Jon's Blog

Love is Patient.  We all hear this all the time. We might hear it at a wedding, we might hear it from our spouse, we might hear it from a friend down the street.  No matter where we hear it from, I can almost guarantee that everyone has heard this phrase uttered from someone, somewhere.  But I ask, what does it MEAN.  I mean really, what does it honestly mean.

Ephesians 4:2 - "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love."  (NIV84)
Ephesians 4:2 - "Always be humble and gentle.  Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love."  (NLT)
Ephesians 4:2 - "with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love" (NASB)

During my DC class, one of my memory verses was the NIV84 version above.  And while it might seem clear from that verse what it is talking about, I actually prefer the NLT wording of this verse a little better.  

Love is patient, yes this is true.  But what does patience mean.  Patience is being able to sustain words when needed, patience is being able to withhold arguments when needed, patience is being able to trust your spouse with all your hear and knowing that they will come through.  Patience is one of those concepts that people find the hardest to achieve.  I say that because if you are not a patient person, how hard is it for you to hold your tongue, or withhold judgement, or hang back a little while and wait?  

Every one of us is flawed in some way.  We cannot deny this.  No matter how we look at ourselves, you can spot something flawed about yourself.  But, I bet, that you can point out many more things about others that are flawed.  It is in our nature to point out flaws of others.  Matthew 7:3-5 states "And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye?  Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye."  Why is it that we as a society are quick to point out others flaws, but yet, we fail to realize that we ourselves may have the same flaw, or bigger flaws?

So how does Matthew 7 relate to Ephesians 2?  I think that in someways, we aren't patient enough.  We are always quick to pass judgment on others if they are not doing something that we feel should be done sooner.  But in reality, are they doing everything they can do?  There comes a time and a place where the patience will wear thin, I will agree with that, however, Love in its very nature is patient.  And this isn't any old kind of patience.  This is godly patience.

God isn't going to chase you to become a follower.  He wants followers, he doesn't want fans.  So, when you are ready to accept Christ, then that is on your own terms, and in your own time.  As a result, God is showing a type of patience that no one can match.  How long can you wait for your friend/spouse to do something you have asked them to do?  How long can you wait for your child to begin to do what you ask them to do and not to question why?  How long can you wait for anything?  How long can you wait for that promotion in the job you love?  How long can you wait?

Love IS patient.  Dictionary.com defines the word patience as follows:   "the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like."  

I am sure you have experience annoyance, misfortune, or pain within your marriage.  I am sure you have experienced one of those items in a friendship or even a family tie.  I am sure that everyone has experience one of these in just about ANY relationship you might have.  But how did you handle it?  Did you blow your top?  Did you blow up?  Did you throw a tantrum?  

I think the bible is pretty clear on the road we need to take here.  I think the bible is outlining a concept to us that is very easy to think about, but next to impossible to take action on.  Think about how often you might have that short fuse that is just about to go off due to annoyance or misfortune.  Can you put it out?  Or are you going to let it go off?

Patience is probably one of the hardest concepts when it comes to Love, especially in a marriage.  I don't speak of this because I am perfect.....I AM FAR FROM IT!  However, I speak about patience because I feel that without patience, no marriage can survive.  I feel that patience is so important that it was Day 1 in The Love Dare for a reason.  I don't find it just a coincidence.  

Patience.  Are you patient?  Are you humble enough to be patient?  Are you humble enough to be gentle?  Are you patient enough to show humility and gentleness towards your spouse?  Are you patient with yourself?

Love is Patient, are you?   

A while back, my wife and our life group did a study called The Love Dare Bible Study.  Some of you might have heard of it as The Love Dare was featured in the movie Fireproof.  During that study, and one of the last things I did was to make up these small cards which outlined each day in a simple reminder of what Love is, and a bible reference to where it is mentioned in the bible about what Love is.  For example Day 1 is, Love is Patient with a bible reference of Ephesians 4:2.

Over the course of the last year I have gotten further and further away from my time with God and spending time reading the bible.  I have tried a bible reading plan, that quickly got derailed. I got derailed ever since I stopped another bible study I took through Southeast called DC.  I took a break, however, my break is continuing and it is absolutely hurting me inside.

