Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
Ephesians 4:2
Many of you may remember the Tom Petty song, The Waiting is the Hardest Part. He may have been right. I find waiting to be one of the more challenging things in life. How about you? Do you struggle with waiting well?
In our society today, we are conditioned to want and get everything fast – food, money, information, groceries, etc. As a side note, Amazon Prime would have been a game-changer when my kids were small. It would have helped with the “I need a tie-dyed shirt to wear to school on Friday“. But I guess not with the “I am supposed to bring brownies to school tomorrow” the night before.
My dad has about the lowest patience threshold that I have seen. Although I’m a lot better than him, patience isn’t one of my virtues. But God has a sense of humor. He gave me my daughter, Alexis, and my husband, Tracy, who are both slow as molasses. Except Tracy drives like a bat out of hell and scares me to death.
There is something that I have been praying about HARD for more than six years now and, although there has been some movement, there hasn’t been as much as I would like. At times, I feel so discouraged but I know God’s timing is different than mine and He has the perfect plan.
If you need to work on your patience like me, here are three strategies to help you with waiting well
#1 Recognize that trials produce patience
The more trials we face, the more opportunities we get to cultivate patience. How’s that for looking on the bright side.
#2 Be thankful
The unwelcome intrusions of waiting in our lives are powerful opportunities to welcome God into every moment, be thankful for Him, and keep our hearts renewed in Him.
#3 Trust God
It isn’t in our abilities to know the time or way God will work things out. The verse below reminds us that God is in control, and we will never understand everything while we are on this earth. Our role is to trust Him and wait with hope as He brings to completion the good work He has begun in each of our lives.
REFLECT
If you struggle with waiting well, what will you do to improve?
