word for the week is "Patience" (Post #13)

​Fact, you may be delayed, but you’re still on His docket.  He loves you and He hasn’t forgotten you.

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So, the Wednesday Word for this Week is PATIENCE!

Romans 8:25, “But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.” (NLT)

True story.  This morning, I was at my desk working and my kids were seated next to me on the couch.  After I had been involved a bit in my studies, my son made a sigh of disappointment. 

Noticing the sigh, I looked over and asked him, what (if anything) was wrong?  He looked downtrodden and said this to me:  “I’ve been doing my workouts and I’m not getting any muscle.”  I then asked (already knowing the answer), “How long have you been working out?”  He said with deep despair, “3 days.”  You all would be proud to know that I did not laugh at my son.

Now, while his thinking may seem comedic, it is still nonetheless, an honest and proverbial illustration of how we operate sometimes. 

FACT:  We are people who hate to wait.  We workout for 2 days and step on the scale every day of the two.  We look for jobs for 2 weeks and become depressed when we go without calls.  We start businesses and become flustered when we don’t IMMEDIATELY obtain “Wal-Mart” like traffic.  And, in the face of all of this unrealistic thinking, we get sad, we become despondent, and in some cases, we even quit prematurely.

Why do we do this you ask?  Well, the answer is as sad as it is simple.  We do this because we operate like my son.  We want results that in truth we didn’t work for, yet we arrogantly act like we deserve. 

Jesus used Paul to tell us that as we work toward what we don’t have, we must do it with patience and with confidence.  That means I have to learn HOW to wait.  Let’s consider these two elements of waiting within an illustrative context.

#1:  Wait with patience:  There are two people in a “waiting” room (the irony) of a doctor’s office.  One is reading a magazine peacefully and the other is irate, shifty, and visibly upset.  Now, neither person will make it into the back until called; however, only one is operating in agreement with that truth.  Patient waiting is the assurance that it will come when it’s time AND there is no measure of frustration that will change this.  Therefore, patient waiting demands that we must remain steadied and committed to the task at hand, resolving that in time the objective we desire, will be secured. 

#2:  Wait with confidence:  In the aforementioned illustration, the second difference is confidence.  Fact:  both individuals are here because they have an appointment.  What does that mean?  Well, that means, both of them have a place on the doctor’s schedule.  In other words, the doctor has indeed planned and purposed this date to see both of them.  Fact, he may have encountered an emergency with another patient, a shortage in his staff, or even a family matter of his own.  However, none of these hindrances eliminate the fact that he has a fixed plan to see them.  Yes, it may be delayed; however, it is still nonetheless, imminent.  Confident waiting is not only knowing HOW to wait, but also trusting that WHAT I’m waiting for, will indeed come. 

The Bible says in Matthew 6:31-32, “(31) So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ (32) These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.”(NLT) 

The point is as pointed as it is profound:  Fact, you may be delayed, but you’re still on His docket.  He loves you and He hasn’t forgotten you.  Therefore, let’s live like we believe that fact to be nothing less than the unchangeable truth.

Work – Worry + Wisdom = Waiting 

Your thoughts?  Let me know below.  Peace and love family.

Imperfectly,

​Kevin D. Jones, Sr.
@kevindjonessr