From the Pastor - Patience Reflects Our Trust in God

Patience reflects our trust in God

by Rev. Jack Hulsey

If Americans were a patient people, there'd be no such thing as the internet, microwave ovens, cell phones, or instant mashed potatoes. Like so many of the biblical virtues (humbleness comes to mind), patience is one of those things we know we should practice but find dozens of reasons not to. Does the term “instant gratification” spring to mind? This is a mind-set that pervades modern society like a computer virus, don't save up to buy something purchase it on credit! Get it now – life's too short to wait. Hurry and grab your piece of the pie before someone else gets it.

I've had so many people tell me they “sat for 45minutes at a railroad crossing” so, one day I decided to time an average train going by. It took a little over 2 min. to get through the crossing, but for those of us whose lives are jet propelled rushing from point A to point B, two minutes of a train clickety-clacking past your windshield is like holding your hand over a flame.  We simply don't want to wait. We are an impatient people. Sometimes we take that attitude toward God. “Lord, give me patience and give it to me now," isn’t that what some of us seem to be saying? For those of you who are too new at being Christians to know this, God rarely works on our schedule. In this sense, we can say that patience understands that God takes care of things at his own pace and in his own time.

I sometimes think that when we all get to heaven and God's full plan is revealed to us, we’ll understand that in His eyes we are like children in the back seat of the car during a long vacation trip (Are we there yet? Are we there yet?) . He knows exactly where we’re going, when we’re going to arrive, and all the stops along the way. Our job is to trust Him. We are on our way to the greatest blessing there ever was, which is eternal life in him, and whatever may happen along the way – whether good or bad – is just scenery we should learn to enjoy.

“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us," says the writer of Hebrews 12:1. I don't know if it's possible to be patient and enjoy it at the same time. He didn't say "sit still in the back seat of the car,” He used the analogy of running a race, which, when you think of it, involves working about as hard as you can. Running a race with perseverance means to me performing maximum labor even when you can't see the finish line. But there is a finish line. The closing words of Hebrews 12 describe it as a “kingdom that cannot be shaken.” (Heb.12:28).  To have patience is to pursue that kingdom with all your might, not just sit with a bland smile on your face waiting for it to happen. Patience is the measure of our trust in God.
(Praise & Worship, Woodlake Baptist Church / March 22, 2015