Job was a shining exemplar of trust and patience, he waited for the Lord to make His point, and trusted Him for deliverance. Americans seem to seldom practice patience anymore; any new trinket that catches our fancy must be seized immediately, even if our pockets are empty, and our checking account has bottomed-out. We circumvent the problem with good old Yankee ingenuity; we grab the plastic monster and charge! Waiting is not the favorite pastime for most of us, we want it right now. Yep, I'm guilty too!While impatience in a secular society is often dangerous, it can become a major disaster in the spiritual realm if we're not willing to wait for the Lord:
Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! Psalm 27:14 ESVToo often we ask favors of God, but when instant answers are not forthcoming we become impatient and frustrated, and doubt God's ability to deliver as promised. Often it's difficult to realize that Gods timetable in no way resembles ours. How often do we give up too soon while the Lord is still in the process of answering our prayers?
Patience is one tough attribute to possess, but we need to trust more in the Lord, and try real hard to get a better grasp of His eternal timetable.
9 comments:
I must admit I have grown more patient over the years, I am 66 years young and willing to wait another 20 or 30 years to collect my reward. :)
I often ponder what it must have been like for the children after the exodus, wandering in the desert and waiting for their parents to die so they could enter the promised land. It must have been a little strange for that last person who died in the desert (was it Moses?). "Hey, Moses, how are you feeling this morning?" It takes on a different meaning... But they still had to wait, patiently or not!
Laymond...
Right! We don't need to hurry up everything. :)
If we could actually see into heaven for a brief moment, perhaps we might even become impatient for old age to overtake us.
Alan...
Recently while reading the exodus account and its aftermath, my mind wandered along the same path as your comments.
Who was the last doomed wanderer, and what was his thoughts, and how he must have felt knowing he alone was holding up the progress of God's chosen people.
Not a good position to be in!
"Who was the last doomed wanderer, and what was his thoughts, and how he must have felt knowing he alone was holding up the progress of God's chosen people.
Not a good position to be in!"
Yep!! Just like the the guy who prays a prayer of thanksgiving for the food at an all men's breakfast! HooooWEE! You know he better not go long!
On a more serious note:
I really like the comparison of how we view our Father to how we view credit cards.
It's pretty convicting that that plastic card is often used to keep us from going through something that the Lord would want us to go through.
Example:
You are a two car family.
One car breaks down and would not be worth fixing.
You have no money for a new car.
You don't want the "hastle" of being a one car family.
You put a seriously large amount of money on the trusty card for a down payment toward a new car.
You and your spouse just avoided an opportunity to learn to be a better team.
You've just avoided teaching a lesson on waiting to your kids.
And you've just avoided having to rely on God to meet your needs.
OUCH!!! I didn't want to type that.
Jeff...
"OUCH!!! I didn't want to type that."
It hurts because it's true. :)
Even as Christians we often bypass the opportunity and privilege of partnering with God on our wants and needs.
It's difficult to REALLY want something REALLY bad, yet decide to wait... after a few days our minds seem to dwell on our wants until we finally give in and drag out the plastic.
Larry,
Excellent post.
Pateince is so hard. It doesn't come easy for most.
I find in the society of fast food and mircowaves we as Christians, Churches, our Elderships don't know what it mean to "Wait on the Lord" and the blessing that comes form doing so.
I have also noticed in my life that asking for patience can be a dangerous thing. Usually when you do you have something bad happen in your life that test's your patience.
Great post.
preacherman...
Appreciate your comments. Great posts on your blog; you certainly have a way of getting everyone involved.
I was hoping patience would be something easier to attain as I grew older, but perhaps because of the fast moving society we're a part of, this just doesn't seem to be happening. :( Waiting on the Lord is tough at any age!
gLarry,
Thanks for your post again. I add one more thought. In ministry I have seen it so difficult for Churches to wait for the Lord. Many times leadership will be quick to make choice about what do, how much to spend, and so on without even waiting for the Lord to guide them. In changing ideas and direction I have seen this time and again and when we fail to wait for the Lord bad things do happen. SO many churches have split simply because they have fail to wait for the Lord to lead. I do believe that the Lord leads if we are patient and follow.
Just what I have observed in my short time in ministry. Thanks again for your adding to the discussion on my blog.
God bless you brother!
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