Something I definitely am not good at is being patient! But God has been teaching me about patience, yip. Some days are better than others and I pass with flying colors. Others days I fall of the horse even before I get on.
Patience seems to be more of a challenge when we are going through difficult times? Who can say that they have a patience problem when everything in their lives are going along smoothly? When a crisis comes into your life how patient are you?
God says in His Word that His time is not our time. Lets say the following happens to you. Today you have your own business all is well you have been doing very well for yourself and your family. Your type of work is mostly for local government (municipalities) and as we all know from resent news, etc. that there are major problems as far as cash flow goes.
Suddenly your (contract) work is put on hold and you are not getting any income. In the meantime you have to live. You have to pay your bond, vehicles, school fees, telephone, water & elec. just to mention a few. Now lets move this story along a bit it's now 8 months down the line and you are still struggling to get paid and new contracts are not coming in. You have tried to get other contracts advertising and even writing letters to other municipalities, trying to get work overseas and in Africa, but nothing happens. You even try looking for another job and your wife who has not worked for a couple of years tries to find work with no success.
In the meantime God provides for you and your family on a daily basis in the form of donations, and with your "little computer business" on the side, etc. But you are really in dire straits. How patient are you now?
You pray daily asking God to be gracious to you to have mercy on you, but tomorrow you wake up and nothings changed. How patient are you?
To add to your patient's you know that God is working even though you cannot see anything happening in the real. So your patience and self-control is tested on and on and on until you either loose your patience or God releases His favor over you.
Unfortunately there is no quick fix for trials. Faith is very important apart from patience. The only two things that can interrupt faith are: the manifestation of what is believed (what we believe for); or the manifestation of doubt and unbelief (telling God I don't really trust You). Our faith must continue even when it seems that everything and everyone is against us. Much easier said than done. But God says with Him all things are possible so when you are over your pity party you will be able to believe exactly that.
In Christ, we can remain standing firm on the inside, because we know that our real life is within us, not in the people or circumstances outside of us.
Lord help me to do something DYNAMIC for You today!
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