Patience | October 8th, 2023
Call To Worship: Psalm 105
Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done. Sing to him; yes, sing his praises. Tell everyone about his wonderful deeds. Exult in his holy name; rejoice, you who worship the Lord. Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him. Remember the wonders he has performed, his miracles, and the rulings he has given… He is the Lord our God. ____________________________
Holy Harvest: Fruits of the Spirit
Patience
Proverbs 14.29 & James 5.7-11
CPCC 10.8.23
Big Idea: Be slow to anger and endure patiently under the unavoidable pressures of life.
INTRO: SHOW PICS (2) OF ELSA MARQUEZ
September 8, 1955. Disneyland has been open for 10-weeks. Four year old Elsa Marquez gets to go to Disneyland with her 7-y/o brother, Raul, and their 4-y/o cousin Manny, who is visiting from Texas with his family.
They arrive at Disneyland and the kids run to the turnstile entrance. Raul is in front and his sister Elsa is behind him. Raul goes through, but before Elsa and can reach the turnstile, her cousin Manny; in an act of impatience, grabs her dress from behind, pulls Elsa behind him, and jumps in front of her and goes through the turnstile ahead of his cousin. Elsa recovers and walks through the turnstile behind him. Suddenly, balloons start raining down from the sky, a band starts playing, and confetti flies through the air. Nobody knows what is going on. Elsa’s mom, Bertha, pulls Elsa into her arms. Suddenly a man dressed like a sheriff approaches Bertha and tries to hold Elsa, but Bertha does not speak English, and she thinks the man is trying to kidnap Elsa. Then a Spanish speaking cast member comes over and explains to the Marquez family that Elsa is the one millionth visitor to Disneyland! She is going to be a Princess for the day! They are brought onto main street and Walt Disney comes over and shakes Elsa’s hand and congratulates her. Elsa is excited!…but Manny starts crying. (See second pic) He should have been the One Millionth visitor, but in his impatience, he pushed ahead of Elsa and lost his chance.
Last month, 68 y/o Elsa told reporters how delighted she was that day to meet Walt Disney, and how grateful she is for her cousin’s impatience. She said if he had not pushed her aside, she might have been the one crying over Prince Manny.
Today’s Fruit of the Spirit is Patience.
[pause]
The truth is I have no business giving this sermon.
I do not come from a line of patient people.
The Patriarch of my family, my Grandfather, had little patience for lines, traffic, slow food servers, people who talked slowly, people who loved small talk, people who drove to slow, people who did not have their money ready to pay in line, people who used coupons, people who did not understand quickly, people who took too long to make a decision, people who made decisions that he would not make. Basically he had little patience for people.
Rudy Osimo was a sea captain and navigator whose adult life was spent at sea on ships where most everybody snapped to attention when he spoke and did what he said without question. That didn’t happen much when he was home, which meant often he had little patience with his family when we did not get with the program.
I have tried to break that cycle…but with varying degrees of success. I am very patient with solving problems or completing projects, but I have almost no patience in other situations… and I’m not alone!
Ours is not a patient culture. We want things now: Information, News, Food.
ILLUS: Though we did not grow up in that kind of society, look where we are now. For example, In 1978,
If I needed information for a school report, I had to go to the library, or hope it was in my encyclopedia that my Grandmother bought at the grocery store, one volume a month.
If I needed to find my way around Orange County or LA, I had to look up directions in my Thomas Brothers Map book.
When I drove with my friends to Utah to go skiing in 1978, I went to the Auto Club and asked them to make a Trip Tick map book to direct me to the ski resort.
To take pictures, I used to lug around a 35mm camera with a 200m lens.
If I wasn’t feeling well, I called my Grandmother.
If I ordered reeds in bulk for my Clarinet, I had to go to Coast Music, look through a catalogue, show the cashier, pay for it, and then wait…for weeks never knowing when the box would show up. No tracking information.
Now, we all whip out our phones and either Google something or open an App. All those things I used to do; and hundreds more, on our phones, instantly. Every whim or question answered immediately.
It’s no wonder that when we talk about developing our Christian Character to be more like Jesus, it can be frustrating because the attributes of the Fruits of the Spirt; which is the Holy Spirit working in us, take time to develop.
