something someone sent me...

A friend sent this to me today...a continual reminder of how God will take a thought and reinforce it in so many ways...I found the take on patience refreshing.

"Living the Moment to the Fullest

Patience is a hard discipline. It is not just waiting until something happens over which we have no control: the arrival of the bus, the end of the rain, the return of a friend, the resolution of a conflict. Patience is not a waiting passivity until someone else does something. Patience asks us to live the moment to the fullest, to be completely present to the moment, to taste the here and now, to be where we are. When we are impatient we try to get away from where we are. We behave as if the real thing will happen tomorrow, later and somewhere else. Let's be patient and trust that the treasure we look for is hidden in the ground on which we stand."

So many times in my life, I have confused being patient with being complacent. Patience DOES ask me to dig in and live the life that God has for me now, not expecting something better to come along. If each day I live as if this day were it, how can I not truly experience the passion, excitement, and thrill of a life called out by Jesus himself? Sure, with passion comes heartbreak. With excitement, I'm sure to see the ramifications of decisions made in haste. With the thrill comes the inevitable downward swing of inaction and emotion. But, I recall that I am not perfect and will never be on my own. So, I choose to experience life...today...right here, right now. If that life is merely seeing a running brook on my morning run, I'm ok with that.