Be Patient
Patience has never come naturally to me. I have a sense of urgency about almost everything. I don’t like to wait… can anyone else relate? Whether it’s waiting in traffic, waiting on people, or especially waiting on God, my flesh wants things now. But one verse continually helps me keep my heart steady:
2 Peter 3:15 (NLT) – “And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved.”
This reminds me that God’s patience is not passive, it’s purposeful. I think back on the years of rebellion in my own life, the times I ran from His voice, and how He patiently waited for me to come home. He could’ve been done with me, but instead, He waited for me to be done with me.
Aren’t you grateful that God didn’t give up on you either?
Every fruit has a protective layer to keep it fresh and beneficial. In the same way, the patience of God isn’t punishment, it’s protection.
But in our culture, we tend to value instant over patient:
We want instant diet results instead of developing a healthy lifestyle.
Instant success instead of learning to steward what we already have.
Instant social media connections instead of building real friendships.
Instant obedient kids instead of walking through hard parenting seasons.
Instant fairy tale marriages instead of out-serving each other through the messy middle.
Every instant scenario will leave you disappointed. But a patient, consistent, faithful, Spirit-led life produces health, prosperity, and deep relationships that last.
When Joshua faced his first major test as Israel’s new leader at the Battle of Jericho, God didn’t give him a military strategy; He gave him a Patient strategy.
Joshua 6:2-4 “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands… March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days… On the seventh day, march around the city seven times.”
Can you imagine how much patience and trust that required?
Six days of circling a wall, saying nothing. Just walking in silence.
But on the seventh day, after patience had its perfect walk, the walls came down. They weren’t circling aimlessly; they were circling on purpose, with purpose.
That’s what God calls us to do: keep showing up even when it doesn’t make sense. Keep showing up to that job, that prayer time, that teenager’s room, that strained relationship—and trust that your obedience is building something unseen.
However, Joshua’s very next battle, Ai, went differently. This time, he didn’t wait on the Lord. He consulted man, not God, much like we often run to google instead of God- acting impulsively, wanting immediate answers. Joshua moved forward with man’s advice and failed and then did what many of us do, he blamed God.
But in Joshua 7:10, God said, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face?”
God hadn’t sent him to Ai, and had Joshua patiently waited on the Lord, He would’ve revealed that there was so much more going on than met the natural eye.
Ai actually means “the ruin” in Hebrew and how fitting it is. When we rush ahead of God, that’s exactly what we do, we ruin things. But when we humble ourselves, seek His direction, and wait, God redeems what we thought was lost.
Friend, I don’t know what “Ai” you’re facing today, but I do know this: God is never late. His patience toward you is His protection over you. And if you feel like you’ve ruined everything, I’m here to tell you God will author a redemption plan just as He did for Joshua. He gave him a strategy to get up, face Ai with the right plan, and TAKE IT for the glory of the Lord.
Don’t give up in the waiting. Don’t act out of impatience. Keep circling with purpose. Keep trusting. Keep believing.
Because the same God who tore down Jericho’s walls and made Ai a heap of ruins will move mountains for you, just be patient.
