Patience...

Continuing on the theme. Todays devotions deal with how patient we are to be. We were instructed to make a list of all the ways God is being patient with us, and then compare that to what or who He is desiring us to be patient with. Ouch! I discovered that my list of things that God has been patient with me about is MUCH longer than the list of things I am attempting to be patient about. Now that will preach. Then I stumbled upon 2 Peter 3:9. I rediscovered the reason why God is patient with us, and why He wants us to be so patient. It is so that we might come to repentance...a saving knowledge of His love and His plan for us in Jesus Christ. Wow. Then, I read a little further in 1 Thessalonians 5 to verses 16-19. Voila some keys:

1. Rejoice (can you think of reasons to in your impatience?)
2. Pray (thanks Pat Dignazio for our Wednesday prayer ministry!)
3. Be thankful (see point #1!)
4. And don't put out the Holy Spirit's fire....sounds like a blogject for another day...