As a result, I recently found this card I made up during The Love Dare, and thought to myself, what a perfect way to try to get back into things.  So, as a challenge to myself, and a challenge for something that I have wanted to do for a long time, I am going to be writing a brief blog post about each day and some thoughts I have about each verse. 

I am doing this namely for myself, but I feel that anything I write, might be useful to someone else.  So, if you find anything helpful, then please view it as a gift to you. 

Love is such a funny thing.  One minute you think you might have it all wrapped up, the next minute, it's as if you have no clue what you are talking about.  We are all on the roller coaster of Love, and with each twist and turn, we always get thrown for a loop sometimes.  Let's just hope that we can all get grounded on this concept of Love, albeit for a brief few minutes :) 

PS.  I do NOT consider myself any sort of expert on the bible, nor do I consider myself any sort of expert on Love.  I am merely writing what I feel about each day, and what I get out of each day.  I consider myself an average Joe writing about these passages, and putting my thoughts into a blog form.

Gotta love the parts of this HEALTH care bill that people don't even realize are in there. Take the Student Loans, which the government will disburse and own all the monies now. I just logged into my student loan to make sure that everything went through and was greeted with this:

"- Legislation passed that eliminated the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) and requires all student loans to be disbursed by the Federal Government through the Federal Direct Loan Program (FDLP) effective for any loan first disbursed on/or after July 1, 2010.
- If you apply for a PLUS loan another credit check will be completed through FDLP. Multiple credit checks may adversely impact your consumer credit rating."

So not only did the Federal Government take over any new student loans to be issued, but now, just to get a loan you may have to go through MULTIPLE credit checks there by possibly affecting your credit score.

Thanks again Mr. Obama! I look forward to firing you in 2012, and removing all the democratic power in congress in 2010!

Reflections on Day #4

Breakfast: 1 packet oatmeal
Lunch: 1 Cup of Rice, 1/2 Cup of Beans, 1 Tortilla
Dinner: 1 Cup of Rice, 1/2 Cup of Beans, 1/2 Cup of Corn, 2 oz. Chicken
WW Point Total: ~20

So, here I am typing up my relfections on Day 4, and to be honest, yesterday was probably the easiest day that I have had thus far. I will admit that I was hungry, however, overall it was a pretty easy day. I found my self not thinking about my hunger, and by doing so, the day went really smoothly.

I am getting pretty sick and tired of beans and rice, and right about now, i don't want to see beans and rice for at LEAST a week when this challenge is over. I don't really have too many thoughts on this day because it was a pretty easy day.

I am looking forward to the last day, and can't wait for this challenge to be over.

I don't have much more to say, so see you tomorrow when i post my final overall thoughts on the entire challenge.

End of Day Hunger Level (1-Satisfied to 10-Starving): 8 but doing OK.

Reflections on Day #3

Breakfast: 1 packet oatmeal
Lunch: 1 Cup of Rice, 1/2 Cup of Beans, 1 Tortilla
Dinner: 1 Cup of Rice, 1/2 Cup of Beans, 2 oz. Chicken, 1/2 Cup of Corn,
1 Tortilla, and 1 Diet Pepsi
WW Point Total: ~21

Yes, I admit it, I had 1 can of Diet Pepsi. I admit that I did it. And honestly, it tasted fantastic going down, but after I was done, I started to regret it. I found myself drinking another water bottle full of water to ease my stomach. I won't be doing that again until this challenge is over, you can rest assured in that.

So it has now been 3 complete days of this Food Challenge, and I am beginning to realize that this is probably one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life. I find myself continually trying to focus on other things, whether it be work, playing games, playing the Wii, just something to get my mind off of eating.

I must bring up the fact I brought up yesterday in that this challenge will only have taken up .0492% of the time I have lived so far on this earth. Let me put this into perspective for you some more. That percentage equates to the equivalent of 42.478 SECONDS within a day. How many times do you go 42.478 SECONDS within a day and not eat? Now, imagine, I am only 27, someone older the percentage used would be far LOWER than mine. Kind of makes you think, can i afford 42.478 SECONDS in my day to not eat? I am sure everyone would say yes to this. So can you afford to limit your food intake for the same relative amount of time compared to the time you have lived on this earth? If you answer no, my only follow up question to you would be WHY? I consider this a small price to pay to actually experience hunger.

