Patient Endurance
Strength for the journey is ours, all of God’s strength to endure our trials with patience.
Saturday of the Fourth Week in Lent ~ 3/24/23
I was told once, yearrrrrs ago, that when you say/pray, “Lord, give me patience!”, or, “Lord, give me strength!”, that you will likely get instances in which to perfect patience or strength! But of course, that’s not what I meant! I wanted to become patient or strong, immediately when I needed it, most!
Whaaaat? Yes, and, as a mother of two under two, I was continually tested! It wasn’t until my third child was born ten years later, that I learned a whole new lesson in patience with a new move, two tweens, and a newborn. Lord, you really do give us instances in which to keep practicing and perfecting our responses with little-to-no-sleep! In addition, I ended up with a back injury that would hinder my parenting abilities and drive me nearly into a depression.
I had to keep fighting to be as positive as I could about it. On days when I could not bear to stand, I would try to be grateful for any comfort I could get from any position. On days when the pain was unbearable, I was grateful for pain medications, and the help of family and friends! As I adjusted to my ‘new-normal’, I kept reminding myself with each small victory, that I was indeed making progress and that today was better than yesterday. But the mental, emotional and spiritual battles were every bit as fierce as the physical ones.
The ‘Lenten Action’ for today, is ‘asking God for the strength to bear our trials patiently’.
St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians reminds us where the strength and power come from:
“ . . . May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from His glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light.” (Colossians 1: 11-12)
I didn’t know my scripture verses that well, back then, and we didn’t have Google in those days, but how I think this would have helped me immensely!
God knows we will be faced with many trials and burdens, pain and sorrow, but He does equip us with knowledge and understanding if we just seek it. Here, we are assured of ‘all the strength that comes from His glorious power!’ Can you even imagine being that strong? . . . not just some of His strength . . . but all the strength that comes from Him! WOW! We can endure anything . . . WITH patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father . . . your loving Father in Heaven who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light (eternal life with Him in Heaven!).
This is my prayer for you, today. The Feast of the Annunciation. The remembrance of when the Archangel Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her she would become the mother of God! ‘Let it be done to me according to Your Will, Lord.’ While she must have been a bit frightened, and uncertain of how to be the mother of God???, she was still confident in the Will of God.
In his gospel account, Luke writes of Mary’s response: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord May it be done to me according to your word’. Just before her fiat’ the Angel told her that her cousin, Elizabeth is also bearing a son, in her old age; “for nothing will be impossible for God.” (Luke 1:38,37).
That still holds true today, and is the basis of our faith – Nothing is impossible for God! If we can hold on to that promise, it could just be the lifeline that gets us through the unexpected trials and sufferings in this life and that we endure them patiently and with joy.
May you continue to be blessed along your Lenten journey.