Binding Hearts Marriage and Family Ministries
Monday Marriage Minder
July 7, 2008
Love is... Part One
Patient - Where's your focus?
Love is patient...
1 Corinthians 13:4a NIV
Have you ever been in a church service when someone stated that they were, either, praying for patience or in need of more patience? Often, in those cases, you can hear the response of the congregation by way of gasps or whispering. Why? Because we know that patience is most often the result or product of trials. So, to acquire more patience...
Perhaps this is why we are often impatient in our lives. We don't like being uncomfortable. We want out of a situation, or desperately want to be in a new one. The corresponding trial could be circumstantial, personal or relational.
Beyond impatience, what is the opposite of patience? In the marriage relationship, the answer is often selfishness. I want what I want, when I want it! Most often, in scripture, the word patient or patience is associated with our relationships with others. Scripture uses phrases such as "bearing with one another," (Eph 4:2) and it admonishes us to be "patient with everyone," (1 Thess. 5:14).
In all honesty, I'm one to be impatient at times. It happens when I'm seeking to be the one in focus, rather than focusing on God's will for our marriage and life. Subsequently, when I'm seeking to be the focus, my eyes and thoughts are turned from Robin's needs and I appear to be, and often am, impatient.
I wonder why the Apostle Paul listed this attribute of love first? Maybe it is because being patient is a hard behavior to master. This week, let's ask ourselves, where is our focus? Is it all on ourselves? Are we being impatient and pushing our spouse to be someone or something in order to get what we want? Or, are we really "bearing with one another" in the marriage relationship?
This Week's Question: If we become more patient, how will that affect our love for our spouse?
For Marriages & Families,
Dave
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