Faith and Patience From James 1

Growing in Faith and Patience

If there’s a chapter in the Bible I’ve read more than any other it’s probably James 1. There’s so much practical wisdom on taming the tongue, trials and breakthrough, being a doer of the word. Patience though, has been a critical part of my growth as a Christian.

 “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” (verse 2-4)

I always imagined the verse should read “The testing of your patience produces faith”. That used to confuse me. Isn’t faith the ethereal thing that Gods asks for? Isn’t faith the ‘hard to get your mind around’ discipline?

Patience for Maturity

It seems like faith would be the goal and patience would be the mechanism you exercise. But it’s the opposite. That tells me that faith is the mechanism or muscle you build. Hebrews calls it the “substance of things hoped for”. It’s the activity we use to strengthen our character. Patience isn’t just for spiritual matters. It’s critical to function as a responsible adult. It’s also the way God’s plan of sowing and reaping works. All that planting and watering creates a restless mind prone to giving up. Patience bridges the gap between our efforts and rewards.

 We rarely get what we want, in the time frame we want it. And much of what we want in our 20s goes away in our 30s anyway. It’s the same situation for career and relationships. Patience means waiting and trusting that God will provide what we need in His time. It’s really about trust, and trust is a process.

Respecting the Father

When we place our trust in God we give Him our wants and ask for His wisdom. It’s rarely a quick process. Trust takes time because it must. How deep would that trust be if He gave us everything we asked for right away? We’d be no better than a screaming child in a shopping cart pointing and demanding various items in the toy department. This is key to understanding how the Father breaks through our selfishness straight to our heart. Not only will the toys not fulfill us, they’ll reduce God to a dispenser of goods. This isn’t a god anyone can serve. He’s more like an eternal Santa Claus, affirming our feelings and handing out goodies.

We neither respect Him nor put any long term trust in Him. This might be a big part of our problem culturally as the Church. Our affluence in the West acts like a callous over our hearts. We don’t have to wait all that often. 'Suffering' today means waiting for the woman at Starbucks, who’s ordering customized drinks for the entire office. Talk about a test of patience when all you want is a coffee, black! The comfortable existence of daily life, lulls into a sense of complacency. We’ve forgotten how to trust in God. America has built up an impressive consumer driven economy. Amazon delivers most packages within 1 day. Walmart delivers groceries the same day.

This isn’t a lament about our wealthy culture. I’m grateful for the all the comforts. I’m grateful that we can pursue leisure and finicky diets without worrying about the national wheat crop.

Waiting is Countercultural

But the ease of life makes us forget that God’s plan has its own schedule. Has anyone found a way to make cattle grow faster or how to shorten the seasons? Time is God’s purview and messing with it will leave us frustrated. The consumer marketplace might move quicker than ever but it can’t mature a person any faster. Faith can only be built one way, through struggle. It’s uncomfortable at first because it’s supposed to be.  You can’t lift a 100 pounds over your head until you’ve started with 50. Faith is linked to patience like muscles are to power.

Maybe we’re slow to learn this concept because culture is rooted in handing us whatever we want. But part of gaining patience is learning to stay in the shopping cart and sit still. Trust that when you need something God will throw it in the basket. For the rest, learn to work for the important things in life and be grateful for the time we live in. You never know when it will end.

conclusion

This isn’t doom and gloom forecasting, but life is unpredictable and nothing lasts forever. A patient person is a complete person who lacks nothing according to James. That means difficult times won’t phase you if your trust is in God, and how He’s built up your faith. It’s what I’m learning about the nature of God. James 1 is a good place to start with patience.