8 Verses for When Your Patience Is Wearing Thin
Share
I sat on my friend’s couch last week trying not to throw the video-game controller in my hands against the wall. The TV screen darkened and then brightened again with a prompt: “try again?” I slammed my thumb on the “yes” button for the 15th time, and the game started reloading… again… slowly.
Sometimes we are impatient because we are in something for the long haul. Parenting young children or caring for an aging or ill loved one. Praying for a lost friend to come to Christ. Working in a job or ministry that is struggling to get on its feet. All of these are acts of love, but as the weeks and months turn into years, we can get caught up in the banality of it all. We can grow impatient in the day-to-day workings.
The two verses above encourage us to remember that love is at the center of all we do. We need endurance, and it helps to remember that we serve others because we love them, and because Christ first loved us. Although we can grow tired of the work we do, Galatians boosts us with the reminder that “we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Ultimately, patience, love, and self-control are not just good character traits; they are Fruits of the Spirit that help us to grow in Christ-likeness. We must pray regularly that God would grow these fruits in us, through both challenges and everyday life.
But why?
Because there are two questions that we must answer about our lives: How have we honored Christ and followed him, and how has that life pointed others to Him as well? May we have strength in the battle, not only so that we can glorify God with everything we do, but so that through us, others will see Him shining through.
It’s dangerous to pray for patience – it means that God will send situations your way that will try your patience. But what an incredible thing it would be, if someone who doesn’t know Christ could be encouraged and challenged by your supernatural grace and peace. And what a relief it is to know that no matter what happens, we can rest in the assurance that God has it under control.
I hope that these verses encourage you through all of life’s challenges. The Bible has so much more to say about patience. This was just a sampling of verses. But as you go through life, may everything you encounter, both good things and bad, draw you further into the Word!
More from this author
5 Prayers for When Everything Is Going… Right
How Do You Explain the Easter Story to Young Kids?
Why Does Jesus Rebuke His Terrified Disciples in the Storm?
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Merlas
Bethany Pyle is the editor for Bible Study Tools.com and the design editor for Crosscards.com. She has a background in journalism and a degree in English from Christopher Newport University. When not editing for Salem, she enjoys good fiction and better coffee.