TEST OF PATIENCE
DECEMBER 2012
by Lisa Maki
If there is one area in my life that has been tested over and over again, it is patience. For sure I am not alone in this one. Most of you also struggle with this. And those who have more problems in this area will be tested more. Oh no!
What is it about patience that makes it very valuable to God? Why does God want to work out this character in us? Before I answer these questions, let me explain first the issues behind impatience.
How do you feel when you are waiting in line, waiting for your order in a restaurant, waiting on the phone for a customer service person, waiting in the doctor’s office, waiting to renew your license, or waiting for anything? Doesn’t it make you restless? Doesn’t it make you feel like you’re wasting time? Doesn’t it make you feel that there’s something more important to do? Why do we feel this way? Why is it so difficult to just keep still?
Let me tell you why ... and this is something I’ve learned as a result of impatience. We hate waiting because we hate losing control. Yes it is a control issue that we are dealing with here. I didn’t realize this until I saw it in my husband, and it was like looking at my face in the mirror.
My son and I used to have this habit of making my husband wait for us in the car while we were making last trips to the bathroom or getting our stuff. This caused a lot of frustration on my husband’s part and has been the cause of our fights too. He told me one day, “I want you to be ready even before I am ready so I don’t have to wait for you”. I then said, “Why don’t you want to wait for us but it is okay for us to wait for you?” He replied: “Because I’m the dad and the head of this family”. He was right. And it put me back in my rightful place. It also reminded me of how it used to be for me.
I was a single mom for several years before I was married. I had people under me, taking orders from me. I hated waiting even back then. I wanted everyone to be ready when it’s time for us to leave. I didn’t want to wait on anyone. I had my schedule and I was in control of it. Any change in that schedule because of some delays caused by other people can ruin my entire plan for the day.
Seeing myself in my husband not only made me understand better where he was coming from but made me understand the root cause of our impatience, which is control. At the core of this control issue is a pride issue. They are tied together.
Another issue behind impatience is lack of faith. When we get impatient, we take matters into our own hands, which is a reflection of our lack of faith in God. Men and women get impatient waiting for the right one and make stupid decisions which they regret later on. On the contrary, if a man or woman will trust that God knows what He is doing; and that the perfect one is out there, and that God will send that person in His most perfect time, then he/she will patiently wait on God.
Now we are getting closer to my next point: Why does God want to work out patience in us?
First, God wants to remove control and pride from us. He wants full control over us and our situation so He can work freely without interruptions. This is why almost all our tests in this walk are about patience. This is God’s way of breaking and humbling us.
James 1:3 says: Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience.
One thing that we have to remember is that God is a God of process. Everything He does to us comes in stages and can never be rushed. Our impatience actually blocks and hinders God from doing a thorough work in us. Let me explain this further by using my dog, Piko, as an example. Piko is a mixed breed of Lhasa Apso and Shih-Tzu, meaning, he is cute and hairy. During winter we let his hair grow but during the summer we have to cut it short or he will be miserable, more so because his skin allergies strike during the hot months. I remember during the first time my husband cut his hair. Piko was getting impatient and he kept walking away from Dad. It delayed the haircut process and also caused uneven cut on his hair. As he learned to submit to Dad and the haircut, his hair style looked better and better. It became easier for Dad to do and finish a good work in him. Get my point?
God wants to increase our patience for our own good, so that we can receive the best that God wants for us, without delays or interruptions.
God has given us everything to succeed in this walk. 2 Peter 1:3-4 says:
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
This Scripture clearly says that God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. It also says that God has given us great and precious promises so that we will be able to escape the world’s corruption.
Okay ... take a hold of that part of this Scripture. God has given us His promises so that we can escape the corruption of this world. It is meant to give us hope for our future, so that we will not succumb to the temptations and attacks of the enemy.
Now let me share another Scripture with you that is connected to this previous Scripture and related to our topic on patience.
For you have need of steadfast patience and endurance, so that you may perform and fully accomplish the will of God, and thus receive and carry away [and enjoy to the full] what is promised (Hebrews 10: 36).
Did you see that? You need steadfast patience and endurance so that you may receive and carry away “to the full” what God promised.
This is the reason why patience is so important to God. He wants us to receive the fullness of His promises. He wants us to escape from this world’s moral decay. He wants us to be able to accomplish His perfect will for us. And the only way all these can be achieved is through steadfast patience and endurance.
Remember the impatience issue I mentioned earlier ... the issue of lack of faith? Well, since faith and patience are related, are we still wondering why patience is a big deal to God? Hebrews 11:6 says that without faith it is impossible to please God. God is displeased when we are impatient for the main reason that it shows lack of faith on our part. Thus, when He deals with our issues on impatience, He is simply making us more pleasing to Him. Isn’t that awesome?
To conclude this article, I suggest that you meditate on James 1:2-4:
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Let patience have its perfect work in you.
