Patient Waiting

“And the Lord direct your hearts
into the love of God and into the patient waiting for Christ” (2 Thessalonians
3:5 KJV).

“But our citizenship is in heaven.
And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power
that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our
lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:20-21).

“For the grace of God that brings
salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and
worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this
present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our
great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-13).

“They tell how you turned to God
from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from
heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming
wrath” (1 Thessalonians 1:9b-10).

The common theme in these verses is waiting.
We are to wait patiently and eagerly for this wonderful event that is sure to
happen. If I am eagerly waiting, I might be impatient. If I am patient, I might
not be eagerly anticipating. Or I might not be waiting at all.

Rather than dwell on the waiting, we
should dwell on the promised event, pray for it, and work for it.

“He who testifies to these things
says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20).

“And this gospel of the kingdom will
be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end
will come” (Matthew 24:14).

We see the enemy constantly at work,
but Christ is the victor.

This post coordinates with today’s reading in the To
the Word! Bible Reading Challenge. If you are not in a daily reading plan,
please join us at TotheWord.com. We would love to have you reading with us.