Refer to STEP 11: I make a commitment to nurture my relationship with God, asking Him to reveal His will to me as well as the power to carry it out.
Have you ever had someone say to you, “Just be patient? God will work it out.” I certainly have; and whenever I hear it, it makes me want to scream. Because it doesn’t mean anything—not really; it’s seems like one of those sappy Christian platitudes that appears to address a person’s needs but doesn’t. It’s like telling a blind man he’ll be able to see in heaven. It just doesn’t work.
At the same time, patience is one Fruit of the Spirit of God. You know the list: Love, joy, peace, patience, etc. The kind of patience that comes from God, however, is not the sappy, sentimental “best wishes” of those who try to help but have no clue about how to do so. Instead, it’s robust confidence that God is in charge and will work everything out eventually. It’s the kind of confidence in God’s sovereignty that would say, “Yea though He slay me; yet will I trust Him.”
That is what real patience looks like. It is the absolute assurance that God has you in the palm of His hand, and nothing—neither life nor death, nor any created thing—has ultimate power or authority over you. You are a beloved child of God and nothing can change that—not now, not ever.
If you know this is true, then whatever befalls you, you can say with confidence, “I know that God is in charge and will take care of me in His good time.” That’s patience; and it’s not a wimpy sentiment. It’s absolutely the most difficult character quality to obtain; but if you can obtain even a small measure of it, your world will never be rocked—not by anything.