How many times in a day do we struggle with the character defect of impatience? Things are not happening as quickly as we thought they would. Someone isn't meeting our needs in the way we thought they should. We even think God is slow in how and when He responds to our prayers – particularly when we tell Him what we need and expect Him to respond immediately. We feel stressed, worried, and irritated and since we think no one cares, we decide we better do what we need to do to "get this show on the road." Too often the immediate action we take causes more trouble for us than we could ever have anticipated.
I hold you by your right hand — I, the Lord your God, and I say to you, don’t be afraid. I am here to help you. Let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. (Isaiah 41:13, Galatians 6:9 NLT)
At its root impatience is really unbelief in a good God. God promises that He will always be there for us and that all things will work together for our good. However, we don't really believe we are watched over and cared for. In other words, impatience is really one expression of our self-will as we remove our will and our life from God's care – and we already know that disaster awaits us when we do that.
The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. (2 Peter 3:9, Romans 12:12 NLT)
Prayer: Heavenly Father, Help me to trust You with my life – even the parts that frustrate and irritate me. Help me to do the next right thing and leave everything else with You, trusting that You will make all things right as I surrender to Your will. Amen
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