I sat in a busy drive through line.

Well, even though, technically, I was sitting in my vehicle, I was pretty much constantly moving. I paused  briefly to order, then moved forward in a steady stream of cars. After paying at one window, I pulled up to receive my order. I waited about 15 seconds before a friendly girl opened the door, extended my drink, and apologetically said, “Thank you for waiting! Sorry it took us a minute!”

It didn’t take a full minute!

I appreciated her desire to please a customer, but can 15 seconds really count as waiting? If we don’t have 15 seconds to wait on something, or we get agitated after waiting that amount of time, we have issues. It’s like the spinning wheel on our electronics. Sure, we might want it to spin a little faster and load a little quicker, but the work we do on electronics doesn’t even compare to the time it would take us if we didn’t have them. And when using the “shortcut” becomes the long way around, and time is of the essence, just take the long way around!

We need to slow down enough to process what’s going on around us. We need to notice people. We need to be patient with them and not train them to think we’re going to leave them in the dust or call their manager if they don’t move at an unrealistic, superhuman speed.

Yes, there are times we’re all in a hurry, but most of the time, we can slow down…a lot. Develop your patience. Extend grace to others. Encourage them along the way. Help someone even thought it would be faster if you did it yourself. Quit putting off that lunch with a friend because you know it’s going to take several hours to catch up.

Just like putting together puzzles, looking for the right fit and clicking details and relationships together takes time, patience, and perseverance. Enjoy the journey…even when you have to wait more than a quarter of a minute.

Walk worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, accepting one another in love. (Ephesians 4:1b-2)