wait on Him... James 5:7-8...

Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord.

See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth,

being patient about it, until it receives the early and late rains.

You also, be patient. Establish your hearts,

for the coming of the Lord is at hand.

James 5:7-8 ESV

Patient... no one really likes to be patient these days...

that's why waiting is so hard...

but James tells us to patiently wait...

like a farmer... for his crops...

The farmer knows he waits for something precious...

it is his livelihood... his life...

The farmer invested time... energy... resources...

to prepare the ground...

plant the seed...

weed...

The farmer's waiting is filled with work...

not just watching...

not sitting twiddling thumbs...

or playing checkers on the front porch...

But yes... there is waiting...

Patiently waiting for the promised seed to sprout...

to poke up through the ground...

burst forth into life...

The plants sprout... but still there is more waiting...

for the precious fruit... the grain... the crops... the harvest...

Seeds don't sprout fruit...

they sprout plants which need to mature...

before they can grow fruit...

James tells us the waiting for Jesus is the same...

the ground has been prepared...

the seed planted...

the sprout bursting forth...

but it's not yet time for the harvest...

God prepared the ground of the earth...

ever since the Fall in Eden... He's been cultivating... the hearts of His people...

preparing them for the Seed...

Jesus came... did more preparation... 

revealing the precious nature of the fruit...

Then the Seed was planted in the ground...

miraculously He sprouted up in three days...

and in these days of growth...

His people... His church... are maturing...

but it's not quite time for the full harvest...

This is where we wait patiently...

weeding...

keeping predators away...

doing the work of the farmer...

diligently... waiting and watching...

the seasons and times...

for the coming harvest...

And it will come...

And [Jesus] said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter

seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day,

and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how.

The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear,

then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe,

at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."

Mark 4:26-29 ESV

Wait patiently...

watch the rains come and go...

doing their work...

Wait patiently...

work to weed out sin in your life...

Wait patiently...

bring light to a dark world...

love the unlovable...

deal with integrity when all others cheat...

respond with kindness... instead of offense...

reveal the precious nature of the coming fruit...

for the day of harvest is coming...

"The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man.

The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom.

The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy

who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age,

the reapers are the angels. Just as the weeds are gathered and

burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age.

The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out

of his kingdom all causes of sin and law-breakers, and throw them

into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping

and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun

in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. ..."

Matthew 13:37-43 ESV

And great will be the harvest...

wait on Him... Romans 8:23-25...

And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits

of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption

as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved.

Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?

But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Romans 8:23-25 ESV

Firstfruits...

the taste of what is to come...

at the time of the full harvest...

Firstfruits of the Spirit...

the wonder of living currently in the year of the Lord's favor...

this odd time of promise for Believers...

The time of His eternal indwelling power...

housed in our still corrupt deteriorating flesh...

Though our outer self is wasting away,

our inner self is being renewed day by day.

2 Corinthians 4:16 ESV

The taste of life in the Spirit...

fills those who believe...

with longing for perfection... eternity...

We groan... at gray hairs...

wrinkles...

aches...

pains...

weakness...

because our hearts have experienced...

have seen... something better...

Like creation...

Believers wait with eager longing...

for His return...

for the fulfillment of the adoption...

the redemption of bodies...!

This is the hope... the awaited expectation...

for which we have been saved...

the promise of something more...

more than we can ask for or imagine...

but not yet see...

So we hope... wait...

with patience...

steadfastness...

endurance...

perseverance...

because it is the promise...

of Him who cannot lie...

wait on Him... Psalm 40:1-3...

I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry.

Psalm 40:1 ESV

Waiting patiently for the Lord... when it comes to our prayers... assures... He will lean down... and hear...

Waiting implies expectation of being heard...

of being noticed...

of receiving what we are waiting for...

But if we become impatient... tired... fed up...

we become hopeless... or just plain mad...

we leave...

How many times have you given up on waiting...?

in a doctor's office...?

on hold...?

in a line...?

When we give up the waiting...

we are assured we will NOT get what we were waiting for...

It is the patient waiter who is rewarded...

the one patient in waiting who receives what they have waited for...

I waited patiently for the Lord...

He inclined to me and heard my cry...

Don't give up your prayer...

never stop waiting on Him...

He is trustworthy...

He will hear...

He will respond to your patient waiting...

wait on Him... Psalm 37:5-7...

Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will act.

He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,

and your justice as the noonday.

Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;

fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out evil devices!

Psalm 37:5-7 ESV

Committing your way to the Lord's Way...

can seem like the long way around...

His Way requires patience...

steadfastness... forbearance...

and integrity...

Those who follow His Way...

commit their lives to it...

look like fools to the world...

Following tax code to the letter of the law...

returning too much change...

humbly yielding to others...

telling the truth to your own detriment...

taking responsibility for your actions...

The world has its own wisdom...

get ahead no matter the cost...

look out for number one...

pay back is hell...

what they don't know won't hurt 'em...

James describes it this way...

Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct

let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.

But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts,

do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that 

comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.

