I like what John Updike says about our next topic - Patience. "A healthy male adult bore consumes each year one and a half times his own weight in other people's patience." If you are like me I am sure you know people in your life who "test" your patience. Phrases that often come to mind when we become impatient are the following: "Just let me do it," "Shut-up and get to the point." I think it's kind of funny to imagine myself saying these very words to people I know, and I have used them, but generally just for laughs, but how many times have I used these very phrases in the course of a discussion but never verbalized them. Most people would say I am a very patient person. That maybe true because what they see on the outside may seem to be a very patient individual, but if they could look into the window of my heart, I think they would find another person who struggles implementing the fruit of patience in his daily walk.
Another word for patience is "long-suffering." The bible uses this word often to describe God's "patience" with His creation as it relates to our sin and his judgment of that sin. "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance" - 2 Peter 3:9 (NASB).
Now comes my discussion starter. I find it rather easy to display the Fruit of the Spirit externally, but don't you think Paul's purpose in sharing these attributes with us was so we could also learn to live out the Fruit internally. I mean, do you really want to live the rest of your life acting like a person who can demonstrate patience on the outside but inside never finding any connect with the Holy Spirit, no internal victories when it comes to experiencing patience. Share with me your thoughts, quotes, stories, testimonies on this subject. What have you found to be the hardest challenge when it comes to dealing with Patience.
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