My grandma would often say, "I want you to learn from my mistakes so you don't make the same ones." While we're all going to make our own fair share of mistakes we have so much at our fingertips to help us make less. The Bible was written for many reasons, I'm sure, but one of them was to give us hope through what others have done. Hope is a valuable commodity at any place in our widely diverse world.
Do you need encouragement? Read Scripture. The Psalms are filled with David moving from a sigh to a song. Many of them start with his current situation (often filled with cries to the Lord) and we're able to see how he turns his eyes to the One who can help, and by the end of the Psalm He is filled with praise for his Creator.
When I've messed up (again!) I can look at the children of Israel and how they turned away from God again and again and how He gently brought them back and rescued them. God is so compassionate, so filled with love for His creation that He never gives up on us. This is a place from which I draw hope.
How can reading Scripture give me patience? I look at the apostle Paul; many times his plans were waylaid--sometimes due to extreme circumstances. Yet he persevered. He planned many times to visit Rome and encourage the christians there and time after time he was unable to fulfill that plan. Yet he never gave up as he knew it was a God-given dream. When he actually got to Rome he had enormous influence that he would not have had had he gotten there earlier and in other circumstances. My plans may be waylaid and the situations I find myself in not to my liking, but when I persevere and patiently wait for God's timing I find them much more satisfying than a quick fix.
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