For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be

disorder and every vile practice.

James 3:13-16 ESV

When you're tempted to do things the world's way...

because it looks like the only way to get ahead...

remember... be still before the Lord...

wait patiently on Him...

For those committed to His Way...

will shine bright one day...

their righteousness and just actions...

cutting right through the darkness...

like the noonday sun...

His Way is the best...

His foolishness wiser than the wisest worldly wisdom...

and it is always... worth... the... wait...

psalm 103... an Easter perspective... part seven...

Seven day's into looking at Psalm 103 from an Easter perspective...
what more can we see of Him...?

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger, abounding in love.

Psalm 103:8

Jesus... the embodiment of God's compassion and grace... His patience... His love...

Father God couldn't bear to see His creatures... those He made in His image... suffer... die... under penalty of sin...

He sent His own Son...

to reveal His love...

walk out His compassion...

pour out His grace...

healing... loving... forgiving...

all the way to the cross...

His slowness of anger... seen in Jesus...

Hundreds... thousands... of years...

spent bearing agony... while retaining affection*...

waiting for the perfect time...

the fullness of time...

for Christ to come... and pay the price for our sin...

a price we could not bear...

But when the fullness of time had come,

God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,

to redeem those who were under the law,

so that we might receive adoption as sons.

Galatians 4:4-5 ESV

He stooped low... that we might be lifted up high...

His abounding love... revealed still...

in the awaiting return of His Son...

to set things right...

to fix them...

the way they were meant to be...

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise,

as some understand slowness. He is patient with you,

not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone

to come to repentance.

2 Peter 3:9

God loves the world...

not wanting any to be lost...

He sent His Son...

not to condemn... but to save...

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,

that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have

eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world

to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ..."

John 3:16-17

Compassionate...

gracious...

patient...

abounding in love...

that is God...

embodied in Jesus...

Father God... thank You for bearing with Your creation...

Teach me to appreciate... but not take for granted... Your patience...

Enable me to receive Your love and grace... with humility...

Thankful... ready... willing to share Your love with others...

*Note... This idea... these words... came from Timothy Keller... writing about our loving Father... expounding on the parable most often referred to as The Prodigal Son... in his book...  The Prodigal God...

Ordinarily when our love is rejected we get angry, retaliate, and do what we can to diminish our affection for the rejecting person, so we won't hurt so much. But this father maintains affection for his son and bears the agony.

---Timothy Keller, The Prodigal God (my emphasis)

This picture of God's loving patience... has stuck with me... grateful for His patience... I strive to live the same... maintaining affection... bearing the agony... with those who reject me...

patience... needed...

Patience...
I thought I had more than a bit...
today... I'm not so sure...

A slow... really... slow... computer...
reveals my impatience...
another on the fritz... highlights it bright...

I'm reminded of yesterday's moment of burden...
I suspect it was rooted in impatience...

The story I heard... centered on prayer...
a couple praying for twelve years... every day...
then one day... they recognized their prayers answered...

That's when the burden was uncovered...
the heart pressed...

Seeing today's impatience makes me connect it to the story of  prayer...

You see... there are things I've been praying for a long time...
years... and... years...

Instead of seeing encouragement in the story on answered prayer...
impatience surfaced...
the weight of waiting making me weary...

So here's the confession...
I... am... impatient...

Wondering what repentance looks like...
Another long haul...?
hmmm...

Cultivating patience is a long process...
waiting on... hoping for... hope...
surety of what I do not see...
certainty of what I hope for...

You also be patient. Establish your hearts,

for the coming of the Lord is at hand.

James 5:8 ESV

Patience... expecting Him... any moment...

ends and beginnings... patience and pride...

Working on a project today... I thought the end would never come...

At this writing... it's still not complete... but the design part is done...

The part causing frustration... finished...

As I worked... a Scripture came to mind... The end of a matter is better than its beginning...

And I consider why that's true...

I believe it's primarily because of the unknowns...

Not knowing how much longer it will take... or whether it will be completed at all...

We'd rather live with a bad ending than an unknown...

There is something about not knowing that can eat at us... cause anxiety... fear...

I realize... this perspective... lacks hope...

But hope that is seen is no hope at all.

Who hopes for what he already has?

But if we hope for what we do not yet have,

we wait for it patiently.

Romans 8:24-25

So here patience comes in... and unknowns certainly try our patience...

I look up the verse that came to mind earlier... and see I have not remembered the rest...

The end of a matter is better than its beginning,

and patience is better than pride.

Ecclesiastes 7:8

Patience is better than pride...

Yes... the end of a matter is better...

but on the way to the end...

we have an opportunity to exercise patience...

Perhaps the lack of patience... exposes depths of pride...

The needing to know... puts self in His place... 

expecting omniscience... and omnipotence... to be ours...

unwilling to wait... for what's to come...

not trusting Him... with the outcome...

Lord... help me to focus on what I hope for...

and not the unknowns...

Bless me with patience... remove... pride...

love is patient...

