The Virtue of Patience

One of our everyday desires is success—or to see our expectations come true. The verse in the above scripture teaches that it all depends on the Lord. In fact, Isaiah 45:7 points out that the Lord creates darkness and evil just as He does light and goodness. So our endeavors in life should be based on God's will, because as much as we hope for success, we could end up with bankruptcies. Two of the most common teachings in the New Testament are faith and love. We escape the evils in this world only through the mercy of the Lord. And to stay under the umbrella of His mercy, one has to keep these two codes of life: love and faith. We can see in the world what is happening to the human race because of violating these laws. All the evils and the sufferings tell us that to live in peace and prosperity, it is mandatory to walk by the rules of God. In this article, I will show you one important way to succeed in life by applying one of the virtues of love and faith.

All the things we do in the world seem to be only interpersonally connected. Our jobs, our social life, our family relations, and our relationships are all tied to other people. But that is not the whole truth! The Creator of human life is always there as the third element — as a judge and a decider of things — since He is the Eternal Lord. So we have to widen our perspectives and see things from a bigger point of view.

Every success and achievement that we acquire in life has two major inputs: one is our hard work, and the other is the favor of God. The hard work part is obvious. But the favor of God is something that is attained through virtues other than diligence. Ecclesiastes 9:11–12 tells us that time and chance happen to all, to own success through the favor of God. You enjoy your diligence as long as the natural enthusiasm is fired up inside you.

There are a lot of successful people in the world in different sectors. Most of these people do not maintain their success and fame for a long time — they just live by their past achievements. But a few keep the beauty and greatness of their works alive for a longer time in their lives. You can try to work hard at any time, but to bring forward that gift of yours whenever you like can be out of your control, because it does not reside in the brain and the mind like your skills. Rather, it is something that flows from your inner being to your consciousness. The gift is there — naturally given to you. But to open the springs wide and let the world drink from them whenever you like is something that needs wisdom.

Like a fire that keeps burning as long as it is fed with fuel or wood, in the same way your gifts can glow and burn brightly for the rest of your life if you continue to receive the right inputs through your daily interactions with God and with people.

There are specific codes of life that we are supposed to know and keep, which in turn reward us with favor from God to let our gifts spring up more. The idea behind patience is that it is the road through which we understand these codes of life (The Will of God) with minimum cost. If we are enlightened with the will of God, then all is well.

Here is the focal point of our discussion: every time we start our journey to capture success, different paths appear before us. Only one path is perfect; the rest have some flaws. So time and chance will stand before us before we make the decision to choose one of the paths. These "Time and Chance moments" have nothing to do with our business, but they are opportunities to please God by sacrificing our urges that make us busy.

At such a point, if we do the will of God by being patient, then the light that will guide us to choose the right path will shine in our minds, assuring the optimum success. Never be confident, without pleasing God, that what you are thinking or deciding is right. So God gives us a chance to receive His light through our virtues, which are completed by our faith. This faith is described as expecting God's goodness with certainty, by choosing to be patient to please Him whenever His will and our ambitions clash with each other at the hand of our volition.

So here is what our faith does through patience:

• Serve our people by sacrificing our time, wants, and needs.
• Control our ego with empathy and wait for God to respond to our disputes.
• Exercise prudence during important changes in life, avoiding rushed decisions driven by emotion.

Always be a person who walks in schedules rather than being randomly guided by emotion. This will help us optimize our tranquility and efficiency. These are all forms of wisdom that will please God, who is the only one who can decide our success — according to Romans 9:16.

1. As mentioned earlier, our lives are invisibly interconnected with God. And all our victories, successes, and prosperity depend on His lovingkindness. For this reason, if you ever find yourself at a crossroad where patience seems to be required, then acknowledge God's Lordship by prioritizing His will. In the story of 1 Samuel, David had multiple opportunities to kill Saul and save his own life once and for all. But he was patient, bowed to his knees, and showed mercy instead—by trusting God.

2. Sometimes ideas come into our minds that advise us to try something new. And if we are deep in spiritual exercises, walking under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, then such new ideas may seem like revelations from God, and we may be lured by our emotions to try them. But God is specific about His instructions, and any diversion from His will always costs something. Sometimes the truth is revealed to us later, and we repent and return to our path. But at other times, we walk farther without realizing it, and restoring our wholeness costs time—and more. That is why, no matter how much we are enticed to try new things, it might also lead to loss. Remember the story of Saul, where he was ordered to destroy everything that belonged to the Amalekites in 1 Samuel 15. But he saved some cattle (probably with good intentions), and that cost him his kingship. Hence, we must be patient in dealing with our emotions.

3. Another issue related to patience is time. As a Christian, it is not only you who has plans to accomplish—God, who dwells in you, also has His own Kingdom-related purposes to fulfill through you. And one of the ways to synchronize with His will is by being sensitive to timing. It starts from the small things we do. There are many verses in the Bible about waiting and the reward that follows. It may seem difficult to bear, but Hebrews 10:36–38 teaches us that it is just a little while, and afterward, the Lord will serve you Himself. “A little while” may mean minutes, hours, or days—so do not be discouraged. When Jesus was called to heal Lazarus, He responded after four days. It is better to wait and reap tomorrow with the help of God than to rush and lose today.

Patience is a basic virtue that makes one suitable for God to work through. Patience helps us to exercise love. It also helps to manifest our faith in God. Whenever we are given time and chance to please God by sacrificing our time for the sake of love and faith, we are standing at the point of choosing success. That is the secret of life. Without pleasing God, running here and there and trying many things may result in nothing—or very little. But with God, you can input a little effort and reap a lot. Such a life is the foundation of transformation and prosperity, as the grace of God will be easily poured out on us.