Fruit of the Spirit Developing Character Patience
In Galatians 4:22-23, patience, or long-suffering, is mentioned fourth in the list of fruit of the Spirit. Patience has been described as the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, problems, or suffering without becoming annoyed or anxious.
The first function of the fruit of patience/long-suffering is to produce endurance. We can define endurance as 'the capacity to remain firm under suffering without yielding to anger, resentment, despair, or self-pity. Hebrews 12 verse 1 speaks of 'running the race set before us with patience' another version says, 'with endurance'.
Hebrews 6:12 "that you do not become sluggish but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises."
So to develop the fruit of patient endurance in our lives offers great benefits. We see that we will reap in due season; that by it we inherit the promises of God; it is a weapon of our warfare that combats anger, resentment, and despair. How good is our God! When we are born again by the Spirit of God, this fruit is deposited into our spirits, we allow the working of the Holy Spirit to bring it to maturity in our lives, as we yield to Him.
Galatians 6 verse 9 exhorts 'let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not lose heart". In Isaiah 40:31, our Lord and Friend tells us a way to combat weariness – wait upon the Lord. Of course a good night's sleep does wonders too. We are spirit, soul and body and need to take care of the whole person. In the natural world, sleep, exercise, water, and sensible eating all contribute to our sense of wellbeing. Also, when our soul feels overwhelmed, a chat and prayer with a trusted friend or pastor will often help us as we share our burdens and cast our cares on the One who daily bears our burdens.
Hope, patience and receiving the promises all blend together; for hope produces patience, which is the preservative for faith in our hearts. Romans chapter 8 tells us if we already have the' thing', there is no need to hope for it. Verse 25 says "but if we look forward to something we don't have yet, we must wait patiently and confidently."
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you wait for Him.
Kath
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