This is by far one of the things that I believe God enjoys teaching me the most. There is some kind of phrase or story that goes something like this: If you pray for it, God is going to give you opportunities to practice it. In my case, I pray often for patience and God hears me every time. I know this because I have lots of opportunities (and challenges) to practice growing in patience.
Some lessons in patience are bigger or harder than others. Ben is on a unique deployment schedule. He deploys for 2 months at a time, but sometimes is only home for only 2 – 3 months before he has to deploy again. And while he is home, he has to go on any number of trips that can last from 5 days to unknown – literally. Each time he is gone, especially when its a trip, I can’t know for certain when he will be home. I have to be patient and have trust. Some trips this is easier than others.
My lessons in patience aren’t always this large. Just the other day, I found some beautiful meyer lemons at one of our local grocery stores. I was so excited. *Back story* We have a eureka lemon tree in our backyard and I got my first harvest a few months ago. I had so many lemons I spent quite a bit of time looking at different things to do with them. I found something I had never heard of before – preserved lemons. It is a staple in Moroccan and North African cooking (neither of which is familiar to me, but I love to try to make new things). Just salt and the lemons in a mason jar. Even though my lemons weren’t the kind typically used, the recipe said my eurekas would be an ok replacement for the typical meyer lemons (who knew there were so many varieties of lemons!) For 3 weeks! After patiently waiting for these beautiful lemons, they were done. I had a recipe and couldn’t wait to start. Got my lemons, got my roasted garlic, and my fettuccine (I went Italian, that’s my wheelhouse). I figured I’d get braver and branch into the Moroccan after I knew these lemons were good. On my trip back to the refrigerator with the remaining lemons, time stopped. In the next moment, the jar, and all of those precious lemons, were on the floor. The glass had shattered.
I was devastated. My dinner was delicious. But my lemons were gone. All that waiting, and for what? Ben was deployed at the time so he didn’t even get to taste the fruits of my waiting. I haven’t attempted to make them again, it takes so long for them to be ready, and if they can be gone that quickly, is there really a point?
Then I saw those meyer lemons (the kind that the recipe would be amazing preserved). There was no question, I immediately grabbed them. Because even though I was still sore about my clumsiness, I knew I had to do it again. I can still taste that meal and am willing to wait the 3 weeks to have it again. So, presently we are a few days into our wait. Ben is not home, but he will be by the time they are done. I’m so glad that God gave me another opportunity to wait patiently.
It’s incredible how patient we really can be, when we know what is waiting for us at the other end. I know that those lemons are going to be amazing, because I’ve tasted them already before. Being patient this time is much easier already than last time. What is cool about this experience of patience, I think, is that I’m choosing to see it as a lesson from God. It makes my waiting and patience more than just an act of willpower, it is a way I am training my soul and my heart to be patient in the bigger things, especially in times when I am waiting for God’s timing to reveal His plan for my life and our family.
If my little story got you interested in trying to preserve your own lemons, I used this website: http://www.daringgourmet.com/2014/04/08/how-to-make-preserved-lemons-moroccan-middle-eastern-cooking/
And if you’re interested in the dinner I made after you practice your own patience skills, check out: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-fettucci-5560. I grilled some chicken and tossed that in as well. Enjoy!
Daily Graces 