Have you ever heard the phrase “Patience is a virtue”? Well, curious-little-me decided to look up where that saying came from. As it turns out, there is an entire list of 7 heavenly virtues (to counter the 7 deadly sins). This list is derived from the Psychomachia (“Contest of the Soul”), an epic poem written by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (c. AD 410). These 7 virtues include: chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility.
Aurelius made a pretty good list, but I think he plagiarized or perhaps he drew some inspiration from Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness self-control; against such things there is no law.”
So how can we develop these virtues? How can we develop the virtue of patience?
I believe that if we ask the Lord to help us develop the fruits of the Spirit (patience being one of them) then He will give us situations and opportunities in which we can develop our requests. It’d be nice if He would just zap us down some “instant patience,” but that’s not how He works. And what a blessing! He’s given each of us that opportunity RIGHT NOW! We can practice and develop our patience now in our singleness so we may glorify Him wherever He may lead us in the future.
I want to draw your attention to three points made by our authors:
- Marriage is not a need.
- Marriage is not a right.
- Marriage does not complete a person.
As I write to you, I cannot tell you that I will ever get married. To be honest, God may not have that in His plans for my life. And I must be okay with that possibility. Ask yourself if you are truly okay with that possibility. Have you turned your desire for marriage and a spouse completely over to God? This is a daily submission for me. “Lord, go before me today, and carry me through. I want to do Your will today; I want to live the life You’ve planned and be the person You’ve created me to be.”
God put a verse on my heart this week to share with you, dear Ladies in Waiting. Romans 8:37-39: “Now, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present (singleness) nor things to come (either more singleness or marriage), nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
WHAT A PROMISE! Jesus is our Husband and absolutely nothing can separate us from His love! Not even ourselves, our impatience, our earthly desires, or our temptations can separate us. As we wait, let us focus on our love relationship with Him. His love is never-failing and never-ending!
In love,
Carissa
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Let’s Pray:
Heavenly Father, we know and trust that Your ways are higher than ours. Help us to trust in Your plans and Your timing for the desires of our hearts. Lord, make our desires to be Your desires. Father, grant us a spirit of patience as we wait upon You. Father, thank you for Your perfectly constant and completely fulfilling love. We love you, too, Father. In your precious Name, Amen.
Your Assignment:
I have two questions for you. Answer whichever you prefer – or both!
- Do you consider marriage a “goal” for your life, and do you think it should be? As a Lady in Waiting, what should be our goal?
- How are you developing a patient heart? Share your experiences and strategies with us!
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Our Next Single Women’s Online Bible Study
“Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman’s Soul”
by John & Stasi Eldredge
Begins January 6, 2013
To sign up for this Online Bible Study, click HERE and follow the instructions. You will also be given a link to where you can purchase this bible study. We’re looking forward to studying “Captivating” with you!!
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thank you, carissa, for reminding us of His constant and unconditional love! i loved where you wrote about asking God to help us develop the fruits of the spirit / patience…to His glory! <3
It's interesting that both this study & the women's study ended up on patience today! Someone truly needs to hear today's message. Hmmm……. Love this post today!!
Ah Carissa…you hit a sore spot for me :-/ "To be honest, God may not have that in His plans for my life. And I must be okay with that possibility. Ask yourself if you are truly okay with that possibility." I must be honest and say I am not there yet…working on it though!
I love this post Carissa!!! My gram always always always told me patience is a virtue and it has stuck in my head!!!! Thanks for looking that up because I too was curious:) I have given God my desires for marriage and for a family one day. I have also given Him my heart. I trust that He has a man planned perfectly for me, but I tend to doubt that from time to time when another day goes by and there are absolutely no prospects around.
Developing a patient heart, that is something I need to be praying more about. Right now all I do is realize when I am not being patient and try to fix that the next time around:)
Very nice. There are still a few women of faith left. Stay strong.