Pastor's Pen - March and April 2010
Last Updated on Wednesday, 10 March 2010 17:57 Wednesday, 10 March 2010 17:33
Greetings!
In Ecclesiastes 7:8, we read: “The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.”
I was thinking this morning, why is patience a virtue, and why is it better than pride?
If the world had more patience I believe there would be less violence. I know a lack of patience is not the cause of all violence, but it certainly is the reason we fly off the handle and do or say things better left undone and unsaid.
If the world had more patience, and the world had less violence, I believe there would be more room in the world for love.
Saint Augustine said, “Patience is the companion of wisdom.” This gives me a little clue for answering the second part of my question. Patience is better than pride, because pride is never wise. Gandhi said, “Anger is the enemy of non-violence and pride is a monster that swallows it up.” Proverbs 11:2 says, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”
I believe there would be more wisdom in cultivating the virtue of patience than indulging in even a little pride.
If the world had more patience, if the world had less violence, if the world had more love, I believe there would be more space for community and a better environment for friendship.
These are some of the thoughts I’ve had while I patiently work at the extremely difficult task of putting together a 3,000 piece puzzle in my basement. Sarah and I started this project during the Christmas season. It was a puzzle I received from my Mom after she died. The first thing I did was find a place large enough to place it. Then I had to tell myself you won’t get this done in a few days. Now I’ve decided it will take not just a few weeks, but a few months.
Since last fall I have endured my worst case of “writer’s block.” Julia Cameron writing in her book, The Artist’s Way, writes that “to recover our creativity, we must learn to see workaholism as a block instead of a building block. Work abuse creates in our artist a Cinderella Complex. We are always dreaming of the ball and always experiencing the ball and chain.”
The past few months I’ve tried to be patient with myself. I’ve tried to set aside my compulsion to complete everything. Instead I’ve tried to be kind to myself, and hopefully to those around me. Every one will have dry seasons. They appear out of nowhere and they are nearly impossible to explain. Recently I was sharing this with some friends, and one of them said, “why don’t you write about “writer’s block.” At the time I thought he was crazy, but guess what I did it.
In Colossians 3:14 it says: “And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” You have been very patient with me these past few months. I have received the blessing of your love. Hopefully by sharing these thoughts you might reflect on the virtue of patience, the need for love, and the benefit of community and friendship.
Shalom!
Pastor Dave