The Word:
Read: 2 Peter 3:9, John 19, Galatians 5:22-23
There have been many occasions in my life and most likely yours, when I needed to refer to a dictionary. I remember when I was a kid I always asked my mom what a word meant or how it was spelled. As I recall, most of the time she would say to me, "Use the dictionary." She wanted me know what the words meant for myself and to rely on the dictionary as a constant resource for my spelling needs. As an adult you'd think I'd stop asking what something means or how it was spelled, but I've found as I search the scriptures that there is always a use for a regular or a Biblical dictionary. It is amazing what you'll find as you refresh your memory of a spelling or a definition.
On one occasion I looked up the word "patient". I found the word in the dictionary and read the definitions that accompanied it. I was in for a surprise on this occasion because we all use the word patient but do we know what it totally means? In the particular compact Webster's Dictionary I was using it laid out the following as the first definition:
"Patient - Enduring affliction or pain without anger or complaint."
Pause for a moment and let that definition soak in...
