Delight and Be Patient

When I first thought about writing about patience, I didn’t understand how it was too different from last month’s theme, peace. But it is. Vastly different and yet, just like the rest of the fruits of the spirit, so intimately connected, it is difficult to cultivate one in your life without running into the other ones.

But why patience? Why is patience something even to be had? Why is it so emphasized in our culture with, “good things come to those who wait” and in Scripture, being named as the fourth fruit of the Spirit.

Psalm 37.7&9 tells us, “be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices! For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land”. And Philippians 4.6, “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God”.

While, “good things come to those who wait” is true, it goes much deeper than that. God’s Word shows us that God gleans good out of the waiting. He promises over and over that those who wait on Him, trusting in His good and perfect plan, will know victory over death, relief from injustice, and rescue out of suffering. God calls us to wait on Him, or to be patient. God does not give promises lightly, so when He promises that He will deliver those who wait on Him, He means it.

Don’t you ever just want to snap your fingers and in a flash find yourself in the perfect situation? Say, for example, you haven’t run in years [don’t wonder to yourself if I am writing from personal experience or not;)]. So one day you decide it would be a good idea to run. You run, and let’s be honest, it has not even been a minute and you are dying. All too soon you find yourself completely frustrated, disappointed that you didn’t hit the ground running. You wish you could just run and run, with no problem at all, for miles, but you know that is not even physically possible for you. The thought makes you want to completely give up, throw in the towel, walk home, and put those running shoes away.

Did it ever occur to you that such a situation, or any one like it, is an act of impatience? That urge we often feel to already be crossing the finish line, skipping all of the blood//sweat//tears it takes to get there, is in direct defiance of the patience that is of the fruit of the spirit of those who are in Christ Jesus.

So I want you to stop and think. What is that thing, that current thing that you just wish you could see finished? Maybe you want to be a master pianist, photograph 15 weddings this year, or maybe you just want to freed from this difficult relationship with a family member or friend that is draining you and bringing you down.

I think that we need to take a step back and wonder, where do these urges come from? Why do we so ache to see the completion of some current circumstance? Are we being sure of this, “that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ”? [Philemon 1.6] If we are so ready to see the finish line, are we really trusting that the journey to getting there is the best one He has for us? Patience. Patience, my friend. He who began a good work in you IS going to finish it.

And I know, this is the hardest thing to believe when the circumstances are painful. When awful things that are so outside of our control are happening in your life or the lives of those around you. Even when we flip on the news and see that young children are being done injustices that a child should not even know exist, how can we not grow impatient? How can we not be outraged that the victory seems so far off?

I will tell you what, there is Someone who understands your ache better than anyone else ever will. His name is Jesus. The ultimate carrier of patience. The One who faced the most trying circumstance. For years, years and years, He had to be separated from the One whom He loved most, His Father. If you haven’t heard the heart-wrenching, gripping story, you can read about it in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. While He was so long away from the One whom He shared every part of His existence with, He was on earth, demeaned to the limitations of humanity. He was limited physically, emotionally, and mentally. He stepped down from His perfection, His holy sanctuary, and existed among those whom had worse than ill intentions towards Him. And the entire time, He knew what was coming. He knew that He would die a bloody death and bear the worst suffering. Can you imagine the agony? The absolute torture that lay before Him, and yet He had to wake up each day, closer to carrying His cross? And yet, He chose to do it. Surely He must have desired to skip ahead and be back in that most heavenly home with His glorious Father. And yet, “the Author and Perfecter of faith, who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross” [Hebrews 12.2].

So when I think of Jesus, headed towards His suffering with a willing heart, I think of the words :: endurance || steadfast waiting || p a t i e n c e.

Patience is more than just a virtue that makes you an easy-going person or the one everyone feels relaxed around. Patience cultivates character. Romans 5.3-5 says, “we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us”. So lift your heads friends, because your endurance, the patience with which you take a step forward each day, is building a hope in you that is transcendent beyond your circumstances.

So here I challenge you, that finish line you are aching for, the calm after the storm that you so desire to see, take a step back and ask, “why?”. Why aren’t you already there? Why isn’t the finish line already in sight? There is a reason. Our creative God does not let opportunities for growth and perseverance just pass by. He uses every one of the circumstances in your life, good or bad, to prosper you, grow you, love on you, and to sing praise to His name. This “in-between” you find yourself in, it is not wasted time, to just be passed by with impatience. It is an opportunity. An opportunity to understand the patience of your Savior better. It is a chance to seek out the better in every situation. It is a time to witness beauty in the midst of the storm. Cue my most favorite cheesy quote, “it isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain”.

Or, as Paul who said it even more real,

“rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” [Romans 12.12].

– Charissa Wong