit the promises through faith and perseverance. For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater to swear by, he swore by himself: I will indeed bless you, and I will greatly multiply you. And so, after waiting patiently, Abraham obtained the promise.
