Patience

 


They say you should never ask God to give your patience, because He’ll put you in situations where you have to wait.

Clearly, I didn’t pay enough attention to that warning because last week I had to visit TMobile 4 times in order to get my new phone properly set up, and to get the rebates I had been promised.  It was frustrating, because the first three visits took a total of over 8 hours!

Our society has conditioned me toward impatience.  Internet connectivity that used to require a series of tones on my phone and a long wait, is now instantaneous.  These days, I can order something from Amazon in the morning, and have it arrive at my doorstep by evening.  I can cash a check without even going to a bank…

And as I sat there in the TMobile store - waiting - I thought about the Israelites who waited to be delivered from slavery in Egypt.  That wait was over 400 years long!!!  And then I thought about those who waited for the Messiah, they waited for over a millennium!!!

The truth is that sometimes God makes us wait.  And sometimes, the things we wait for never actually happen…

But whether what we wait for happens or not, the waiting has its benefits.  For the Bible teaches us, “Patience produces character, and character produces hope. And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts.”  (Romans 5:3-4)

Today, God is smoothing my rough edges, and I am learning to be patient and to hope.


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