Life or Death (Proverbs 21:5)

Patience is a virtue that most do not have. However, if we posses it, we will surely be blessed.

"The thoughts of the [steadily] diligent tend only to plenteousness, but everyone who is impatient and hasty hastens only to want." Proverbs 21:5, Amplified

It takes diligence to get to a goal. The higher the goal, the more diligence one needs. It is like the fable of the tortoise and the hare. The hare ran with speed and became overly confident and hastened toward the goal only to convince himself that his win was sure. Meanwhile, the tortoise was slow and steady. His speed never faltered, but his diligence to win the race brought him to his goal.

Goals are never intended to be reached quickly, they are challenges set up to bring out the best in each one of us. Athletes set many goals for themselves just as chefs and other professionals do. We, as Christians, are given the goal to be like Jesus. Upon our conversion, that goal seems so very far away. But through a series of trials and tests, more of the flesh is taken away so that more of Him might shine through. To be like Jesus is not something one attains overnight, rather it is actually something achieved upon death. But our diligence to exemplify Him in our lives will be rewarded and to hasten that goal will only lead to tragedy.

Presumptuous Desire and Hastiness (Proverbs 19:2)

Solomon now covers two different things about knowledge and hastiness.

"Desire without knowledge is not good, and to be over-hasty is to sin and miss the mark." Proverbs 19:2, Amplified

Both are actually a little similar to each other. Let me explain. Both have to do with greed.

To desire something and not understand and know about it is just silly. Every child sits in front of the television and tells mom and dad that they want every toy in every commercial. They have no idea about the cost of the toy, or even if they will really like it, but they know that they want it. We can also do this this as adults, only we have the power and the money to act on such impulses. These impulses can lead to horrible investment decisions. So it would be better to lift everything up in prayer and take in as much knowledge about what it is that you desire. It could be the gas mileage on that car you want, or the foundation of the house that you want.

Hastiness is a sister of greed. It makes us hurry to get to a certain point because we are afraid that someone else might get there first. Hastiness turns everything into a race.

We can liken these two parts of the verse to each other in that if we are hasty we are not bathing anything in prayer and were are in danger of missing the mark. An archer does not hasten to release his arrow. Rather he sits patiently waiting for his aim to be precise because he does not want to miss the mark.

In our lives, presumptuous desire and hastiness might just be our down fall.

Wrath (Proverbs 14:29)

In the past decade, the escalation of wrath has been phenomenal. Children dying at the hands of angry parents. The introduction of the term "Road Rage". One of the signs of a Christian is he who is slow to anger. It is an attribute of God. The Lord has had almost 2,000 years since the death and resurrection of Jesus to destroy the world, but we are still here despite the proverbial spit in the face.

"He who is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who is hasty of spirit exposes and exalts his folly." Proverbs 14:29, Amplified

I know that for myself, there have been some times where I have gotten angry at something simply because I did not fully understand what was going on. If I had remained calm and asked one or two more questions, or let someone explain what was going on, I would have never looked like the idiot. Patience allows for one to fully envelope his surrounding s and understand what is going on and calculate a response. James encourages Christians of the same thing, "So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God." (James 1:19-20, NKJV)

I encourage anyone who may have this issue in their lives to pray to the Lord and find a way to manage the anger. Hastiness is never from the Lord. Wrath is not becoming of God. Peace and patience are two attributes that never left Jesus' side. I used to be that man who was hasty in his anger, but it was because of unexposed sin in my own life. I this is the case for you, confess it quickly. If not, pray that the Lord would lead the quest of self discovery and become a better man (or woman) because of it.