Do you consider yourself to be a patient person? I believe most people would consider themselves to not be very patient. Our lives today are so fast paced, everyone expects things to happen quickly. So many roads and highways have been built, some with even 6 or more lanes, that we should be able to get to our destination quickly, but today roads are so packed it is slow getting anywhere whether you are just trying to get across town or somewhere out of state.
People love to order things online today, but they are then impatient when they find out to get “free” shipping, they may have to wait a week or more to get their purchase, or even longer if their product is out of stock. Our patience is certainly tested today at the grocery store when some of our favorite foods, beverages, or baby formula are completely sold out. And don’t even get me started about the patience needed to try and get any customer service person to speak to you on the phone today! We certainly have a lot of reasons to find frustration and to be impatient in our lives. But God’s Word shows us one area of our lives that requires patience.
1 Corinthians 13:4 – Love is patient, love is kind, it is not jealous; love does not brag, it is not arrogant.
In this one, simple verse, the Apostle Paul lists the most important characteristics of love – what love is and is not! The very first characteristic of love Paul lists is that love is patient. Parents of babies and even young children, especially when a child is sick, can have their patience severely tested, especially when the child is crying in the middle of the night …. especially when it continues for multiple nights! Yet the love for the child overwhelms the exhaustion and stress the parent is feeling, no matter how long the issue persists.
Romans 12:12 – … rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer.
Perseverance is a synonym for patience, as it is used in this scripture. Love for aging parents or grandparents can also test an adult child’s patience for a time, often related to declining health issues and the resulting independent living issues that arise. We may face other family, work, or health issues for extended periods of time and we need to have patience with any life situation we or a loved one may be facing.
Loving the unlovable is more difficult, but we need to do so, according to His Word! According to 1 Corinthians 13, believers are to love the unlovable. We are to love people who do not appreciate our love, do not reciprocate in kind, are demanding, and think of themselves as entitled. We need to be patient with them, because His Word shows us there is always hope, regardless of how hopeless the situation may appear to us.
1 Timothy 1:16 – Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost sinner, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.
In this verse, Paul is explaining to Timothy how he was saved so God could display to everyone His gracious and merciful patience with the most wretched sinners. Paul was living proof that God could save anyone, no matter how great a sinner he might have been! The account of Paul’s conversion has been instrumental in the salvation of many others!
Romans 8:25 – But if we hope for what we do not see, through perseverance we wait eagerly for it.
Always show your faith and love …. and be patient in your hope and prayer!