What is patience? Patience is: perseverance, tolerance, understanding, endurance, calmness, not hasty or impulsive, and amid difficult circumstances capable of waiting.
Are we capable of being patient? Well, let’s see? When your child spills that red punch on your new carpet! Your teenager says, I hate you! Your husband lines his boots up in the dining room! When you start to park your vehicle someone just pulls right in to the place where you were going to park! A poor hair cut! You aren’t losing the weight you expected to! Someone gossips or slanders you! Your child tells all in a circle of friends! There are so many instances when our patience is tried and most of the time we blow it.

There are some things worth fighting for in this life but patience is a character that only God imparts in our life. What I have experienced is the older I get the less things disturb me. I remember when I use to think I was raising perfect children. Boy was I humbled by learning they are imperfect just like me. My patience was short because I expected so much out of them. Then I learned about friendships were built on understanding the other person’s view.

What about those times you are put to the test of patience? You receive a phone call that your mother’s health is failing and you cannot get to her. Do you panic or think impulsively? What about your marriage? The love you felt when you first met is being put to the test? Do you immediately think its time to head to divorce court? What about your faith? You have prayed and sought the Lord and he hasn’t answered yet. Do you try and help him? You know what I mean? Give the Lord a helping hand which results in less than the best answer.

Patience is definitely a virtue that most of us haven’t mastered yet. But as I grow closer to the Lord I realize how patient he is with me.

How can we attain patience in the world we have live in? God’s Word is the best place to learn how we can be patient.

“Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus.” Romans 15:5 this speaks to us as Christian’s that we must be patient with one another as God is with us. This way we can be a greater witness to our neighbors and world around us.
“And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;” Romans 5:3 We need to learn that the testing of our faith and all we believe is God working patience in us. Yes, I don’t think we will ever learn patience until we are stretched to our limits. To learn to glory in testing is knowing God considers us worthy to discipline and it proves his love for us. Imagine being left to your own devices?
“Strengthened with all thy might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;” Colossians 1:11 Consider this as God taking time to work in your life so he can get all glory. God wants us to learn patience as he is patient with us. After all, godly character comes from above.
“Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” Hebrews 12:1 In other words the Lord is saying to us: keep our eyes on him and do not let circumstances, tribulations, trouble, persecution, slander, gossip, adversities or anything that can entangle us to sin rob us of keeping the goal set before us. That goal is the cross on which Jesus Christ freely gave himself so that we could be free.

Patience is the fruit in the person who is surrendered to Christ Jesus. In closing keep this in mind:
“Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” James 1:3,4