If you grew up anywhere around church, or maybe even if you didn't but just knew a well meaning person that liked to hand out random popular saying, you probably have heard something along the lines of "Don't pray for patience! You won't like what God will put you through to teach you!"
"Don't pray for patience! You won't like what God will put you through to teach you!"
I always giggled when I heard this and thought, "It must be right. I'm NEVER praying for patience. That is one thing I never want to learn!" Here is the problem though, Patience is a fruit of the spirit. It isn't something that is learned, so to speak. It is something, that as Christ followers, he gives and gives freely.
Through this 40 day Sugar Fast, I have been convicted of something ( a lot of somethings, but lets just take this one conviction at a time, shall we?). I say "I'm running out of patience!" ALL. OF. THE. TIME. What is wrong with that, you ask? Well if you are a Bible believing, Christ following Christian, a lot is wrong with that.
I say "I'm running out of patience!" ALL. OF. THE. TIME. What is wrong with that, you ask? Well if you are a Bible believing, Christ following Christian, a lot is wrong with that.
Romans 12:12 urges us to "Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction;be persistent in prayer." While the all too familiar 1 Corinthians 13:4 tells us that "Love is patient and kind, love does not envy or boast;it is not arrogant." When do we lose our patience and who do we lose it with? If you are anything like me, it is with the people I closest to, people I love, my husband and my children. They are the ones that hear "I'm losing my patience and it isn't even 8 am!"
It is about to get real. I bristled at this myself because no one likes conviction. It is meant to be uncomfortable, but here is the truth. My running out of patience, was not their issue. It wasn't because of them, it was because of me. It was, is, my sin problem. My lack of asking the giver of all good things for patience. My lack of fruit in my Christian walk.
Jesus says in Matthew 7:7-8 to "Ask and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." We can simply ask for more patience. That is amazing and freeing. All we have to do is ask.
We can simple ask for more patience. That is amazing and freeing. All we have to do is ask.
A lack of patience is a weakness but in our weakness He is strong. So we can turn to Christ. We can stop, in that moment when our 3 year old has made the 5 millionth mess of the day, and ask for more patience. We can stop, when our 9 year old is throwing shade over the electronics policy. and ask for more patience. We can stop, when stress at work causes our husband to be a little less than kind when he comes home, and ask for more patience.
Whatever the circumstance, we just have to ask and remember what Paul urges us in Ephesians 4:1-2 "to live worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love."
So dear readers, I have a challenge for you. This week, I challenge you to ask for more patience in the moments you feel like you are running out or don't have any at all. I challenge you to go to the Father who gives freely and abundantly to his Children. When we are followers of Christ, we can't run out of patience because we can always ask for more.
Who's up for a challenge????
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