Glenn C Stewart, click
here to update your pages on AuthorsDen.
Blogs by Glenn C Stewart
Stew On This 10/4/2016 9:58:23 AM
Join Glenn C. Stewart for encouraging spiritual ideas and tips... www.glenncstewart.com “Waiting is our destiny. As creatures that cannot by themselves bring about what they hope for; we wait in the darkness for a flame we cannot light. We wait in fear for a happy ending that we cannot write. We wait for a ‘not yet’ that feels like a ‘not ever,’” (Lewis Smedes).
Waiting is the hardest work of hope. Why do we so often have to wait? I can’t answer that completely. Part of the answer is that what God does in us while we wait is as important as (or more important than) whatever it is for which we are waiting. When we are under pressure and we must wait, the spotlight shines on our inner attitudes and our character. We must face our anger, unkindness, self-centeredness, and anxiety. We learn that there are some core inner-life qualities that need development.
Lord, we all need patience. But do I have to wait for it? Yes, I know that’s the process. It’s not the events that are important, but how I choose to respond to them. Waiting is part of the process of becoming who God wants me to be.
3 Ingredients for How to Be Patient:
Humility
“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,” (Colossians 3:12, ESV).
In order to be a patient person, you need to become a humble person. Humility is the opposite of being arrogant or boastful. It means we recognize our limits. We know who we are, including both our strengths and our weaknesses. It takes humility to wait patiently because when we wait for something it indicates we are not in control. We are not running the show. We are not calling the shots. Timing is not up to us and that’s humbling.
Trust
“I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry,” (Psalm 40:1, ESV).
Waiting on the Lord requires deep trust. We must trust that God has good reasons for saying, “Wait.” Even though we don’t know what the reasons are, will we trust that God knows what He is doing? I must make the continual, daily decision to say, “God I will trust you, and I will follow you even though the circumstances of my life are not turning out the way I want them to.”
The key is to remember that our view is partial, but God’s view is complete. We only know “the now.” He knows tomorrow as well as yesterday and next year as well as today.
Hope
“For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him,” (Psalm 62:5, ESV).
Hope is confidence. It is the assurance that God will do what He says He will do. Remember the great promise from God in Isaiah 40:31?
“But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint,” (Isaiah 40:31, ESV).
When we wait for God to fulfill His purposes, and don’t short-circuit the process by our own maneuverings, God promises to give us the strength we need. There are times when we soar, others when we are running with His strength, and others when the best we can do is walk by His strength – but we can walk!
I know it’s hard to wait. Patience isn’t easy. But it’s when we wait that God can do His very best work in us. How do you handle the waiting times? Can you relate to my struggles with patience?
More About this Blog and LifeEquip:
If you’re a church leader, pastor, or the leader of a non-profit organization, are you looking for leadership training or team development help? Thanks to the backing of a generous foundation, LifeEquip is able to offer leadership and organizational training at highly reduced rates to meet the needs of smaller organizations. Some LifeEquip services include pastoral coaching, OLA, Everything DiSC, The Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team, and Lead Like Jesus.
