Saints and Scripture Sunday

By your patience you will win your souls.
   -Luke 21:19

Tonight I opened up our copy of the good old Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis DeSales.  Straight to the section on patience.  Ok, ok, I'm listening.  I'm a mama of two small, active, curious monkeys  boys.  We live in a small apartment.  Currently we have no A/C and it is 84* in the living room and 91* on the porch.  I am covered in mosquito bites from an attempt at camping.  I haven't slept through the night in months.  The touchpad mouse keeps messing with the sizing of the screen while I'm typing.  Patience is something that I will admit I struggle with. 

Francis is most definitely of the "offer it up" philosophy.  Me, not so much.  But it would appear that the Spirit is trying to tell me something.  There are things in life that there really isn't much we can do about.  Two and three year old boys will jump on the couch any chance they get, not to mention anything else they can climb on.  The job market is slow and some job fields are just small.  Some children do not understand the value of sleep. 

I found it really, really interesting in looking at other translations of Luke 21:19 that patience is also translated as "perseverance."  I don't know, I just don't really put the two as having that much in common.  But I suppose they are.  Think of those things that there's nothing to do for but offer it up.  Muddle through.  Just keep swimming.  That, as Dorie teaches Marlin, is persevering. 

So I guess what I'm figuring out is that patience is active.  It isn't a passive sitting back and just letting it be.  It's going to take some effort to develop the calm that I associate with patience.  And it's going to take some work to just keep swimming through my days and offer it up as a "service to our Lord."

"But be of good heart for these sorrows will pass and everlasting joy will remain with you."  -Francis DeSales