When we pray for patience, God graciously gives us opportunities to be patient. This must be the week for that.
It's our homecoming week at school, which means everyone is out of control and nothing gets done. I feel if we took a survey about the productivity of students during celebration weeks, adults would be appalled. Today, I witnessed a couple of immature students wandering the halls during fourth hour. They continually turned off the lights in the hallway next to where my All-State group was practicing. We would go out and turn them back on, but the came back continually and turned the lights off. Now had they merely been mischievous, turning the lights off, I would have been able to handle them. But instead they decided it would be a good idea to make lots of noise and be truly annoying. So I went out and told them to get to class before the administration was called. I was then asked if I was a teacher, I asked them what they thought, they did not answer, just turned off the lights one more time and scampered away. Now I was not treated with much respect for getting after this delinquents, I was flipped off by them multiple times throughout the day, trying my patience even further.
Now if I had less control, I would have busted my butt over there and threw a couple punches. Thankfully, I was able to control myself. I laughed at my self because I got so worked up about a silly thing, but I guess today was one of the days.
In 2 Timothy 4:2 it says:
"Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction."God charges us to be patience at all times, even when we don't think we have much. So maybe don't pray for patience, but accept all of the opportunities to be patient because they can be good ways to share the Gospel and the Word of the Lord.
I'm so glad it was you that went out there to confront them and not me. Otherwise those punches would have been thrown!
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