Virtue

Faith- To have faith and believe that God is real and that He loves me. Also, to have faith that Jesus Christ died for my sins and I can be saved and redeemed through Him.

Hope- Hope is an abiding trust that the Lord will fulfill His promises. Hope is also optimism and enthusiasm in working through hard times.

Charity – Charity is the pure love of Christ. It is the kind of love He had for everyone.

Virtue- Virtue begins with our inner thoughts and desires. Those thoughts and desires become our behaviors, which become our habits, which mold and shape our character.

Knowledge- There is the saying, “you can’t take it with you.” This is true but we do get to take our knowledge with us. It is important to gain all the secular and spiritual knowledge we can.

Patience- Patience is the capacity to endure trouble and opposition without anger or frustration. It is also accepting God will for me in my life.

Humility- Being wiling to submit to the will of God and honor Him in all things. Humility is not weakness it is a sign of strength.

Diligence- To be diligent one needs to be consistent earnest and energetic in living your life the way God wants you to.

Obedience- Follow all of Gods’ commandments and obey the laws of the land as well.

Patience is a Virtue

I choose the virtue patience. Patience is the capacity to endure trouble, opposition, or suffering without becoming angry, frustrated or anxious. It is the ability to accept God’s will and accept His timing. When one is patient they are able to hold up under inner pressure and face adversity calmly and with hope. It is necessary to have patience in everyday experiences and relationships. It is important to be patient with all people, including self, while working to overcome faults and weaknesses.

I have anger management problems. These issues stem from feeling unloved and ignored when I was growing up. I acted out to get attention from my parents and it worked. Somewhere along the way subconsciously I decided that I never wanted to be weak and anger was powerful so my anger served two purposes. One purpose it served was that I got attention from others and the other purpose was that my anger made me feel powerful instead of vulnerable and weak. In my life, anger is the opposite of patience. My anger is closely related to my impatience toward others and myself.

As I work on my anger problems I see my patience growing. My father is a wonderful example of a patient person. I have always wondered how I could be raised by him and not pick up any of it from him. I want to be a better person and I want to be the best mom possible. In order to achieve this I hope by working through my anger I will find more patience. I chose this virtue because it is the one I need the most work on. It is the one I struggle with the most But I know that through God all things are possible and I can change myself from the inside out with His help.

I can cultivate this virtue by doing several different things. I have to recognize a need to change and admit that a change needs to happen in my life. I need to ask for help. We can only do so much on our own. I have asked for God’s help and I have asked for professional help from my therapist. Now I have been making a conscious effort each day to be aware of my actions and words. I take a few minutes each morning to review what I am working on and throughout the day as situations arise I use relaxation techniques to relieve stress and tension. Change is possible. Just like Pavlov classically conditioned his dog I can retrain myself be react differently to certain stimuli, such as irritating or anger provoking situations.

I am in control of me. My thoughts, actions and words are choices I make. God has given me the ability to choose the person I want to be. I am thankful for opportunities to learn, grow and to lean on Him for help and guidance.

“Patience is a virtue possess it if you can. It’s seldom found in women but never in a man!” – My best friend Lisa’s favorite saying