"And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us."
I have been studying and pondering on patience for several months now. I have found the best time to study it is when you don't feel you need it. It is so much easier to be instructed when one isn't in the midst of the crises without it. What a marvelous Christlike attribute patience is. It is sanctifying and makes one holy. It is my most desired attribute now. I can see how with patience I gain experience and hope. For one cannot have patience unless they turn to the Lord to help them through that which is overwhelming them. Then hope fills my heart and the Holy Ghost is there to guide and sanctify me. I see patience as such a beautiful thing. In a way it makes the tribulations worth it because it brings one to a totally different plain with Christ. I had come to see enduring to the end not as the beast I once thought it was, because to endure I come to know Christ. Now with patience I see I not only know him, I become like him.
"And seek the face of the Lord always, that in patience ye may possess your souls, and ye shall have eternal life."
(Doctrine and Covenants 101:38)
"Ye are not able to abide the presence of God now, neither the ministering of angels; wherefore, continue in patience until ye are perfected."
(Doctrine and Covenants 67:13)
The reason patience was so aloof for me was because I was trying to make things work according to my will and timing. How often does one say when they lack patience, "If only they would do this!". I have learned that without patience my desire was to take away the agency of others and control them according to my will. No wonder with the lack of patience we feel so out of control. Trying to control and in a way force Satan's plan, by taking away the agency of another. This is not the Father's plan. With patience I learn to trust the Lord's timing and will in the matter. Patience is the greatest of Christlike attributes that I could obtain. To have patience I possess my soul, for I have over come the natural man. Now I can see there is a better way. I am not perfect in having patience, but I have opened the door to the beauty of it, and am being instructed in a better way. To have patience is to have faith, trust in the Lord, and hope of eternal life.
Day 1624
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