Love is Patient

Published in

Merizo

4 min readJan 26, 2021

Love is patient. Based on our study so far, the basis for the flow of the spirit through and to us is our perception of the body of Christ, our perception of other saints, our perception of Church leadership, our perception of our own gifts and calling, and our understanding about the gift itself. I think it is safe to interpret patience with respect to all of these.

Patience with the Body of Christ

The body of Christ is a work in progress. Jesus himself is building and the gates of hell will not prevail. We cannot be more passionate about the Church than Jesus himself. If our study has revealed what the ideal condition of the Church should be, it is our duty to wait it out or fall in line with God’s plan till it becomes a reality. A genuine passion for the body will often propel discontent. But we must be patient. Jesus Himself is at work in His body. The Holy Spirit himself is brooding over the Church.

Our passion should drive us to partner with God. We ought to ask the master-builder what to do next. Our passion should not stir rebellion. If we want to partner with the Holy Spirit as He broods over the Church, our actions will tend more towards intercession than criticism.

Patience with Others

The body is made of up different parts and different people. Nonetheless, each person is on their unique journey with the Lord as well. The way we demonstrate patience with others is to identify with their unique walk and dealings with the Lord. Our patience with them will lead us to cheer them on, give them drink to refresh, and bread to refill as they journey with the Lord. No saint should be judged by the timelines of another saint. Those that compare themselves with themselves are not wise.

We cannot hurry the incubation process for a bird. If we do, we cook it instead of growing it. Breaking the shell from the outside will kill the bird rather than give it life. The Christian walk is a lifelong journey, there is no hurry. What is important is we maximize each moment. Our days are already appointed by the Lord. If we alter the order of things, we can truncate the process of growth.

Patience with our Growth

Similarly, we can learn to be more patient with our own growth as well. We should never rush our growth. God builds us precept after precept. We should not jump process because we want quick results. Impatience often stems from envy. When we see how God moves through others and we covet in a different way than the scriptures recommend, we become impatient. The desire recommended by scripture is laced with patience. It is not one that makes us lose focus on our own unique identity and journey with the Lord.

Don’t be in a hurry to skip the process. Don’t be a cake baked on one side and undone on the other. Our growth matters to our ministry. It influences how we deliver God’s gifts in us to the world. If we are not well developed, we can give up our bodies to be burned, prophesy all we can but still amount to nothing because we were more concerned about the gift than the essence.

Patience with the Promise

We obtain God’s promise by faith and patience. Faith makes it burn on our hearts. Patience makes us fully prepared for the assignment. Faith gives the zeal. Patience gives the knowledge. Faith without patience can send us to the battlefield prematurely and unprepared. Patience without faith will make us keep learning without ever doing hiding under the guise of fear. A healthy balance will keep God’s word warm in our hearts while we learn His ways.

It is in waiting on the Lord that we renew our strength. It is patience that upgrades us from foot to wings. Waiting on the Lord is no waste. It is how we receive directions and maximize our time. Patience with the Body will spur us to intercede and make our own contributions as a part of the body. Patience with others will cause us to strengthen the feeble knees and lift the weary arms. It is interesting that this is a very suitable condition for the flow of prophecy or word of wisdom to give strength and courage to our brethren. Patience with the promise will help us to be well rounded. Patience with ourselves will help quench the destructive fire of envy.

Love is patience.

Love is Patient

Patience with the Body of Christ

Patience with Others

Patience with our Growth

Patience with the Promise

Other Posts in the Walking in Love Series

Written by Femi Senjobi