Give me patience, and give it to me NOW

Talking to others, and talking to myself - the challenge of patience is real for many of us.  As banks, appraisers, underwriters, lawyers, and the like do their thing; we are given the task of patiently waiting...and waiting...and... yes, I'm talking about our work of buying a house (hopefully an appropriate one for who we are called to be-see Monday).

As I reflect on the matter, it isn't the waiting which requires patience.  The expectations created by a preconceived time frame are what necessitate patience.  If no one was approved for a mortgage in less than six months, and it was always a year long process to buy a house, and there were clear reasons for the time involved, then the first six weeks would be no different than the first six days in our current process.

In those initial days we were eager and excited by what we were involved in, but it required no patience to allow those first six days to pass.  However, now we have passed the expectation defined "reasonable" time for all the work to be completed, and I am self-talking myself into acceptance of the situation, finding patience to wait it out... but why do I need patience?  Because it "should" be done by now.  But I must ask, What is that "should" based on?

It is based on other people's experiences.  It is based on what I have been told is normal.  It is based on what I pieced together as an appropriate time frame for what needed to happen.  It is based on other things I have set into motion based on the previous assumptions.
Rational?  Probably; we need to move forward based on some plan and pattern.
Helpful?  In some ways, if we do not have expectations how can we make subsequent decisions?
Artificial?  Absolutely!

"If the Lord wills," is the precautionary clause which should be added to all plans and expectations.

What does this say to you?  When you are "in need of patience," what needs to be adjusted?  What expectations created that need for patience?  Are those expectations helpful to your life or detrimental at this time?  We want answers, we want resolution, we want to move on - but what is that based on?  What is our time frame based upon?  Others' experiences?  Our need for the illusion of control?  What we deem as reasonable?

Patience is a gift, which is given to those who are willing to reevaluate their expectations in life.
God's timing is perfect - but it is often not ours.

wait for it....

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