THE RIGHT ATTITUDE WHILE WAITING - PART 2

TUESDAY 22 JUNE 2021

To receive God's best, there are some specific principles we need to apply. This means that we must not ignore the right attitude while waiting for our expectations. We may have differences in our individual makeups and circumstances, but applying the principles below delivers the results we expect, regardless of diverse circumstances.

Reference: Romans 12:12 New International Version (NIV) "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."

As we know, this Scripture is talking about the virtues we need to apply while waiting. These sets of attitude will not just help you to thrive and live a victorious life, it will also grant you more spiritual understanding of the Christian life in the process of obtaining the blessings of the promise. Let's examine the first two today.

Be Joyful in hope: The Bible says, "those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint" (Isaiah 40:31 NIV). The opposite of Joy is sadness. When you are joyful while expecting a desire from God, you can see the light of hope even in darkest times. Being joyful enables us to declare the Word by faith and experience the results. This means that its our joy that carries us through as we remain hopeful for the good things to come. No wonder Romans 15:13 reads, "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Why would God want us to be "joyful" in hope, even in terrible moments? Its because joy strengthens our hope and faith, for Romans 5:2 reads, it is by Christ, we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God (WEB). So we rejoice in hope of God's glory because we receive nothing of own making but by grace alone.

Be patient in affliction: Romans 8:25 says, "if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." In an uncertain world, those who prevail in unsteady times of affliction are those who function with this very attitude - Patience. The Psalmist says, "I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!" We can learn the value of patience from this Scripture. David would've fainted or lost heart, but he was patient in believing for God's goodness. In fact, if you observe the tone of this Scripture, you'll affirm that he almost lost heart. But he allowed patience to finish its work. For this reason, he advises us to wait on the Lord and be of good courage.

Beloved, impatience can give room to worry in challenging times and make you to feel the heat of it. To be patient in affliction is to wait with God's perspective. In other words, you're cooperating with God in such situation. Isaiah 40:31(NLT) says, "But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." All of these are the benefits of patience. When we wait patiently pleasing God in the midst of it all, He directs our path. But without patience, you will experience lack of strength in challenging times; instead of rising like an eagle, you'll remain weak and depressed. You'll also grow weary and faint. Therefore, patience is needful, if you want to eschew weakness and weariness.

The Bible says, "If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small" (Proverbs 24:10 ESV). This implies that patience ensures durability of strength in times of adversity, aside from perfection and complete maturity in waiting. It affords us a deeper and stronger level of trust in God. In short, the more patient we become in trials, the more we keep growing our faith in perfection. This is found in James 1:4 (KJV), which reads: "But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." Stay tuned for part 3 of this topic as we discuss "being faithful in prayer." Shalom!

Scripture Reading - Psalm 40:1; Romans 5:3-4; James 5:8; Hebrews 10:36.

Exuberant Declaration: I have excessive confidence in Christ that my hope and expectations can never be cut off because as the righteous, they are not dependent on circumstances. My dedicated conducts in times of trials are valuable to me and they drive the wheels of my spiritual life. Thus, I'm free from living a life of worry and showing signs of weariness, but joyful in hope, patient in tribulation and most of all, persistent in prayer. In Christ Jesus, I rule the direction of my thoughts in pleasant disposition, thereby experiencing perpetual laughter, joy and triumph in every situation and receiving God's best. Hallelujah!