Thursday, August 20, 2009

Patience & a Quick Temper

"A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension, but a patient man calms a quarrel." Proverbs 15:18

I think this Proverb is one that has fairly intuitive immediate application within our lives. Today, however, in my reading, I had a new thought about it that I'd like to share....

I suppose I may be the only one (although I suspect I'm not!), but sometimes I can try to have a little quarrel with the Lord. And, you know, as I started to think about it, many of my "quarrels" with God are about timing. My "hot-temper" and my impatience can (and sometimes do) have a multitude of impacts on my relationships with others in this world. Sometimes, they have big impacts on my relationship with myself. What I think I have previously failed to recognize is that they often, also, have an impact on my relationship with God.

You know, no matter what, I do pretty much always know and actively desire a "good" relationship with God. I have learned the hard way (and the easy way, thank You!) that being in good relationship with Him is well worth my time and effort. So, on top of all the mess I can create in my earthly life with impatience and a quick reaction, I must also remember that I can create my own wedge between my heart and God's. And, of course, I'm the one who suffers there too.

This may not be excessively profound, but it certainly seems worth considering to me!

Lord, help me see and recognize my impatience and hot-temper with You! Help give me patience beyond my own strength, and teach me to come to You and Your plan for my life with meekness and humility! Thank You for Your ways! They are well above my own!


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