Galatians 5:22‭ AMP

But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is love [unselfish concern for others], joy, [inner] peace, patience [not the ability to wait, but how we act while waiting], kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Recently the Lord had me studying the fruits of the spirit. As I read through every fruit, I was amazed at how patience was defined in vs 22 of the amplified version. It says that patience is “not the ability to wait, but how we act while waiting.” This really woke me up! I had to really assess my heart to see if I was truly walking out the definition of patience.

Many times as believers we can take a passive stance while waiting for the Lord to move on our behalf. We can mistakenly believe that we are being patient by just “waiting” on God to change our circumstances without playing our part. The scripture above shows us clearly that patience is both waiting and doing.

James 2:17 tells us that “faith without works is dead.” So it’s not enough to just sit there and say you are trusting God to come through for you! We have to put some action in to fully walk in patience as we trust God!

Here are some acts we can take while in the waiting to walk maturely in patience:

  1. Prayer
    Prayer is super vital in our relationship with God. It’s our way to communicate to Him and for Him to communicate back to us. Prayer is what drives us closer to God and strengthens us in the waiting. As you pray, speak life into whatever situation you are believing God to work out for you! Your words have power, use it wisely!
  2. Worship
    Worship is another vital tool we can use to exercise patience. To worship God is to honor, to revere and to acknowledge God in all we do. This can be done through singing, dancing, giving, serving at your local church and/or in your community etc. Worship is a lifestyle that places God first above all else in spirit and in truth.
  3. Choosing to Trust God
    It’s one thing to say you are patient. It’s another story to stand patient while trusting God all together. Philippians 4:6-7 instructs us to deny anxiousness by replacing it with prayer and thanksgiving. This will lead us into God’s peace which guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. This is a beautiful promise we can rest on, but it first takes our part to push worry aside and trust the Creator to see us through.

I’m sure there are additional steps that can be taken while in the waiting to exercise patience, but these 3 steps are a great start!

I believe that God is taking us through a season where passive Christian living will be a thing of the past. My prayer is that we will grow in patience by exercising our faith while standing still, knowing that God has us safe in His hands!

Prayer:

Lord, I pray every every person reading this newsletter will learn how to act in faith while waiting for you to move on their behalf. I pray that the spirit of faith will rise to believe and trust that your Sovereign hand is aligning all in place. May we all walk maturely in patience and may it build our character and refine us as gold. In Jesus name I pray! Amen!

Until next time…