Patience is a virtue

The best things in life are worth waiting for. All things come to him who waits. Patience is a virtue. These are all sayings or quotes that people hear or say hundreds of times throughout life. They're easy to throw out there when needed, but they can be really frustrating to hear.

I am an extremely impatient person. Long red lights drive me crazy, and unless I really want or need something, I won't wait in a line that's too long. I'm trying to be better, but this patience thing is tough.

It is also hard for me to be patient about the major things of life, such as the future. I have often told God it would be really convenient for him to either work on my time table or just send me a quick text letting me know what's coming. Unfortunately, he doesn't really work like that, and so I have to work on my patience just like the rest of the world.

There are certain things that I feel like I have been waiting my whole life for. Everyone has something like that in their life. There's that one thing that you have always had a desire for, but God hasn't brought it about yet. It seems like it is always in the back of your mind and heart, but some days it feels stronger than ever.

I read a verse the other day from the New Testament that said how Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness. That sent me on a mission to find out how long Abraham had to wait before God fulfilled his promises. Abraham was 75 when God made his first promise, saying that Abraham would become a great nation. That's kind of hard to accomplish without any kids, so I can imagine how excited Abraham must have been, thinking that he and Sarah were finally going to be parents.

Fast forward 24 years. Sarah still has not had any children despite God's promise. If it had been me, I would've felt abandoned and angry at God for teasing me with a promise only to not fulfill it year after long year. But finally, God speaks about his promise again. He tells Abraham that he will finally be a father to Sarah's child...in another year. Talk about testing one's patience!

After reading up on Abraham and Sarah and how they had to wait 25 years from hearing God's first promise to the fulfillment of that promise, it gave me a new look on being patient. It showed me that God's timing is not my timing, but he is always faithful and always fulfills his promises.

Abraham and Sarah had their moments of impatience and frustration with God, but God was faithful in the midst of their impatience. And despite the fact that it can be cliche and an overused saying, the best things in life truly are worth waiting for.     

2 Corinthians 4:8-9

Sometimes this is just the reminder that I need:

2 Corinthians 4:8-9 ~ "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed."

These past couple weeks have been pretty stressful with classes ending and with finals. It's easy to get frustrated with the little things and think that nothing is going right, and things are just too difficult to deal with. But we're reminded that nothing can break us. No matter how tough life gets, we will not be destroyed. So as much as my finals can stress me out and perplex me, I won't be in despair! 

Habakkuk 2:3

Habakkuk was one of those books that I rarely read because I just didn't get it. Until, however, I heard a short sermon series on it that opened my eyes to what God was saying. Despite the fact that Habakkuk and God are talking about Judah, I find it very easy to relate this book to different areas of my life.

Habakkuk 2:3 ~ "For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay."

This verse reminds me of how faithful God is. No matter how long it's been since I've heard God's voice or since God fulfilled a promise to me, I can know with certainty that his timing is perfect. Whatever he has for me has its own appointed time. Despite the fact that I think certain areas of life take forever to get to and others take forever to get out of, I can have peace knowing that nothing ever lingers in God's timing. Nothing is ever late or false with God. However long you feel like the road has been, know that God's revelation for you will certainly come and will not delay!