And so what we have learned...

... applies to our lives today, and God has a lot to say, in His Book!

Brownie points to whomever can tell me what that is from.

Yesterday was not such a hot day. And I'm not talking about the snow on the ground. Max is still getting over something, E is still getting over something, and I'm fighting off a sore throat and losing my voice. Do you have any idea how irritating and frustrating it is to have to not only repeat EVERYTHING you say 3 or 4 times to a 2 year old who just says "Huh?" but to do it with a sore throat?? It was not a good day.

Before bed last night (read: before I passed out, only to spend 3/4 of the night either coughing or taking care of a child who was coughing), I was working on my Bible Study, "The Power of a Woman's Words" (written by a lady who lives in Matthews, NC. Go figure. Longer story short, I was drawn to verse 12 in Colossians 3. Yeah, I've read it before. Heck, I've even memorized it. But it was still new and fresh. And no, I'm not old. (Inside joke.) Anyway, in the tNIV it reads : "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience." Ouch. Compassion, I'm fairly good with. But it goes downhill from there. To the "punchline," if you will. Patience. Why does God save the zingers for last? (So it seems, anyway.) I wasn't patient. Yes, lots of things happen to try my patience. Some DO need to be dealt with. Some just need to be... being patient with.

Case in point: while I was in the middle of writing the above paragraph, Max stood on her sippy cup, causing the lid to pop off and orange juice to go all over the floor. No, it was not an accident. Really? Seriously? I have to stop writing my post on patience to mop up orange juice from the floor?

This isn't the first time Paul talks about patience. He does it earlier (at least in the Bible) in the book of Galatians, 5:22-24. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires."

The thing about the last part is that it isn't a one time and you're done thing. It's moment by moment, decision by decision, thought by thought, and word by word thing. It's HARD. I fail. A lot. Way more than I succeed. Thankfully, I know that not only do I not have to do it own my own, but Christ stands in the gap for me. I'm saved by grace, not works.