Thursday, September 8, 2016

No Patience



I'm nothing if not a good student so I took my momma's words to heart and long ago stopped praying for patience. Just yesterday I correlated praying for patience with the other thing I've been praying for: to serve with a happy heart. 

My 'why' is service. I have it tattooed on my wrist. I'm really into serving people. But lately I've struggled with serving the unlovable. Let me explain...

I am, at my core, a storyteller. When the ups and downs of life happen, I'm thinking about how to present the situation in a story. I started to notice that most of my stories were about the ways people irritate me. To be clear, I am easily irritated. I get miffed every morning at the people who still do not seem to understand the school drop off lines (pull up, Precious Perfect gets out, drive away. You do not have to get out or watch Precious Perfect walk all the way into the building!). But those things are momentary irritations. What I was noticing was my irritation with people who needed my help.  This is no beuno since I am in several service positions and since I usually love serving people.  

So I started to pray to be able to serve with a happy heart. And God provided opportunities. Mercy did He ever! It took a few days for me to realize what was going on. 

God doesn't call us to love only the lovable or serve only the servable - is that a word? Maybe serve only those who joyfully accept our service? Anyway, I'm supposed to serve the people He gives me to serve. No matter their receptiveness, no matter their attitude, no matter their gratefulness. 

I no longer pray for patience or to serve with a happy heart. Instead, pray that I will choose to have patience with someone and that I will choose to serve them with a happy heart. The difference is my attitude. I'm not expecting God to bestow something on me. I'm recognizing that He's already given it and I am choosing to use it to glorify Him.  



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