Holding Pattern

I began to learn to wait. Patient waiting does not come naturally to most of us, but a great deal is said about it in the Bible. It is an important discipline for anyone who wants to learn to trust.

Elisabeth Elliot, Passion and Purity (Revell, 2002), p. 60.

Patience is defined as “cheerful endurance.” Wow! Some people can endure just about anything when the reward is sweet enough, but how many can endure cheerfully? That is the true mark of patience. Let that sink in.

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Elisabeth Elliot’s writing has greatly influenced my life, even as a grown married woman. I truly wish someone had introduced me to her works when I was a teenager, but I am learning that it is never too late to incorporate the principles she teaches: namely, that passion is not sinful and purity is not prudish. Nor are they mutually exclusive. You can have both.