Dave’s Monday Blast – January 13, 2025
I read an article from In Touch Ministries a few days ago. The title was “Who Needs Patience?” The author commented: “The ability to wait is an essential spiritual discipline.” I know that you remember that old bumper sticker…”Be Patient! God isn’t done with me yet.” The idea is certainly humorous, but it also reveals something about humankind. The author comments: “Notice how it demands nothing of the driver and subtly shifts the burden of patience to the person following him or her. Patience is something we all want from others but likely don’t desire for ourselves because, to be honest, we don’t like to wait or be inconvenienced, especially in a world that expects instant gratification.”
If patience is a virtue, what is it? It is the ability to tolerate delay, endure difficulty, or show forbearance to others. This trait isn’t something we are born with or receive instantly at the moment of salvation. Rather, it is developed over time with God’s grace and our cooperation. It is the one way we demonstrate God’s love to others, and without it, we will never become the peacemakers Jesus references in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:9). If we impatiently demand that everyone do what we want, the result will alway be conflict.
To get to the root of our impatience, we must recognize the self-centeredness of what Scripture calls our “flesh” (Ephesians 2:3). We often think our rights and desires are more important than those of others. As a result, we become frustrated whenever things don’t go as we want. We shall call that for what it is…sin. Although God’s purpose for our lives is that we respond to His love and grace by accepting His free gift of eternal life with Him, His salvation also includes SANCTIFICATION, or holiness. This is what Jesus meant when He said, “blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). Men of INTENTION know that His goal is to conform us to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29).
Next time I want to unpack this idea of our need for patience and how we can practice this spiritual discipline. Remember, patience isn’t something we are born with or receive instantly at the moment of salvation. It is developed over time with God’s grace and our cooperation.
