Perhaps you’ve heard it said (I know I have): “Don’t pray for patience, the Lord will give you a trial!” Sometimes it’s worded with specific circumstances, like “Don’t pray for patience, the Lord will put you in traffic!” or “Don’t pray for patience, the Lord will give you a child!”
You can see the innocent humor at work. Patience is a learned experience. It can’t be taught from a book. You have to go through something that forces you to learn it, like a baby bird learning to fly by being yeeted out of the nest. So, with tongue in cheek, we say “oh I don’t want the hard thing, so I better not ask God for it!”
Maybe we should stop saying that.
Patience is closely entwined with trust in God. When we exhibit patience, we demonstrate our reliance on His wisdom and timing. We acknowledge that His plans are perfect, even when they differ from our own expectations. Patience enables us to surrender control, aligning our will with God’s purpose. It is an act of faith that reminds us to trust in God’s faithfulness, even when circumstances may be uncertain or challenging.
Beyond that, listen to Paul and the very mathematical way he attacks the “don’t pray for patience” joke…
And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed…
(Romans 5:3-5)
Paul seemed to think going through something tough was a reason to rejoice, not a thing to avoid. We can get hung up on the hardship and think it’s not worth the patience it produces, but then we miss all the rest of the blessings. Hardships produce patience…then what? Then patience produces experience (which helps the next time we’re in a frustrating time). Then what? Then experience produces hope (the confident expectation that we will get through the frustrating time).
When we stop at “tribulation produces patience” we stop with the scales balanced, “one bad thing leads to one good thing,” and we decide it’s not worth the trouble. The scales aren’t balanced though: Tribulation produces patience, experience, and hope: “One bad thing leads to three good things.” That sounds like a great tradeoff to me. Would you suffer through one bad thing to get three good things out of it? I would.
I need to change my attitude. The frustrating time is frustrating. It’s nerve-wracking. It’s disappointment-filled. But what comes out of it is a trio of blessings from the God who is in control. My life is not my own. He’s piloting the ship. I need to let Him steer, even when the waves are choppy and the winds are fierce.
God give me patience.
~ Matthew