Patience is a virtue. Well it was, now it is a legend. There was a time when mankind learned patience, had to stand in lines, wait their turn, had to go to bookstore and if the book was not there, wait six days to receive it. Now patience has been made obsolete, people can download anything, books, movies, music, information, data, and anything under the sun in manner of seconds. No one really waits in line anymore, they are on their Smartphones, tablets, Google glasses, and iWatches. No one has to endure waiting on subway to arrive at work or in cab, they can watch a movie, serf the web, go to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more. The perpetuating of this "I can have it Now" and instant everything has eliminated the capacity for mankind to have patience and many of the other virtues, that can only be learned through experience.
While I do not like Morgan Freeman anymore, I do agree with a lines in "Evan Almighty," when he speaks to protagonist's wife, "Do you think God when you ask for patience, makes you patient or gives you the opportunity to be patience? Do you think when you ask God to make a family more loving, does he zap them with warm and fuzzy feelings, or give them the chance to come closer to each other, even in adversity?" This is entirely missed on the Instageneration, people who cannot go one second or moment without occupy their senses with entertainment. This I can never be bored, uncomfortable, and must always be gratified has even effected the work ethic, I watch as people on the clock, on the job, not on break look at their Facebook, and chat, and text people. When I worked for company, this would have been grounds for a reprimand, and if that did not work, termination of employment, but now people fear political correctness, and so lazy, low work ethic people get to keep their jobs.
The Bible says that patience and other virtues are actual manifestations of love, they are intrinsic, connected like roots and branches of a tree, "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." (1 Corinthians 13:4-7). The reason these virtues of love are dying in society, is because love is dying, "For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred," (2 Timothy 3:2) and, "Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold." (Matthew 24:12). The roots that come from love like patience, kindness, hope, and more are character of love, how you are to behave if you know how to love. A major component to this death of love and virtues and its roots, is technology. Technology has given people the power to never focus on others. Once it was a tool to connect, but now it disconnects people. You can go to meal with friend and they are on their phone, or say hello to a church member at the grocery store and they are lost in their device. Satan is crafty, he has used what was invented to connect people to disconnect them, and make them "lovers of self." From selfies (taking pictures of yourself) to perpetual viewing of something on a screen, people are no longer present, and so they can no longer love. Technology which was meant to keep loved ones connected, is now the weapon that has helped love die in society. Ironic and tragic at the same time.
When I was growing up, we had to be patient and kind. Back then you never hit a girl, or you were punished as a child, now you have to hit a girl so she is equal. Patience was learned everyday, as we had to attend to chores, schoolwork, and wait for even what we wanted like an ice cream. Now children can be on their tablets and devices all the time, at insistence of parents who do not want to parent twenty four seven. In fact, parents are as guilty and are modeling the behavior, I watch as mothers are perpetually on their cell phones in grocery stores, as they walk their kids to school, and driving; while kids look with despondence, for once walking your child to school was bonding moment, now it is bother for the parent.
The Serpent in garden was crafty, he deceived Adam and Eve with partial truth, ""For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:5). Satan did tell a partial truth, "And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever."(Genesis 3:22). Man did indeed learn good and evil and became like One of the Trinity, but the devil left out the price of this wisdom: the loss of eternal life and sin entering world! As a result, animals had to be killed for clothing (Genesis 3:21), and man turn against man (Genesis 4:8), and man became so depraved they had children with fallen angels (Genesis 6:2-7). The serpent, the devil tricked Adam and Eve, as he is tricking us today with technology. He (the devil) convinced man that technology would connect us, and in ways it does, but it is also a catalyst to disconnect us from those around us, and this leads to the death of virtues which leads to the death of love. In essence, we have bitten from forbidden fruit again, and it is bringing death to love; what is ironic is the most sought after technology, Apple products, has the symbol of the forbidden fruit, the bitten apple.
We have become cyborgs as friend name Jessie once said. He said, "look up the definition of cyborg, it is any organic matter that cannot live without a technological devices." Indeed, this is the state of humanity today. We technically cannot live without technology anymore, Farmers use technology to plant and harvest, we need computers to write resumes, to go to college, to file taxes, and to order almost anything, because most stores now are drying up or do not carry specific thing we need. This technological take over seems like the engine of "progress" but in reality, as I have laid out, it is destroying love and all the good virtues God The Father, Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit want us to learn and live. This is why millennials are the most godless generation in history (89% have no religion or have left their religion); because they cannot love because they only love themselves, and so the only way to connect to God and other people is genuine love, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself." (Luke 10:27). The problem is people cannot love their neighbor as themselves because 1) they love themselves more, and 2) the only way to learn love is the first of those two commandments, to love God, and learn love from him, because He is love, "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." (1 John 4:8).
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