The Spirit of Patience – The Peaceful Road To Things Hoped For

In this world things are moving ever so quickly. Fast food, fast cars, fast everything. Every day that goes by something new comes out to make life just that little bit easier. Supposedly, in the Asian region a robot is currently being made to collect and fold clothes in our houses.

From the equator the world spins just about 1,000 miles per hour but I personally believe that what’s within it is turning at a much faster rate.

It’s much easier to feel left out at this rate where just when you buy the newest plate car a few months later they enhance the model, just when you thought you had the best phone a new one arrives with better features. It’s easy to feel discontented and regularly disconnected from this fast paced environment if you’re not somehow very wealthy and up to date but we thank God for his Word.

Thinking about this I was studying the bible and was brought to a simple but very effective verse;

“The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride” (Ecclesiastes 7:8)

Many of us when faced with a problem do not allow ourselves to work in patience, we unknowingly then operate in pride.
This particular verse is making the direct relationship between the end of a matter and patience, and the beginning of a matter and pride. More so, pride is not joint with the end neither is patience joint with the beginning.

Where pride is present, patience cannot be seen and vice versa.

We must know then that the end of a matter is dealt with patience and has nothing to do with pride. Put into context if we are not seeing the manifestation of the things we hope for, the word sums up, that pride is in operation and as long as this happens you will be stuck in the beginning, an undesirable loop hole.

Subsequently, if you desire to see the end or the manifestation of things hoped for work patience!

HOW

Simply being patient is much easier said than done, being younger I was always told by my mother to be patient and good things comes to those who wait but it meant nothing. I then became impatient to be taught how to be patient, God bless me!

Thankfully the word of God is consistent in every area of our lives and states;

“A man's wisdom gives him patience...” (Proverbs 19:11 NIV)

So let’s get wisdom!

In the book of James I think it can be summed up the best;

“But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing” (James 1:4KJV)

Firstly I want to point your attention to the fact the text says ‘let’; working on opposites, if we’re able to let something happen then that must mean we’re able to not let something happen, or to hinder it. To hinder something beneficial would then, to confirm Ecclesiastes 7:8, take a degree of pride as you put yourself on a mantle as if to say you’re not in need of the patience, you’re in need of the prize.

Consequently, if we can hinder the work of patience then this must mean that patience will never force itself upon us, it’s a gift taken with acceptance. We yield to it as opposed to yielding to our emotions. We must humbly give in to the direction and stability of patience no matter the circumstance.

Secondly, and very importantly the scripture says ‘her’; patience here is actually given a descriptive analysis of femininity. Thinking about Patience as being feminine I was led to a scripture which was quite similar in description;

“Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her” (Proverbs 4:8)

Here wisdom was being described as ‘her’ also, among that the instructions were to exalt and embrace. Within the book of Proverbs there were many more instructions but the means is to acknowledge they were not describing these attributes as a mere thing, they were describing them as living beings.

Please know that wisdom and patience are not just words or things but that they are Spirit! The Holy Spirit! Glory be to God!

By no means am I stating the Holy Spirit is a lady, the Spirit of God has no gender, I am stating that we are taught through the word of God to love and exalt patience and wisdom as a man would do so to his wife.

So we must embrace the Holy Spirit when he means to help us be patient in affliction, to let the Holy Spirit have his perfect work and not quench him. (1Thess 5:19)

In doing this we then are able to become a beneficiary to be perfect and entire, lacking nothing as the scriptures states.

How wonderful it is that the Holy Spirit does the work as the verse says and not us, to have an almighty God who sent his Spirit to do it for us, so all we must do is YIELD! Cast all your cares on God and see his glory. Every anxiety or challenge we face is to be left at the altar as we are instructed by the Spirit of God.

I beg you stop being weary, stop being proud and stop being impatient, I’m sure you’ll agree its tiring but we have God who is our ever present help, whom gave us rest and not work.

Lastly we must get wisdom of the particular thing we are after unless it will become a problem for us. James says if we lack knowledge then to ask God in faith, (James 1:5-6), so wisdom is key to being patient and waiting for our need whatever it may be. This is because we cannot receive what we do not know about as in context it potentially could destroy us. For example, a lot of people ask God for money, maybe millions and wonder why God will not give it.

Our God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob delights in giving to his children as they ask, he takes delight also when his people prosper financially. But God will refuse in many instances to bless a person with a wealth of money if he knows they cannot handle it.

In my opinion a person who is not good with money does not stand eligible to win a £100,000 on the lottery as by the end of spending the money they could have put themselves in more debt than to begin with and God, as you can understand would not do so. The same with all our needs, the primary thing is wisdom (Proverbs 4:7) Just like a good credit rating once this is established you become eligible, matched with patience and your soon sure to see the glory of God in your life.

So search for wisdom today and allow the Spirit of Patience to delightfully take you on a peaceful journey to all that you’ve ever wanted.

Confessional

Father, I thank you for your Word
It upholds the universe and all things thereof
I receive the grace today to yield to the Holy Spirit and
to let you have your way in my situations.
Every challenge I’m facing and every care I have I leave
with you from this moment and receive a calm in my Spirit.
I pray you direct my paths into the way of wisdom so that I
may be lacking nothing. I declare every need is already been
met in my life and I walk in rest and contentment from today.
I give you all the Glory
In Jesus name
Amen.

God bless you all
AX