Honestly, the endure part I don't want to do. I can do it, but I don't want to do it. I'm not keen on wanting to be tested, either. While we're at it, the temptation, I'd rather bypass. However, testing and temptation are inevitable, so it's best to figure out how God has equipped me to prepare for them (God isnt asking me to be OK with it, He's telling me to be equipped for it).
I know, maybe we all know, these things happen. That's the world we live in. In its fallen state, we will have to endure, and we will be tempted, that much is understood. It's the patient part that gets me. I want to hurry through with the lesson, but a good lesson takes time and practice.
Patience isn't synonymous with joy or happiness. It's not that we're expected to enjoy this time of enduring temptation or testing. Rather, it's that we are able to accept it or tolerate it without getting angry or upset. The patience to endure comes from a God-given ability to do so. We know God can use it for His glory and our good. Sometimes, we must endure before we're able to impact, and maybe that's the point.
Let me be clear, there are some things we can be angry at. There is righteous indignation at sin. Which as a believer we all should feel. And who knows? Maybe because of what you're experiencing, righteous indignation is stirring up in you to do something about what you're seeing in this world. Maybe during your patient endurance, you'll begin to see the solution unfold. All good solutions take a few things, but two in particular: patience and endurance.
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