Patience Is A Value

How many decisions have you made that you regretted? How many words have you spoken that you wish you could take back? Did you let patience run its course before you made those mistakes? If you are like me, my greatest mistakes have been accompanied by impatience.

I am always looking for connections in life. I think God is using every situation in life to make me more like Christ and to change my heart (Romans 8:28-29). Recently, I have been witnessing impatience in word and deed and have been struck by how often I have asked people to be patient. As you might assume, this has led me to wonder just how patient I am. Please do not think that I am calling you to wait to the point of inaction, but I want to ask you to do more than just count to ten before making an important decision.

Scripture says quite a bit about patience. First, Galatians 5:22 says patience is a fruit or result of the Holy Spirit’s work in a believer. In another place, 2 Corinthians 6:6, Paul says that patience is an indicator of spiritual maturity. We see first that our ability to be patient as we think about the Godliest response to a situation is a work of God and an evidence to prove that God is at work in us. Patience and wise deliberation comes form God.

Then, we read passages that advise us on what we are to do while we are thinking patiently. There is more to the story than just thinking about a problem on our own or reading a Scripture passage that deals with it. Proverbs 15:22 says, “Without counsel a plan fails, but with many advisers they succeed.” We have been created as needy people. We need God and we need other people. When facing a decision we should seek the wisdom of the spiritually mature people we know. We need to talk with people that we know have made wise and Godly decisions in life. This may not be the people that have made the most successful decisions because sometimes success in our eyes does not equal Godliness. So we must be careful in choosing those advisors, but if we are in a local church there is a good chance they are close.

Today is a day of decision. Every day is a day of decision. Some are bigger than others, but there aren't really any insignificant decisions. Will you exercise patience? Will you seek Godly counsel? May your decisions honor God and be the best for you, your family, and the world around you.