Being Patient with God

I’ve worked at a dining and banquet hall for the past 10 years.  One thing I’ve seen time and time again is just how impatient some people can be.  Some groups who come in on Sundays for the family style chicken dinner seem to never be satisfied.  As soon as one platter of chicken is set down, they are looking for the next refill, asking for it right away, as if they are the only table in the dining room.  They have an abundance of food yet they want more and they want it immediately.  I feel like this is how it can be in our faith sometimes.  We have an abundance of blessings in our lives yet we are always looking for more and asking God for answers about what is to come.  God is patient with us, why can’t we be patient with Him?

We live in a culture of instant gratification.  People want things and they want them now.  Our desires to experience certain things immediately and without delay are often fulfilled.  In our advanced and fast-paced world, it is easy to get many of the things we desire right away.  When it comes to our faith, it is not quite the same.  God’s timing is different from our timing.  He answers us in His own ways and in His own time.

How much time do we spend being too focused on the future, asking God to tell us what the next month, year, or five years will hold?  We want to know when He is going to give us a new job, a relationship with a certain person, or healing from a sickness.  It is good to have desires, especially if they can be used for God’s glory and praise.  However, we need to trust in His perfect timing more than we believe we are lacking in something.  “If only I had this or was better at that” we tell ourselves.  God does not withhold good things from us.  We have all that we need in each moment we are in.

​Some people are more patient than others.  It is a fruit we can ask for more of.  Wherever we are at, there is always room to grow.  There is always space to trust more in God’s timing and appreciate the blessings we have in this present moment.  When waiting for answers in prayer and waiting for the next big thing in life, may we all remember that just to know that God hears us and loves us is enough.