Don't Pray for Patience

Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD! O Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy! If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning. (Psalm 130:1-6 ESV).

 

I have been asked many times how one might develop patience. Usually I jokingly reply, Well, never pray for it!” Typically that brings a vacant stare and I explain that when God desires to help us develop patience it is always accomplished through trials of “various kinds” (cf. James 1:2-4). The truth is all of us could use more of this wonderful discipline. We simply are not very good at waiting, whether it’s for food to be served, a traffic light to change, or test results to arrive. In our fast-paced world, waiting is usually an irritating inconvenience.

 

My favorite time of the year has long been the fall. It signals the start of several months of some of my favorite pastimes. Football season begins, the landscape bursts with color, hunting seasons of various kinds commence, and some of the best holidays of the year are contained in this quarter of the year. So, I pass the rest of the year looking back with fondness on past experiences and anticipating new memories. As a child, I eagerly anticipated Christmas.

 

When the psalmist writes that his “whole being waits,” perhaps you, like me, can relate to that feeling. His heart and soul long for a sign from God, a flicker of light while hanging out in the depths of darkness. He wanders back and forth between calling out to God and reminding himself of the goodness and faithfulness of God. This is that time of our lives when we are in the most dangerous position for fear to grip our hearts. It creeps into our waiting when there’s a possibility of bad news or failure. That can make the situation feel unbearable. Like the psalmist, we must keep our eyes fixed on God, the source of hope for this life and forever. There is no outcome that God will not help us handle.

 

The easiest method I have found in waiting on the future blessing of God to come is in reflecting on the past blessings. He has never failed me, nor will He begin to do so in the future. Try it for yourself!