In his second epistle to believers suffering under severe persecution, the apostle Peter wrote concerning trials that result in our spiritual growth and development. He said, “And besides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that you are neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:5-8)
As I give careful consideration the list of character-building qualities that every believer should develop in his/her life, I have no problem with adding such things as knowledge, brotherly kindness and love. But, patience? Patience will require some real effort and concentration, especially for me, because as a Christian who is still under construction, I am as one who cries out, “Lord! Give me patience and give it right now!”
One of the most difficult things for me to do is wait. It does not matter for who, why, or for what reason. I am not good at waiting. And, I do not say that with a sense of pride, but with simple honesty.
The psalmist declared, “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.” (Psalm 27:14)
In the day-to-day trials of life, we are often tempted to run ahead of the Lord. It may seem to us that God is asleep or unaware of the very present and pressing need. So, we take matters into our own hands to do whatever we can to remedy the adverse situation.
I am reminded of the children of Israel as they approached the swelling waters of the Red Sea. Before them lay a watery grave, and behind them was the entire Egyptian army, fast approaching in a cloud of dust. Death was imminent, either way. The people felt helpless. But Moses, their God-called leader and deliverer, said “Fear not! Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. (Exodus 14:13)
For some of the people, “standing still” was easy. Early on they had learned to trust the God of their fathers; for others, “standing still” was next to impossible. They wanted to run in fear for their lives, or else ready themselves to fight their enemies in the strength of their own flesh. Many of us today are the same way. In the face of adverse situations, standing still is the last thing we want to do. We want to either run or fight, but heaven forbid that we should ever stand still, for we are afraid of the uncertainty of what might happen next.
We must heed the words of the psalmist, “Be of good courage, trust in the Lord.” Know that God is bigger than anything that troubles you. Know that even though God appears to be slow, he is never late.
Wasting often seems to be a waste of time. Whenever I am tied-up in traffic, or waiting in a checkout line, I can always think of numerous things I could be doing. But time spent waiting before God is time that is never wasted. Rather, it is time invested in a relationship of learning as one comes to know, understand and trust God.
– Pastor Jerry Dunn, Oak Street Baptist Church