What is it about patience that makes it very valuable to God? Why does God want to work out this character in us? Before I answer these questions, let me explain first the issues behind impatience.
How do you feel when you are waiting in line, waiting for your order in a restaurant, waiting on the phone for a customer service person, waiting in the doctor’s office, waiting to renew your license, or waiting for anything? Doesn’t it make you restless? Doesn’t it make you feel like you’re wasting time? Doesn’t it make you feel that there’s something more important to do? Why do we feel this way? Why is it so difficult to just keep still?
Let me tell you why ... and this is something I’ve learned as a result of impatience. We hate waiting because we hate losing control. Yes it is a control issue that we are dealing with here. I didn’t realize this until I saw it in my husband, and it was like looking at my face in the mirror.
My son and I used to have this habit of making my husband wait for us in the car while we were making last trips to the bathroom or getting our stuff. This caused a lot of frustration on my husband’s part and has been the cause of our fights too. He told me one day, “I want you to be ready even before I am ready so I don’t have to wait for you”. I then said, “Why don’t you want to wait for us but it is okay for us to wait for you?” He replied: “Because I’m the dad and the head of this family”. He was right. And it put me back in my rightful place. It also reminded me of how it used to be for me.
I was a single mom for several years before I was married. I had people under me, taking orders from me. I hated waiting even back then. I wanted everyone to be ready when it’s time for us to leave. I didn’t want to wait on anyone. I had my schedule and I was in control of it. Any change in that schedule because of some delays caused by other people can ruin my entire plan for the day.
Seeing myself in my husband not only made me understand better where he was coming from but made me understand the root cause of our impatience, which is control. At the core of this control issue is a pride issue. They are tied together.
Another issue behind impatience is lack of faith. When we get impatient, we take matters into our own hands, which is a reflection of our lack of faith in God. Men and women get impatient waiting for the right one and make stupid decisions which they regret later on. On the contrary, if a man or woman will trust that God knows what He is doing; and that the perfect one is out there, and that God will send that person in His most perfect time, then he/she will patiently wait on God.
Now we are getting closer to my next point: Why does God want to work out patience in us?
First, God wants to remove control and pride from us. He wants full control over us and our situation so He can work freely without interruptions. This is why almost all our tests in this walk are about patience. This is God’s way of breaking and humbling us.
James 1:3 says: Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience.
One thing that we have to remember is that God is a God of process. Everything He does to us comes in stages and can never be rushed. Our impatience actually blocks and hinders God from doing a thorough work in us. Let me explain this further by using my dog, Piko, as an example. Piko is a mixed breed of Lhasa Apso and Shih-Tzu, meaning, he is cute and hairy. During winter we let his hair grow but during the summer we have to cut it short or he will be miserable, more so because his skin allergies strike during the hot months. I remember during the first time my husband cut his hair. Piko was getting impatient and he kept walking away from Dad. It delayed the haircut process and also caused uneven cut on his hair. As he learned to submit to Dad and the haircut, his hair style looked better and better. It became easier for Dad to do and finish a good work in him. Get my point?
God wants to increase our patience for our own good, so that we can receive the best that God wants for us, without delays or interruptions.
God has given us everything to succeed in this walk. 2 Peter 1:3-4 says:
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
This Scripture clearly says that God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. It also says that God has given us great and precious promises so that we will be able to escape the world’s corruption.
Okay ... take a hold of that part of this Scripture. God has given us His promises so that we can escape the corruption of this world. It is meant to give us hope for our future, so that we will not succumb to the temptations and attacks of the enemy.
Now let me share another Scripture with you that is connected to this previous Scripture and related to our topic on patience.
For you have need of steadfast patience and endurance, so that you may perform and fully accomplish the will of God, and thus receive and carry away [and enjoy to the full] what is promised (Hebrews 10: 36).
Did you see that? You need steadfast patience and endurance so that you may receive and carry away “to the full” what God promised.
This is the reason why patience is so important to God. He wants us to receive the fullness of His promises. He wants us to escape from this world’s moral decay. He wants us to be able to accomplish His perfect will for us. And the only way all these can be achieved is through steadfast patience and endurance.
Remember the impatience issue I mentioned earlier ... the issue of lack of faith? Well, since faith and patience are related, are we still wondering why patience is a big deal to God? Hebrews 11:6 says that without faith it is impossible to please God. God is displeased when we are impatient for the main reason that it shows lack of faith on our part. Thus, when He deals with our issues on impatience, He is simply making us more pleasing to Him. Isn’t that awesome?
To conclude this article, I suggest that you meditate on James 1:2-4:
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Let patience have its perfect work in you.
Lisa Maki is the founder, publisher, and editor of God'z Gurlz. More about Lisa at ...
http://www.godzgurlz.com/regular-contributors.html
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