Patience

Just wanted to share this reading written by Bishop Soc Villegas.

Patience is indeed a gift from the Lord. We do have to ask,pray for it and work on it continuously because most of the time, it is much easier to give in to our emotions.

"We can choose to be impatient or annoyed or to be kind and understanding no matter how difficult the situation may be."

What if you've tried so many times to be kind and understanding and still that wasn't enough? What if you've reached the point where there's nothing to give and you just don't care at all?

What do you do?

I guess I forgot to ask the Lord for help, to give me strength to be more patient.

Patience

By Bishop Soc Villegas

reprinted from his book Jesus our Light

What makes people impatient? Many people will give many and varied reasons. Some will say it is the terrible and annoying traffic. Another will say it is the slow-learning maids and helpers. Still others will say it is the repeated mistakes of the children and even adults. I think the reasons for impatience will be as many and as varied as there are people in the world.

But come to think of it, is it really the traffic or the slow learners or repeated frustrations that make us impatient? Is not the reason for our impatience our decision, however, unaware we may be, to react impatiently to a particular situation? How come some people go through the heavy traffic unperturbed? How come some people react to slow-learners with gentle and kind understanding? How come some people are so deprived in life and yet they can smile and laugh more than the people who actually enjoy greater material prosperity? How come there are sick people who inspire the healthy in the virtues of courage and fortitude and love?

We can choose to be impatient or annoyed or to be kind and understanding no matter how difficult the situation may be.

Do you remember how the widow in the gospel did not allow her poverty to limit her generosity? It was her decision. Do you remember how the Good Samaritan did not allow his fear of being involved in a difficult situation to determine the extent of his charity? Do you remember how the apostles were squabbling for priority seats and how the Lord dealt with their childish ambition? Jesus did not turn to impatience. He taught them again. Do you remember how the apostles misunderstood the directions set by the Master and how the Lord, although exasperated already, still talked to them and taught them the way to the Father?

People do need to be impatient. We all have the capacity to be good, to be understanding and to be patient. When people get annoyed, there is nobody to blame but the self. It is not the fault of the traffic or the repeated mistakes of the house helpers. The problem is not outside. The problem is within. The problem could be yourself.

When those around us show arrogance and hardness of heart, we respond to them by showing them more arrogance, more hatred, more violence, more resentment. Does it improve the situation? No, it just gives us a little ego massage but the number of impatient people in the world would have increased because of us. If you can not find patient and kind and gentle people, be the first to be patient and to be kind and to be gentle and then you will find others changing for the better because of the good seeds you sowed.

We can learn again to be patient by allowing the patient and kind people that we know to teach us. The lives of the great men and women remind us that we can still make our lives sublime. If they can be good and admirable in patience, why can't I? let us allow others to inspire us.

The best and most patient "Other" who can teach us to be patient is Jesus Himself. Patience is a grace. Patience is a gift from God that we can ask for, work for and harness. Perhaps one of the truly major reasons why we are impatient is that we have not fully appreciated the patient love of God. How can God be so good? Is that easy? Yes, indeed it is. God is quick to forgive and very slow to judge.

Our impatience with the shortcomings of those around us could be a reflection of our own failure to accept patiently and humbly our own limitations.

The root could be our pride. We want to see progress immediately. Impatience could be selfishness and pride in another form.