Ephesians 4:1-6 (NLT)
Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all.
The following devotional was part of Friday’s lesson. My fear was that I would put too much on the plate at one time, so I give you this smaller portion today. Call it patience continued…
It’s been said (and I’ve found it to be true) that God doesn’t bestow patience upon us. Rather, he affords us opportunities to learn patience. Through practice. And by experience. Perhaps no place is better suited to offer us these opportunities than the church body. We’re only human, and as highlighted by my fictional tale Friday, prone to issues, dramas, and circumstances. Some we cause and some of which are beyond our control. When people join the body, they aren’t perfect. No where near it in fact. Some are immature, some needy, some clingy, some misunderstood, some bitter, some scarred and scared, some lost still. In other words, they’re babies, of the spiritual sort. And like infants, they need to be nurtured, loved, fed, counseled, and consumed with time. Taking care of such people isn’t for the impatient or faint of heart.
These aren’t times to respond with destructive, condemning behavior. These are the opportunities we’ve actually been praying for!!! These are times to bend and stretch your threshold of patience. These are opportunities to be Christ-like and to grow, for both them and us. Offer encouragement. And, in the end, not only are we growing in patience, but gaining a friend…and a disciple! (“the vision wreaks of the purpose“) Remember, most people don’t come to know Jesus through a sermon or alter call, but by watching our lives. They see something different, something real. (Cheap slogan plug). And they want it! Badly!
Despite being an admirer of Einstein, I’m not much of a mathematician. However, let’s put this into a simple equation even a child can understand…
Jesus is patient with us.
We are to be like Jesus.
Thus, we are to be patient with others.
Practice patience…
