A Lesson in Patience
By Jenni Schubring, Director of Women’s Ministry
What craziness!
That’s how I feel about February.
Early last month, I decided to take better care of my body. You see, I love my job. I love having coffee with friends. I love food. All of these things are wonderful but are lacking in movement.
What I don’t love is exercise.
People talk about the dopamine that happens when you exercise, about how you feel so much better when you exercise, about how you get to a point where you miss it when you don’t exercise.
I am not these people.
I used to be an athlete. Soccer and basketball were my sports of choice. But that was a long time ago.
I knew I needed to make some changes. So I made one. I hired a personal trainer.
At my third session, I threw out my back.
Maddening!
To say I was frustrated was a huge understatement. To be honest, I’m a few weeks from that day, and I’m still frustrated.
I still need to be careful how I get out of bed. I still need to be careful how I get in and out of my car. I still need to be careful about how long I drive. I still need to be careful about the way I move. I am still “working out” with my trainer, but my exercises include things like going from sitting to standing.
Hardly impressive. I didn’t really care for another lesson in patience.
Patience is not only waiting but what we do while we wait.
I wish I could say that I have been patient. I wish I could say that these past few weeks were full of recognizing that God is in this pain with me. I’ve had moments, but those were fleeting.
But today, I can reflect on the past few weeks, and recognize how much I was still able to do. I met with people, facilitated trainings, spoke at a conference, sat through basketball games and cheer competitions on bleachers, and was present for my family and friends. This wasn’t because of me, this was despite me.
This brings me to one of my favorite verses in Scripture: “When I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:10
I can look back at these past few weeks and see how God showed up in my life over and over and over again. I was able to do the work He put in front of me, even in my weakness, because God was there. And because God was there, I was strong.
Now, let me share the verse right before this one:
“But [the Lord] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
I don’t think I’m at the point of delighting in my weakness (yet), but I am delighting in our God. God redeems our weaknesses. He promises us that.
And God’s promises stand forever.