Some sinful tendencies do not go away immediately, no matter how hard we pursue personal holiness and pray for God to intercede. Confession and repentance of sin help, but can’t completely eradicate the darkness inside of us on this side of heaven. One of these tendencies for me is impatience. Just the other day I snapped at my roommate because He was taking forever to get ready for church. Ouch.
These isolated incidents of impatience tend to be more easily called out and dealt with. But when we make the habit of impatience into a religious lifestyle, it can cause some prosperity gospel theology. For instance, sayings like “your best life now” or “manifesting God’s promises” headline the use of the Lord’s name as an excuse for impatience (and desires of false idols). But even when we pray for good things, like a loved one’s relief from physical suffering, we can start inventing our own religions when we expect healing immediately rather than wait for God’s sovereign and perfect timing.
As bold as I am to critique, there are a lot of things I want right now that I do not have the patience for. Some of the things I want are aligned with God’s will, but some things are not. I want the emotional security that comes with a Godly dating relationship. I also want to kill the sin that desires this relationship in an idolatrous way. I want to have a good Bible reading habit without having to develop the daily discipline required of it. But I want these things now, without having to work for it, without having to wait for God, and without the possibility of him saying “no” to some of these things.
God commands us to be patient. He commands us to wait on His timing and depend on His strength and provision. He commands us to work and toil each day for many things that we won’t receive today, with no guarantee that we may ever receive these things on this side of eternity. Yet one day, our patience, discipline, and trust will be rewarded in heaven according to our Master’s great mercy.
tjremywng 