A Reflection on Patience

I’ll bet we could all use a little more patience in our hearts. I know I easily fall into the trap of impatience. St. Monica‘s amazing patience is highlighted in a short reflection included with the biography of St. Monica at the Franciscan Media website (found here). I thought it would be an interesting way to start our discussions this week.

Let me start by sharing their words:

“Today, with Google searches, online shopping, text messages, tweets, and instant credit, we have little patience for things that take time. Likewise, we want instant answers to our prayers. Monica is a model of patience. Her long years of prayer, coupled with a strong, well-disciplined character, finally led to the conversion of her hot-tempered husband, her cantankerous mother-in-law and her brilliant but wayward son, Augustine.” (para 7)

We’ve discussed it before, but answered prayers are always a tricky thing to discern. It is difficult to reconcile God’s will with His answers to our prayers. If my prayer is not really what is best for me, his answer might be “No.”

But sometimes the answer might also be, “Not now.” I remember being frustrated by that answer from time to time as a kid. If not now, when? “But Mom, I don’t want to wait until later.” Then the wait could feel like torture.

Even though we’ve grown up a bit (presumably), as children of God, we still get impatient when we have to wait. Maybe the next time we’re facing such a wait, we can think of St. Monica. She spent more than two decades praying and fasting for the conversion of her wayward son. I can’t imagine having that kind of patience. Wouldn’t most of us give up by then?

As I have been studying the saints, I have seen some recurring themes. I expected that might happen, even before I started this journey. Today we’ve hit on another one. It certainly seems that patience is a common trait in the saints. Maybe this is a way we can all learn to improve our faith. Do any of you have strategies to help us learn patience?

Lord Jesus Christ, we are grateful that You have such patience with us. We come to you today and ask for Your guidance as we strive to become patient, like the saints. Although we do not fully understand Your ways, we are trying to accept Your will and Your timeline for our lives.

[credit for today’s photo: © Gtipton | <a href=”https://www.stockfreeimages.com/”>Stock Free Images</a>]