Hey passengers, if you’re like me you have a lot of wants and dreams. And at this point in life, where I assume I have more years behind me then in front, all I can say is part of my hope for life is fulfilled by being patient. I now know that patience is a virtue and a power too. Patience tells us that the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step and that we get over there one step at a time. Patience has taught me not to rush. Knowing that there is a reason and a season for everything is enabling me to smile at my challenges, realizing that there is an answer to every problem. And, even though we cannot see it, yet there is awareness that within every crisis lies an opportunity. Ya fellin me? I hope you’ll have patience with me here on the Train…I appreciate the company!
All Aboard…
“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.â€
–Harriet Tubman
I remember this story my mom used to read to my brother and I. It was one of Aesop’s Fables, the story of the tortoise (turtle) and the hare (rabbit). My mom wasn’t big on self-esteem, positive reinforcement, and all of the things that you see parents doing with their kids today, but she always tried to teach us lessons that we could apply to day to day situations.
I’m sure that most people have heard of the this story but for those who haven’t I’ll tell it again. Since I have nothing to do but sweep out Chuckie’s Lifetrain caboose, I don’t mind. Anyway, a slow moving tortoise challenged a hare to a race. The hare laughed it off because he was so confident that he could win. He was winning because he was swift, fit, fast, and competitive, was running circles around the tortoise, smirking, laughing, and teasing him about being so slow. The tortoise kept moving at his slow, steady pace, determined to win the race. The hare stopped to take a nap thinking, “This is silly.. I have plenty of time to win. I’ll take a nap”. The tortoise took advantage of the time that the hare was sleeping and slowly made it to the finish line. The hare woke up to find himself a big fat loser.
My mom used to ask us comprehension questions. “What did you learn from this?”, she’d say.
We’d say something stupid like “Take an alarm clock when you race a turtle”, and she’d smack our heads. She was trying to teach us patience. There will be times when you see others ahead of you, doing things that they’re not supposed to be doing, being greedy, making hasty decisions, and trying to get too much too soon. She said that it pays to go about life at a slow and steady pace, realizing that the blessing is at the end of the road.
I once heard my pastor in Arlington, Virginia say “Blessings are individualized”. I always thought that this was so profound, since I had heard most pastors set a common standard for blessings. Good health, nice car, education, good job, nice kids, house with a two car garage. These are not necessarily God’s standards for blessings.. he individualizes things for each person. He does that because He is God and he “can”. He doesn’t have to follow anyone’s standard. No one has the right to tell us that we’re not blessed based on someone else’s standard. While we’re in the process of being patient and working for what we want, we have to realize this: that we’re still truly blessed and don’t have to debate about that with anyone.
Going back to the caboose to finish sweeping… chow. More from the mischievous Lifetrain Scoundrel later…