No one achieves success overnight. Every successful person first has had to go through challenges.  They have had to learn to wait and to develop the skill of patience.

Patience isn’t a quality. It is a skill that we develop over time.  Of course, some of us are naturally more patient than others.  Nevertheless, we all struggle with it.  We all want to see our hard work rewarded immediately. We all wish we could have achieved our dreams yesterday.  But that isn’t how life works.  Nothing good in life comes without hard work and time.

In order to develop the skill of patience, we first must have faith. We must believe that God is going to work all things out for our good.  Without that belief, it is hard to be patient when life is hard.  Without the belief that God has a purpose for your life, it is hard to keep working when your aspirations aren’t being realized.  And without faith, it is hard to maintain a peaceful mind when challenges arise.

I know what it is like to live without that kind of faith. As a teenager, I wasn’t taught at church or at home that God had a special purpose for my life.  I wasn’t taught that God could use my problems ultimately for my benefit.  I wasn’t shown how God was with me in my everyday existence.  As a result, life seemed like a very scary, random experience.

Fortunately, as I grew in faith and maturity, I saw God’s hand at work in my life. I learned that when I made mistakes, God would use them to help me become more compassionate.  I learned that my suffering would not be for naught.  Instead God eventually would use every one of my challenges in a creative way for my benefit.  It was then that I learned how to be patient.  I was able to wait in peace because I knew that God was an active presence in my life.  I only needed to keep doing my best, and God would work things out for my good.

Having the “skill” of patience has allowed me to be a more peaceful person. I’m not perfect.  But these days I am able to regroup from challenges more easily.  I know that I if I go to God with my problems, He will give me the wisdom to deal with them.  I know that He is present in my life and in the lives of those closest to me.  So I don’t need every problem solved on my timeline.  Instead, I can wait with a peaceful mind, knowing that God will work all things out in His time.

By developing patience, I have learned how to work toward goals. Without it, I would easily give up before my aspirations were realized.  However now, because of faith, I can wait patiently while I work to achieve my goals.  I know that God has a plan for my life that He surely will fulfill.  That plan won’t be fulfilled on my schedule.  Rather, it will be fulfilled on His, and His ways are far better than mine.

If you struggle with patience, try working on that skill. Be willing to work a little longer toward your goals.  Be willing to wait peacefully when challenges arise.  Don’t demand that they be solved immediately.  Instead, keep doing your best in all things, and have faith that ultimately God will work all things out for your good.  Go through the day, knowing that God has a beautiful purpose for your life that He ultimately will help you fulfill.

“We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28