How to develop patience (1)

Mon, 19 Jun 2023

‘One who is slow to anger is better than the mighty.’ Proverbs 16:32

The Bible says that when you pray, God can answer instantly. But nowhere in the Bible are you promised instant patience. Patience is a quality of character, and character is built over a lifetime of walking with God through good times and bad. Here is how God develops patience in us: 1) Interruptions. You sit down to eat dinner and your phone starts ringing. You’re in the bath and someone comes to the door. You’re quickly working to meet a deadline and visitors arrive. 2) Delays. We hate to wait. We have a microwave mindset – we want what we want – in seconds. We have fast food, quick-cook pasta, and instant coffee. We’re like the man who prayed, ‘Lord, give me patience, and I want it right now!’ 3) Irritations. Long lines, lost keys, late planes, phone calls, cold food, flat tyres, occupied bathrooms, traffic jams … the list is endless. Do you know that 90 per cent of heart attack sufferers have the ‘hurried’ Type A personality? The Bible says, ‘And the one who acts hastily sins.’ (Proverbs 19:2 CSB). We speak of the patience of Job, who said, ‘All the days of my hard service I will wait for my renewal to come’ (Job 14:14 NIV). Pray about it, exercise patience, and be confident in God!