Jenny and I were talking yesterday about Hunger and this challenge. We came to the conclusion that very few people in our society has actually experienced hunger. When I say very few, i mean that on a relative sense as i know there are hungry kids in the country. I know I brought this up yesterday, but think about it. When was the last time that you couldn't eat WHATEVER you want.

Yesterday was a very difficult day for me. I was about ready to eat my arm by the end of the work day. In addition, I find the drives to be the most difficult, as all I am doing is just sitting in the Car, not doing anything. However, I knew that if I can get through this day, the last 2 days will be much easier.

There were many times yesterday when I felt that I was on the verge of snapping. And at work that is not a good thing. The last thing I want to do is snap at someone I am working with. I did everything in my power to remember that even in the times of hunger, I still need to be Slow to Speak and quick to listen. It was that, that pulled me through the remainder of the day, and to not bite anyone's head off. This is someting that i will continue to remember as the time goes on.

3 days down, and 2 to go. I am in the final stretch, and I know I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

End of Day Hunger Level (1-Satisfied to 10-Starving): 7 and still growing

Reflections on Day #2
I am going to change the format a little bit here, but this should be the format for the remainder of the week.

Breakfast: 1 packet oatmeal
Lunch: 1 Cup of Rice, 1/2 Cup of Beans, 1 Tortilla
Dinner: 1 Cup of Rice, 1/2 Cup of Beans, 2 oz. Chicken, and 1 Tortilla
WW Point Total: ~20

I decided to include the WW Point total as I have been doing WW for the past 15 weeks and have lost a total of 15 pounds. I am currently very close to getting to my goal weight when this challenge has hit. To give you an idea, my NORMAL daily allotment of points is 28, and I usually get 35 extra for the week. Now, daily i am eating about 18-20 and NO extra points are being used AT ALL. Let me just tell you, I am feeling it.

Looking back on yesterday, it went pretty well as I had a lot of things at work and a Bible Study later in the night to occupy my brain. Each day that passes I am beginning to understand the severity that exists not only in Africa, but anywhere in regards to Hunger. I was pretty hungry yesterday, however, i knew that i was going to get to eat something when the next meal time hit. It kind of makes you think. In this challenge, we get to eat 3 meals a day, and we know that there will be food for us at that table/lap/where ever you eat. We KNOW the food will be there. So, we might be hungry, maybe on the verge of starving, although do we really know what that feels like, but we can rest assured that when noon hits, or when dinner time hits, there is food for us. What if that food wasn't there? What if, in experiencing this, that time rolls around, and you go to the dinner table, and there is nothing there for you? What if, you have been anticipating your next meal and when it comes, you are served nothing?

I have begun to wonder these things yesterday, and realized that I would be much worse off than I am now. As it stands, I am hungry, yes I admit it, but I am not on the verge of dying. I will admit that each day that passes, I look forward more and more to that next meal. And each bite i take of those beans and rice, I enjoy it. Weather the food is cold, hot, cooked, not cooked, whatever, i am enjoying the meal, because i know that is all i am going to get.

When I started this, I wasn't sure how this challenge was going to go. Heck, I don't think anyone had any idea how this challenge was going to go. But now that I have completed 2 full days, I know that this challenge is not as easy as it sounds. I can tell you that I am on the verge of cheating. I am on the verge of breaking, but i WON'T do it! I know God will continue to pull me through this as I continue to ask for his strength to get through this.

Many people in our Church might not be doing this challenge, and some may have great reasons. Whether it is health, or whatever, I can't say anything to those folks who have a valid reason.
However, what I have begun to struggle with is those people who don't have a valid reason.

I am 27 years old, almost 28. If I analyze the days that i have lived up until now, that totals to 10,167 days. If i look at that and realize that at the end of this, i will have lived for 10,170 days so far. the 5 days that i am giving up the food i would usually eat is only .0492% of the days i have lived on this earth. So, for the other 99.9508% of the life i have led so far, i have had food on my table, and more importantly ANYTHING i would want to eat.

To me, i think 5 days out of 10,170 is a small price to pay to truly experience what the truly hungy people of the world experience.

End of Day Hunger Level (1-Satisfied to 10-Starving): 6 and still growing