A Patient Patient

 

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

Romans 12:12 NIV

I usually write a post sharing my verse and word of the year in January. Well, that artificial deadline came and went, didn’t it? I’ve been a bit distracted these last few months. In the midst of it, the verse above picked me!

Be Patient in Times of Trouble

If you’re anything like me, you could use an extra helping of patience. That has never been truer for me than over these past few months when the road to recovery from cervical spine surgery took me on quite a detour.

My word for 2024, patience, is included in the Fruit of the Spirit. That is a biblical term that sums up nine attributes of a person or community living in accord with the Holy Spirit.

“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”

Galatians 5:22-23 NLT

Practice Required

I want to bear that kind of fruit. How about you? By the power of the Holy Spirit, we can! As one of my pastors once said, we won’t become patient without being given the opportunity to practice it. Practice makes perfect, right? I’ve gotten plenty of chances to be a patient patient over these last several months. I would like to say that I’ve aced the test, but, since sitting still is not one of my strengths, I imagine a solid ‘C’ is a more accurate reflection of my current level of patience. No, He’s not done with me yet!

An Unplanned Detour

The recovery from my initial surgery called for me to be a patient patient. Not knowing what to expect, I just felt like it was going painfully slow, pun intended. I was a good patient, and, as is often the case, followed all the rules. It wasn’t until the lower part of my incision split open that I realized I had taken a detour. That detour included two additional hospitalizations and a second surgery 1000 miles away from home. The prize from Round 2 was 31 staples in my neck, easily surpassing the total from Round 1. The bonus prize was yet another surgeon’s haircut! I have had no shortage of opportunities to practice patience!

Be Joyful in Hope

To this point, I have focused on the middle segment of Romans 12:12–be patient in affliction, but the bookends deserve mention as well. The beginning of the verse tells us to be joyful in hope. What does that look like in the midst of life’s difficulties? We must remember that Jesus is our Hope. Our joy is found in Him, not our circumstances. Knowing that He is with us and working on our behalf in the middle of a trial is reason to be joyful. To keep from drowning in our circumstances, it is important to keep our eyes focused on Him. That’s not always easy. If it were, I would have written this post a month or two ago rather than waiting until I saw light at the end of the tunnel!

Be Faithful in Prayer

Finally, Romans 12:12 calls us to be faithful in prayer. Seek, ask, knock—keep at it and don’t give up. While it’s true that God already knows what we need, He still wants us to come to Him with our concerns. It’s all about the relationship and that requires participation from both parties.

Pastor Chris often reminds us that everyone is dealing with something. Isn’t that the truth?! Whatever that something is for you right now, try living out Romans 12:12 and see how God responds.

• • Be joyful in hope
  • Be patient in times of trouble
  • Pray, pray and pray some more

In my case, I have found myself back on the road to recovery. After being sidelined for 3 months, I have had a taste of normalcy in my life recently. It has been oh so sweet to be able to do some things that simply haven’t been possible since the first surgery! If you know me very well, you know that I like my sweets! Strawberry shortcake anyone?