Reminded of a much needed lesson...

Love is patient...

1Corinthians 13:4

Tempted by impatience... I remember His patience...

His long-suffering grace... bearing the agony... retaining the affection...

...God demonstrates his own love for us in this:

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 4:8

Choosing... to love like Him... patiently...

...our Lord's patience means salvation...

2Peter 3:7

walking wobbly...

...walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love...

Ephesians 4:1-2 ESV

Feeling a little wobbly in my walk lately... impatience... doing its work on me...

Impatience is a useful goad, but a very poor guide.

---Dag Hammarskjold

Desiring the One who guides... and not the one who prods...

For you are my rock and my fortress;

and for your name's sake you lead me and guide me;

you take me out of the net they have hidden for me,

for you are my refuge.

Into your hands I commit my spirit;

you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God.

Psalm 31:3-5 ESV

May I walk worthy of You... 

steady... patient... not wobbly...

guided by You...

[Note: Yes... I forgot... again... to add the readings on Sunday's post... so here they are on Monday's... but thanks to editing... they are on Sunday now too...]

This week's readings for The Journey...
Monday                   Leviticus 14
Tuesday                   Leviticus 15
Wednesday              Leviticus 16
Thursday                  Leviticus 17-18
Friday                      Leviticus 19

waiting... an exercise in patience...

Patience... the not hasty or impetuous kind... is what I exercised this week...

A particular situation... where I could have acted in any number of ways to get a desired result more quickly... required patience...

Even though my flesh... wanted to move ahead... my spirit felt the Spirit saying... Wait...

And so... I waited... and things lined up better than I imagined... and the outcome double... what I had desired...

An important exercise... and encouragement... for the other situations... on which I am waiting...

An important reminder... to listen... and wait... for His direction and way... to not follow my heart... but His...

Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord.

See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth,

being patient about it, until it receives the early and late rains.

You also, be patient. Establish your hearts,

for the coming of the Lord is at hand.

James 5:7-8 ESV

James 5: thoughts... part 2

Thoughts of James continue... along with the work of memory...

Read James 5

A word that saves...

Brothers, do not complain about one another, 

so that you will not be judged...

James 5:9

HCSB

Cleaning a bathroom... mind drifting back through the day... complaints forming... just waiting for someone to ask... my words wound up to tell...

Then James interrupts my thoughts... do not complain about one another... so that you will not be judged...

Well... Amen...

A Word that put the brakes on the talk in my head... and hope-fully... keeps it from escaping my lips... the guard over my mouth at work...

Complaining... it breaks down the body... causes rifts... AND... brings judgment on your own head...

Thank You, Lord, for the words of James... for Your interference in my life... with saving grace...

Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, 

bearing with one another in love.

Ephesians 4:2

James 5: thoughts... part 1

The process of memory continues... beginning James 5 a week or so ago... a verse struck me in a new way... stirring thoughts...

Read James 5

Therefore, brothers, be patient until the Lord's coming. 

See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth 

and is patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. 

You also must be patient. 

Strengthen your hearts, because the Lord's coming is near.

James 5: 7-8

HCSB

See how the farmer waits... 

...for the precious fruit of the earth... 

...and is patient...

It became very personal... the precious fruit of the earth... the redemption of an unbeliever... the Lord coming to a heart near me...

Patience... the waiting required for the seeds planted in faith to grow... for God to bring the early and the late rains...

Into each life a little rain must fall...

Some need more rain than others to have hearts prepared... for the Word to take root... to bring about the fruit of salvation...

...be patient...

How often do I become impatient... thinking lost loved ones will never turn... ready to give up... harden my own heart to hope...

But patience... it's so important... if you don't wait for the rain to come and do it's work... for the water to soften the seed... for roots to grow... you destroy the potential... turning up soil too soon in hopes of replanting... simply ruins the planting already done... there is no digging down to see what's going on... only trust... in the One who makes things grow...

This verse reminds... be patient... strengthen your heart... because the Lord's coming is near... He is at work... He is coming...

Lord Jesus... forgive my impatience... strengthen my heart... fill me with joyful expectation for the growth and harvest... of the precious fruit of the earth...

patience... the calm in the storm...

I woke this morning with patience on my mind... thoughts still stirring from a lesson in Hebrews...

In Greek... makrothumia... defined by Louw and Nida as... a state of emotional calm in the face of provocation or misfortune and without complaint or irritation...

A facet of... the fruit of the Spirit... and love... deeply connected with hope...

It is not a character trait we can force... it's part of a fruit that grows... nothing organic can be forced... a bean doesn't sprout because we will it... it grows by God's grace when we cultivate an environment for it... one compatible with growth...

So too... growing patience... requires cultivation... eating God's Word... praying... obeying... each practice preparing the mind... and heart... as good soil... for spiritual growth...

I wonder... is it patience... that makes it possible to...

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe...

Philippians 2:14-15

(my emphasis)

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:4-7

(emphasis mine)

Patience... the ability to be the calm in the storm... an attribute worth cultivating...