Patience

Romans 5:3b-4,  "We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character and character, hope."

Psalm 37:7a,  "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him."

      Often we frustrate ourselves.  In a society where mail delivered by the postal service is called "snail mail," patience is in very short supply.  And yet it is obvious from Scripture that God prizes patience, perseverance, endurance.  There are at least two good reasons why patience is a difficult characteristic to develop.  First, we don't want to be patient.  We want what we want when we want it.  We want our own way on our own timetable.  Second, the way we develop patience is by practicing it in adversities, and nobody wants to go through hard times.   We greatly value our comfort and convenience, but God values character, and character comes through through patiently enduring difficult circumstances.

      It takes patient endurance for us to accomplish many of our goals.

  There is an old proverb that says you must wait for an egg to hatch if you want the chicken.  You will get nothing if you crack the egg too soon.  The farmer must wait for the seeds to sprout, to grow into plants,and to produce the crop before he can harvest.  If he digs up the seeds before they have time to grow, mature, and produce, there will be nothing to reap.  Think of Moses tending sheep for his father-in-law for forty years before he led the Israelites out of Egypt.  David was pursued by Saul for years before he became king.  And Joseph was sold into slavery and unjustly imprisoned for some years before he rose into prominence in Egypt.  The years of adversity were not wasted.  God was preparing each of these men for the special assignments He had for them.

      Most of us want to pray,  "Lord, please give me patience, and send it right now!"  Hymn writer Phillips Brooks said,  "The hardest task in my life is to sit down and wait for the Lord to catch up with me."  Often we have to wait for God to catch up with our plans and desires, and we can either wait impatiently or patiently.  Think about it this way: our impatience reveals our dissatisfaction with God and with the way He is directing our lives.  Our patience reveals our trust in God and in his plans for us.

Father, may I wait patiently for You to develop character in me and carry out the plans you have for my life.  Amen.