BIBLE PASSAGE:
So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to
the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there.
(1 Kings 17:5)
MEDITATION:
May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.
(2 Thessalonians 3:5)
“Perseverance” definition:
continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties,
failure, or opposition: the action or condition or an instance
of persevering: steadfastness.
We can see from this definition that an important element to perseverance
is patience. Without patience, we would ‘give up’ whenever we encounter
difficulties, failures, or opposition, wouldn’t we?
Are you a patient person? Paul tells us that perseverance (and patience)
is a gift from the Lord. James tells us to allow perseverance to become a
part of our lives.
Let perseverance finish its work so that you may
be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
(James 1:4)
When we practice patience, we can discover other things will fall into place.
Why? Because we are quenching our own desire to be in control and waiting
on the Lord and His timetable. We don’t stop serving Him when things start
getting tough or unraveled. Our faith is increased through our patience.
In God’s Word, we can see how problems can result from a lack of patience:
He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come
to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. So he said, “Bring me the
burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” And Saul offered up the
burnt offering. Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived,
and Saul went out to greet him. “What have you done?” asked Samuel.
Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you
did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling
at Mikmash, I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against
me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the LORD’s favor.’ So I felt compelled
to offer the burnt offering.” “You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said.
“You have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you; if you had,
He would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. But now
your kingdom will not endure; the LORD has sought out a man after His
own heart and appointed him ruler of His people, because you have not
kept the LORD’s command.”
(1 Samuel 13:8-14)
A lack of patience can cause disobedience. Saul’s lack of patience (and his
resulting disobedience), caused him to miss out on God’s blessings. Not only
that, but it impacted others as well. Instead of Saul’s kingdom becoming a
lasting dynasty, the people would now have to adapt to a new ruler.
Ultimately the people benefited because their new ruler was David, who was
a man after God’s own heart. This is the kind of person we can respect and
the kind of person we should strive to be as followers of Jesus. A man after
God’s own heart is one with patience that leads to obedience.
Elijah was a man of patience and obedience. When God told him to go to
the Kerith Ravine, he obeyed; and he stayed there. He may have had some
restlessness and twinges of impatience, but he remained steady and did as
he was told.
ACTION:
Questions to consider:
– Do I allow my impatience to get in the way of God’s plans?
– What blessings could I be missing out on, due to my impatience?
Think about the difference in Saul’s life, if he had only waited the rest of
one day. However, he decided to take control, and missed out on how the
Lord planned to bless him.
“if you had {obeyed and kept the command from the Lord},
He would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time”
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, I know my selfishness often gets in the way of Your
plans for me. I know that I should trust You more in all things, so help
me to increase my patience. I want to readily accept Your timetable so
I will not miss out on Your blessings. Your Word has shown me how
patience can improve my obedience to You and Your plans. You know
me better than I know myself, so I ask You to teach me to become a
person of patience, who will trust You in all things. Help me to stop
being controlled by my own thoughts about how things should be,
and to patiently wait for You, even when I don’t understand Your plans.”
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