Patience

According to Google, patience is the “capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset”. In the Bible, this quality is often regarding relationships with people and God. I struggle with the ability to be patient consistently. When I feel like someone is making another person suffer, especially if that person is me, I often begin to get angry. Most of the time my impatience is internalized only, but sometimes I will lash out. Patience means bearing with the perceived faults of others and desiring to help them rather than get angry with them.

Romans 2:4 says, “Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” Thank God that He is patient with us, meaning that He tolerates our delays in obedience, the trouble we cause, and suffers our rebellions without getting angry. How fearsome it would be if we did not know that God is patient with us! How awful it would be if we felt that every time we messed up, God retaliated in some way! But God understands our struggles and weaknesses and His desire is that we return to Him and allow Him to build righteousness in us.