Colossians 3:12-14 NIV
Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering.
What does it mean to have patience as a Christian? The KJV used the word longsuffering. Honestly, I can relate to both words because God has revealed to me this is one of the hardest virtues in my Christian journey. I did not consider myself impatient, at least most of the time. God has shown me in the past few months how I am often lacking patience with myself, God’s timing, my family, friends and people in general. As I spent several weeks pondering on the different virtues that I am called to be clothed with, I am learning this is going to be my long-life battle until I see Jesus to rescue me from my sinful nature.
I found myself praying, Jesus thank you that your patience with me is not what I show toward myself and others. How about you? My nature is to be a doer and fixer. I do not dwell on problems and my inclination is to be solution focused or to find ways to maintain the course of an event or situation. These characteristics are gift from God to me and have served me well in my personal and professional life. However, the enemy also knows the gifts that God has given me. In my pride, I have allowed the enemy to use my gifts against God’s nature that lives inside of me through the Holy Spirit to exhibit pride, arrogance, selfishness. Sadly, I’ve become my own god by relying on my knowledge and strength which are all contrary to the Holy Spirit of God. Can you relate? When was the last time you assessed your patience as a Christian? Have you found yourself asking God for something and then decide to take matters in your hand because God is taking too long to answer? Have you lost hope in you or a family member who has treated you badly on multiple occasions? Have you ever found yourself not consulting God before making a decision ? Have you ever accomplished something and gave yourself all the credit because of your abilities? My friend, the list can go on and on. We have examples from God what patience is throughout the Old Testament and through the New Testament using Jesus as the ultimate example. A couple of my favorite stories in the Bible are the woman caught in adultery (John chapter 8) and the woman at the well (John chapter 4). Throughout Jesus’ ministry he demonstrated what patience/longsuffering looks like as he interacted with the twelve disciples that God had given him and the Pharisee/Sadducees who fought against his teaching that are recorded throughout the books of the Gospel. In addition, the letters Jesus wrote through Apostle John in the book of Revelations warns the churches who were not walking in step with God’s Holy Spirit. Knowing this is a long-term battle in my Christian Journey, I am striving to grow asking God to take over my inner soul, less of me and more of Him. I found myself praying more and refraining from speaking, seeking how I can have compassion and patience when I am tempted to be short tempered or critical. Matthew 6:22-23 has been very helpful as I navigate how to embody patience/ long suffering when things do not seem right, fair or clear to my eyes. I ask God to help me see things through his eyes because only He is good, and I need His eyes so that I can see things through the true light. My eyes only show me the physical world, but God’s eyes reveal the spiritual battles that are waging for our soul. As I embarked on embracing this virtue, I noticed myself learning what surrendering to the Lord’s will truly means. I pray that you take the time to think about what patience looks like in your life. There is always room for growth in Christ Jesus.
