Patience Is More Than Just A Virtue

I've had my house for sale for seven months with no single offer. When it first went up for sale, I had great hopes that it would sell quickly and at my original asking price, but as the months have dragged on, I've had to lower my expectations and the price more than once. 

People tell me that the timing is just poor, that potential buyers are afraid of our recent volatile economy, and are loath to commit until things become more stable.  

I've had more than my fair share of angry rants within my largely empty house at God, and also at the people whose decisions have caused this volatile economy, leaving me sitting in limbo because of it.  

But I'm also learning some things in the process that I feel like are important.  

For example, I'm learning that practicing patience, while challenging when we're waiting, is a definite action and a way forward when it feels like our world has come to a halt.  

Waiting is often one of the most challenging seasons in our journey of faith. When circumstances seem unclear and progress feels stalled, it’s easy to fall into frustration or doubt. 

Yet, practicing patience during these times isn’t merely passive; it is an active form of trust and surrender. It is an intentional choice to remain connected to God's timing, even when we cannot see the full picture.

The poet Rainer Maria Rilke beautifully captures this truth in his words: 

“Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language. Do not now look for the answers. They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them. It is a question of experiencing everything. At present you need to live the question. Perhaps you will gradually, without even noticing it, find yourself experiencing the answer, some distant day.”

Here, Rilke reminds us that patience is a deliberate act of loving and trusting the process, especially when answers are not immediately within our grasp. 

I particularly resonate with Rilke's exhortation not to "look for the answers...because you could not live them." These words help me calibrate my own timing with God's. It could be that if I got exactly what I wanted in the moment, I would not be sufficiently prepared to receive it wisely and well.   

The Bible echoes this sentiment in Romans 8:25, which states, “But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” The Apostle Paul's words underscore that waiting is an act of hope rooted in faith. 

We believe in God's promises, even when they are not visible. Patience becomes not a sign of weakness but a testament of our trust in God's perfect timing. Like seeds planted in the earth, the growth takes time and unseen effort, but faith assures us that what is planted in patience will eventually bear fruit.

As you face seasons of waiting, consider patience an act of love and obedience towards God. It is a conscious decision to remain steadfast, trust God's plan, and embrace the mystery of waiting. Remember, God's purposes are greater than our understanding. God's timing is perfect, and God's love never fails.

So, choose to practice patience actively. Love the questions, cherish the waiting, and trust that you will see God's answers come to light in God's divine timing. Keep your hope alive, and rest confidently in God's promises. Your diligent endurance today shapes your tomorrow in ways you may not yet comprehend.

May it be so for us all, and may the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us, now and forever.  Amen.