Wouldn’t it be great if when a person becomes a Christian they could go to Jesus’ website and download the Follow Jesus app and instantly have access to all the Fruits of the Spirit? Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, bam right there on the phone ready to use and enjoy immediately.
But like instant coffee or mashed potatoes, some things are just not good when rushed. When it comes to becoming more like Jesus, we develop more deeply and consistently when we patiently endure over time as we navigate unexpected and unwanted experiences. God uses many things to help us to grow and even thrive as representatives of Jesus Christ.
This Holy Harvest Series on the Fruits of the Spirit is all about infusing very character of Jesus Christ into our daily lives, which includes patience… and that takes time. Patience transforms us to become more like Jesus.
I have two Bible passages for you this morning, one from the Old and one from the New Testament.
READ: Proverbs 14.29
People with understanding control their anger; a hot temper shows great foolishness.
James 5.7-11
7 Dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord’s return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to ripen. 8 You, too, must be patient. Take courage, for the coming of the Lord is near. 9 Don’t grumble about each other, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. For look—the Judge is standing at the door! 10 For examples of patience in suffering, dear brothers and sisters, look at the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy.
What do you do when people or events wear your patience thin?
Jesus’ disciple James had to deal with this constantly. Suffering was a way of life for most of his congregation, so James encourages them; and us, to practice patience so that we may endure the trials and messiness of life. He encourages followers of Jesus to take our faith and live it with humility, trusting in God. Developing Godly patience is part of this process
One of Jesus’ frequent teachings was that the Kingdom of God is near. It was actually a hopeful encouragement because the Jews were under constant pressure and hardship with the Romans occupying their land, taxing their income, and forcing them to put up with their pagan gods and customs. Jesus warns the believers of the coming destruction of Jerusalem, he also reminds them to be patient because one day, a day that no one knows, He will return again and God’s order and kingdom will replace everything.
But it’s what we do until that time, that James address with his church. He tells his members to act like members of the Kingdom of God by showing patience even in trials and suffering. Jesus endured suffering so that we may have life with God and experiences God’s love, joy, peace and even patience.
Some people mistakenly believe that because Jesus suffered, we no longer have to suffer, yet the Bible tells the stories of many faithful people whose patience was put to the test.
I think some of the most patient people in the Bible were the prophets. God called several of them to do strange and even dangerous acts to shake the faith of His people:
•Hosea was told to marry a prostitute to demonstrate Israel’s strained relationship with God
•Isaiah had to walk up and down Israel naked for three years
•Daniel was thrown in a Lion’s Den
The life of a Prophet was to be a living example of the suffering that goes with being involved with God’s purposes. The message of the prophets was to trust in God, turn to God, and live in God’s patience.
This is not just for prophets. It is expected of all of Jesus’ followers. All of us will go through times of trial and difficulty. Do we patiently endure and cling to the promises of God, or do we give up our hope and faith?
Patience in the Bible involves two types of situations. The first is what the King James Version of the Bible called Long Suffering, those situations that are on-going or may never go away.
Experiencing trials, hardships, disease, or loss are part of life for all people, including Christians. Godly patience is about facing suffering and trials and knowing that no matter what happens, we belong to God and nothing and no one can ever take that from us, not even death. The difficult part is having the patience to endure, learning what it means to trust in God in all things. Jesus said on the Sermon on the Mount: Blessed are those who suffer. It is often in suffering that we allow ourselves to experience God more deeply.
The other aspect of patience has to do with people.
Godly patience is also about enduring and learning to be patient with annoying people. Sometimes it seems like we get a daily workout in this area.
ILLUS: Here’s another Disneyland example.
SHOW PIC OF JEFF RIETZ
This is Jeff Rietz. Jeff set the Guinness Book of World Records for most consecutive visits to Disneyland 2,995. That’s 8 years, 3 months, and 13 days, in a row visiting Disneyland. He would have kept going but COVID shut down the park on March 13, 2020, which was Jeff’s last consecutive day. Jeff did an interview on NPR and the reporter asked for his top Disneyland tip. Without hesitation Jeff answered, “Bring the largest dose of your patience because, no matter what, you are going to be around a lot of people.” He also said people should bring a battery charger for their phones, and download the Disneyland app to check wait times and order food. It’s all about avoiding the crowds.
