Hebrews 12:1-2
Many times I have heard to not pray for patience because when you do, God will test your patience. I disagree with this. If you lack patience then you should sincerely pray for it. If you receive the trials, then praise the Lord and thank Him for answering your prayers. Patience seems to be one of the most important fruits of a Christian. According to Hebrews 12: 1-2, we are to run the race with patience. Jesus endured His pain on this earth because He knew that He would soon sit with the Father and wait for His sheep to come Home. As Christians, we should also be patient and endure whatever conflicts might arise while on this earth because we know that we will get to go Home and live with the Lord for eternity. Patience is nearly synonymous with lonsuffering. We are told to have patience, as well as other vital character qualities, in Colossians 3: 12,13 - "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye." In Galatians 5: 22-23, we're told that having these qualities will be evidence that we're filled with the Spirit - "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law." By reading the Bible, we can conclude that patience (or longsuffering) is of great importance in the Christian life. Patience has been one of my major weaknesses. Since I started following Christ, it has been getting a little easier dealing with situations, but I still struggle with it. Some days seem to turn out really well with not being impatient or upset but other days...not so much. I have found something that has been helping me quite a bit. I quote Philippians 4:13 - "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." Sometimes I write it on my hand to remind me throughout the day. It helps me to remember to pray for strength to patiently handle situations. He can do all things and through Him I can do all things. Since He could create the universe, I'm positive that He can give me the strength to be patient. Christ can do ALL things! It brings me joy when He gives me patience and helps me not get upset over something that I would normally get upset about. We must thank Him when He helps us deal with circumstances correctly. We must follow in the footsteps of our dear Lord and have the patience that He has with us. We continually fail Him, yet He never gives up on us. "But Thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, and plenteous in mercy and truth" (Psalm 86:15).