Patience Is Tricky

“Patience: def. endurance, constancy, steadfastness, perseverance”

                   -         Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament

          

Patience is a tricky thing. 

Patience is Passive. 

 

My sons Nathaniel and Jesse have both had braces on their teeth.  They sat in the orthodontist’s chair month after month while the orthodontist decided how much to tighten those braces and how long those braces where going to be on their teeth.  Nathaniel and Jesse really had to be patient in enduring a process they had no control over.  So, sometimes patience is passive.

Patience is Active. 

Rebecca homeschooled Nathaniel every day of his K-12 years.  She was constant as she patiently waited for the “results” as Nathaniel entered college.  Rebecca’s patience has paid off in Nathaniel’s good grades and success in college, but trust me she was VERY active in teaching Nathaniel while being patient for the results outside of her homeschooling.  Sometimes patience is active.

Mostly Patience is Both.

 

James 5:10  “Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.”

The prophets are the perfect example of patience at work.  The prophets were active in steadfast patience as they preached repentance to the people of God.  The prophets were passive in patience because they had to wait on God for the results of all of their preaching.

Patience for us too.

For you and me, patience is the stuff that we do in-between the “amen” in closing our prayer and the “thank you, Jesus” of seeing the results.  Sometimes there is nothing to do but wait with a thankful heart as God works things out.  But, most of the time there is the “keep on keepin’ on” of the work until the Lord delivers his desired results in both the situation and in us.