Joyfully Patient

There aren’t many people who are really good at waiting.

Sure, some of us are better than others, but when it comes to something we really want, something we’re really interested in, almost all of us watch the clock, count down the days, or stare at the inbox, hoping that our persistence will speed up the process.

We don’t like waiting.

Yet life is full of it.

And Scripture is full of instruction that a Christian who is waiting should look substantially different from a non-Christian.

– We are told to be anxious for nothing.

– We are told to wait on the Lord (not on luck, good fortune, or the passing of time.)

– We are told to wait thankfully.

And this can seem like an impossible task.

We will it to happen and yet it doesn’t. We try hard, yet it still seems evasive. We want to be joyful AND patient, but it seems like an antithetical combination.

Until we realize, it’s not in our own power to do so.

As Colossians 1:11 reminds us, it’s His power that gives us the ability to be patient with joy.

– His strength gives us the fortitude.

– His might gives us confidence.

– His sovereignty assures us that the future is under control…His control.

So just as we know we need Him to endure to the end, so we must rely on Him to be patient until the end gets here.

And because of Him, that patience can be filled with joy.

Because we know what we’re waiting for.