In the Gospels there’s a story about a sick man whose friends brought him to Jesus on a bed.  Because of the crowd they could not get near Him, so they climbed up on the roof, tore a hole in it, and let him down in front of Jesus. The Lord was moved by their faith and healed him. The lesson here is faith is persistent. 

     Such faith moves God. Nothing is more powerful than God being moved to help us. In Hebrews 6:12 we are told to “imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” The greatest miracles often require the greatest faith and the greatest patience. Faith and patience go together because patience is a demonstration of true faith. 

     We see this demonstrated with Abraham, “the father of faith,” who was already too old to have children when God called him. Then the Lord made him wait an additional twenty years for the fulfillment of the promise. We are told that Abraham did not grow weak in faith as he waited, but “In hope against hope he believed” (see Romans 4:18). There’s a thin line between faith and presumption, but one characteristic of true faith is that it grows stronger with time, not weaker. Presumption, on the other hand, often sets a time for an expected result, and when it does not come within that time, it fades.

     Last year I had an extraordinary encounter with the Lord which lasted three days. One purpose for this encounter was for me to see the degree of my impatience, impetuousness, and stubbornness. Many times these have caused me to miss something God had for me or wanted me to do. I was shocked to learn how many times I had missed God’s purposes, opportunities, or assignments for my life. So many divine connections I needed and miracles I would have seen. I was also told I could not be trusted with the authority the Lord wanted to give me until I dealt with these three major strongholds.  

     When I compared myself to others, I thought I was doing better even with these flaws, and I may have been, but I am not the standard. The Apostle Paul wrote that we are without understanding when we compare ourselves to others (see II Corinthians 10:12). 

     I asked the Lord to help me with these problems, and He has been most faithful. Discipline to grow in patience has been a daily lesson. I recently flew my plane to Dallas, TX, then to the Gulf Coast, then back home and had headwinds on all three flights! I have been flying planes for fifty years and I can only remember one other flight when I had headwinds in both directions but never on three consecutive flights. That is so rare for me that I tell people who ride in the car with me to expect traffic jams, construction, or something to hold us up. 

     I was appalled when shown how many times I missed the Lord’s will or missed something great from Him because of my impatience. I was also shown that in the times we are entering, to not patiently abide in Him and in this fruit of the Spirit could mean life or death. 

     If you are also constantly beset with obstacles and things that force you to slow down, instead of cursing the devil, you may want to find out who’s really behind this and embrace the discipline. Remember, He disciplines those He loves (see Hebrews 12:6). Don’t waste your trials, especially the ones that challenge your patience.

© 2021 Rick Joyner. All Rights Reserved.