Patience and trust

My friend Nancy and I went to visit her son-in-law's church this Sunday—the New England Chapel. While I wouldn't characterize it as a "mega-church," it was in a large building bustling with activity, with the rock band and the PowerPoint up front, a huge kids' program, and a young energized preacher.

The preacher spoke about trust. What does it mean to trust God? He said, "Just saying you trust God isn't enough. It can't just be with your lips, but with your life."

At one point of the service, he talked about patience as related to trust. "We Americans," he said, "turn on the hot water and if it takes more than five seconds to get hot, we get impatient." Ha! I've been thinking about that a lot since Sunday—every time I turn a faucet handle actually. But then he said, "Patience is trust-filled waiting."

Patience is trust-filled waiting. I liked that. When we're impatient, we're expressing a lack of trust (among other things). Patience denotes an understanding that everything is rolling out as it should be, that God is in control and that all is well.

As I pondered this idea, it combined with what I already know about God. That He is divine Spirit, perfect, and entirely benevolent toward us. That the divine will for us is only good, and Spirit is supplying all good all the time. God withholds nothing.

This perhaps wouldn't jibe entirely with what the preacher was saying, because he seemed to have more the concept that God gives and takes according to some plan that we need to humbly submit to without understanding.

I don't quite see it that way. Rather, it's our understanding that has to grow to enable us to see with God's eyes. That, to me, is what we have to be patient about. If we're not seeing ourselves or our circumstances the way God sees them, we need to be patient but also strive to gain that understanding.

So patience is not only trust-filled waiting, but also active waiting. Actively filling the space between Point A and Point B with increased understanding and consecration. Trust based not on blind faith, but on fully connecting with divine goodness to the point where you feel no lack. If you feel no lack, you won't be impatient.

This has given me another tool for my spiritual practice. Linking impatience with a lack of trust in my thought will give me the red flag I need when impatience rears its ugly head. When I'm feeling impatient, it will be a reminder to trust.

Your ideas and inspiration are welcome! Please comment below or Contact Laura.
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