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enCourage Patience – Part 2

He has all the time in the world.

Have you ever noticed that God’s timing is not the same as yours?

It can be hard to understand why our prayers aren’t answered in visible ways the moment we send them up. After all, it’s no problem for God to get you a new job, or spouse, or baby. He has all the money in the world, let alone the tiny bit that would pay your bills. And we know he wants things like people to be healed and the nation to be unified.

So what’s the hold up?

At times it’s spiritual warfare (see Daniel 10). Other times our broken world and faulty freewill get in the way. In all of it, God does his best work in the garden of our hearts. He pursues us with an everlasting zeal, and he has all the time in the world to reveal his love in response to our seeds of prayer.

We might cry out, “Help, Jesus! Save my marriage.” He takes that and reveals our hardened heart toward our spouse. He then hands us seeds of repentance to sow. We plant those in prayer and he springs forth buds of forgiveness and mercy. He harvests those and waters the garden of our hearts with reconciliation.

James encourages us to:

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.
(James 5:7-8)

Rest assured the Lord has heard your prayers. The answers are on the way—whether in this age or the one to come. He’s a skilled gardener, bringing forth priceless fruit of the Spirit.

Let’s pray:

Dear Lord, grow me in love through our connection in prayer. I agree that you are the Vine and I am simply a branch; apart from you I can do nothing of eternal significance (John 15:5). Cultivate more fruit of the Spirit in my life. I ask for an abundance of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.