Waiting patiently

Patience is not a trait that comes easily for me, if at all! I try to do it but I am so impatient that I want answers now, I want to be able to control everything!! Arrgghh. So when I read the verse on my blog today Psalm 27:14 'Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.', it got me thinking about how much I need to work on my patience. I try and try to wait patiently on the Lord but sometimes I get a little frustrated. And I know I can say that because he already knows! Sometimes life drags you down so much that it feels hard to get back up and continue to have that endurance in playing the waiting game. I have found this to be one of the hardest parts of life; living by faith in order for him to reveal his plans for you. And I know his plans will be revealed but I find myself saying, "anyday now would be great!" With my husband out of a job since April, the first holidays without my brother, the strains from working 12 hr shifts and the guilt from being a stay at home mom to now working full time can get someone very aggrevated and impatient. Though I will continue to sit and wait because I know we all have our struggles and trials, as my mom has always said, "you never know what goes on behind closed doors."  Everything is not always peachy for everyone else. I am not alone, there are millions of others who suffer far greater trials than I do. My mom and I were talking on my way to work this morning and she was telling me to continue to be patient and we talked about Job and Abraham who were told to sacrifice more than we could imagine having to do.
Solomon speaks to us in Ecclesiastes right to the heart of our human nature. He journeyed to find the meaning of life. And we still seem to be on that same journey yet the richest man to have ever lived has already told us everything we need to know.
 Here are some of my favorites from Ecclesiastes:


 Ecclesiastes 2:10-11  I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;
       I refused my heart no pleasure.
       My heart took delight in all my work,
       and this was the reward for all my labor.
 Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
       and what I had toiled to achieve,
       everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
       nothing was gained under the sun.


I LOVE this one....Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

A Time for Everything

 There is a time for everything,
       and a season for every activity under heaven:
 a time to be born and a time to die,
       a time to plant and a time to uproot,
 a time to kill and a time to heal,
       a time to tear down and a time to build,
 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
       a time to mourn and a time to dance,
 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
       a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
 a time to search and a time to give up,
       a time to keep and a time to throw away,
 a time to tear and a time to mend,
       a time to be silent and a time to speak,
 a time to love and a time to hate,
       a time for war and a time for peace.
Ecclesiastes 3:15-17
Whatever is has already been,
       and what will be has been before;
       and God will call the past to account. ^[a]
And I saw something else under the sun:
       In the place of judgment—wickedness was there,
       in the place of justice—wickedness was there.
I thought in my heart,
       "God will bring to judgment
       both the righteous and the wicked,
       for there will be a time for every activity,
       a time for every deed."


Ecclesiastes 4:2  And I declared that the dead,
       who had already died,
       are happier than the living,
       who are still alive.


Ecclesiastes 6:12  For who knows what is good for a man in life, during the few and meaningless days he passes through like a shadow? Who can tell him what will happen under the sun after he is gone?


Ecclesiastes 11:8  However many years a man may live,
       let him enjoy them all.
       But let him remember the days of darkness,
       for they will be many.
       Everything to come is meaningless.


AND FINALLY....I know there were A LOT!
Ecclesiastes 12: 9-14
The Conclusion of the Matter
 Not only was the Teacher wise, but also he imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs. The Teacher searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true.
 The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails—given by one Shepherd.  Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them.
      Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.
 Now all has been heard;
       here is the conclusion of the matter:
       Fear God and keep his commandments,
       for this is the whole duty of man.
 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
       including every hidden thing,
       whether it is good or evil.


Much of what Solomon writes about brings me great comfort, especially in the midst of grieving the loss of my brother. And much of it speaks to me about waiting patiently for God because only he knows what we need, and anything without him is meaningless, so I must wait because I don't want to spend my time being meaningless, (I have got far too many things to do)!
We can only do what God has planned for us. On my Instant Messenger at work I have the quote, "Write your plans in pencil and give God the eraser!" How true is that?
With Love Always,