“The Patience of Our Lord” by Melanie Rigney (@melanierigney)

“The Patience of Our Lord” by Melanie Rigney

Memorial of Saint Boniface, Bishop and Martyr

Therefore, beloved, since you await these things, be eager to be found

Internet Archive Book
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via Wikimedia Commons.

without spot or blemish before him, at peace. And consider the patience of our Lord as salvation. (2 Peter 3:15)

In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge. (Psalm 90:1)

So Jesus said to them, “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God." (Mark 12:17)

Piety

Forgive my trespasses Oh Lord Jesus, for many times have I tested You. I deserved the wrath of Your hand, but You saw greater things for me: Your patience has been enormous! Grant me a droplet of such endurance, that I may abolish my impious impatience, refraining from using unpleasant words, and always reflecting Your serenity. Great is the Lord Jesus in His ways! (From Catholic Online)

Study

I don’t wait for walk signs. I’ve fallen down Metro escalators three times, once breaking a toe in two places, because standing rather than moving doesn’t come naturally to me. At work, when something needs to get done, not necessarily perfectly but done, I’ve always been the go-to girl.

I’m self-aware enough to understand that the Lord has blessed me with many gifts and virtues. Patience is not among them.

That’s why I was struck by this phrase from today’s first reading: “Consider the patience of our Lord as salvation.” Of course, the Lord is patient; if He weren’t, He’d have given up on mankind centuries ago. But there’s something about that direct linkage between patience and salvation that seems so deep. God’s not one to cut His losses and move on to the next soul. He waits for our obedience, providing a few nudges and gentle guidance along the way, but he waits. It’s downright countercultural. His waiting benefits us more than it benefits Him.

The vicar at my parish recently said in a homily that while God is loving, we miss the point when we stop there before we get to God is love. There’s a big difference when you stop and think about it, and it fits beautifully with Peter’s advice to us. Maybe for God, patience and love are intertwined. Maybe both would be easier for us to understand—and render upon Him—if we saw them both as synonymous with salvation, and salvation as something we cannot achieve without them—and Him.

Action

Pray for patience. Pray for salvation. Listen to the answers, regardless of how long it takes to discern them.