Our family has had season passes through the years, but I can not imagine dealing with the crowds and lines everyday for eight-years. Jeff must be an extremely patient person.
The Apostle Paul loved people and loved to make lists for them in his letters. Paul wrote a list similar to the Fruits of the Spirit list, only this time, it was about dealing with other people, including those who try our patience.
Colossians 3.12-15
Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.
Patience is the part of the Character of Jesus.
On a Psychological level, Patience is a subcategory of the emotion of Joy. The results of the Holy Spirit’s influence on our lives are both emotional and spiritual states of being that reflect our trust in Christ.
The opposite is true as well. Impatience, bitterness, anger, disruption, hate, and selfishness happen when we ignore or reject the Fruits of the Spirit.
I can’t help thinking of the Pixar movie Inside Out with the Characters Joy and Anger. Joy is always looking for the good, while anger keeps blowing his fuse and flaming out and yelling at the other emotions.
Jesus calls us into a life of joy and patience is part of developing a Character that looks more like Jesus. Anger separates us from Christ’s joy.
So how do we practice patience?
Learn to trust Jesus, and Soak in God’s Grace.
Grace is not just for salvation, Grace is the daily gift we receive from God that carries us through each day. We need to humbly come before God and admit that we can’t do everything on our own. God already knows this, but in admitting it, we put ourselves in the position of accepting God’s grace and putting it into practice.
Grace transforms us, it allows us to replace frustration and anxiety with patience and peace. It allows us to stand behind the world’s slowest shopper with coupons and not get our blood pressure soaring over something really unimportant. Most of all, it gives us a witness for Jesus.
So here is something practical you can do right now:
Practice being aware of God’s presence with you—throughout your day, through your different moods-When your trust is weak, or when your patience is low, recite Psalm 46.10 a few times: “Be still, and know that I am God!
I find that practicing patience is often a matter of adjusting my focus. When I can step back, take a deep breath, I can begin to see a situation more clearly. I can consider God’s desire rather than my impulsive reaction.
I have found that as I trust God through difficult situations, I build up a stock pile of trust that reminds me that God is faithful and I can put my trust and confidence in Jesus who loves me and desires to walk with me through whatever I face.
It takes time to build that kind of patience and trust, but that’s ok. My relationship with Jesus is a long-term investment in being more like Him.
ILLUS: In her book, “Napa Valley on Leadership” author Margaret Feinberg writes about visiting two California vineyards and discovering that vintners adopt a long-term approach to their work. She writes:
The first year a vintner plants shoots of vines rather than seeds because these yield the strongest vines. At the end of the first growing season, he cuts them back. A second year passes. He cuts them back again. Only after the third year does he see his first viable clusters of grapes. Serious vintners leave those clusters on the vines. For most vintners, it's not until year four that they bring in their first harvest.
For those growing grapes for winemaking, they'll bottle their harvest, but won't taste the fruit of their labors until year seven or eight. Most vineyards in Napa Valley won't reach a breakeven point for their investment until year fifteen, eighteen or beyond.
Then she applies these insights to her spiritual life.
Sometimes I look at my own life and wonder, Why am I not more fruitful? And why does pruning have to hurt so much? Why does cultivating a healthy crop take so long? Yet those questions circle around the here and now. God's perspective is much different. Like a good vineyard owner, He knows how to bring about fruitfulness better than I ever will. And he is patient with me, more patient than I am with myself … [Also], as we fulfill our callings … we must recognize that like the vintner’s crop, our fruitfulness will not come overnight. The first harvest of our labors may not come for three or five years.
Patience, endurance, and trust in Jesus Christ will produce a mature Christian, capable of resisting the temptations that drag us down, while living in the contentment and joy of life in Jesus. You, too, must be patient.
That is our goal—be patient, it takes time.
BENEDICTION: Ephesians 4.2-3
Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.
HYMNS
Opening:
#106 All Hail the Power of Jesus Name v.1-3
#504 Just a Closer Walk with Thee v.1-3
Closing Hymn
#451 Be Still, My Soul v.1-3