Patience: Spiritual Resistance Training

One of my New Year's resolutions for 2014 was to begin a disciplined exercise program. I hired a personal trainer, who designed a program to help me meet my goals of losing weight and staying toned even with my traveling. He's taught me how to execute various exercises correctly, including resistance training with weights.

I like resistance training because it produces noticeable results rather quickly when I stick to my training schedule. I've learned that it's important to have a program of graduated resistance training in order to build muscular strength. I start at a particular weight and number of repetitions that I can just barely execute. When that level becomes easy, my trainer increases the weight to a place that I again can just barely execute, and we repeat the process.

Often when my muscles are screaming “enough!” my trainer encourages me to press out just one more rep. He knows how to take me to my edge where I get the maximum muscle burn without injuring myself. The process is arduous and stressful at the time, but when I complete a session, I feel a great satisfaction, knowing that I reached a new goal that I never thought I could attain.

I think God uses patience in a similar way to build our faith through spiritual resistance training. When we’re faced with stressful circumstances—like financial difficulties, health concerns, family relationship problems, career challenges, etc.—we typically want God to resolve the situation as soon as possible. Often that doesn't happen, much to our frustration and sometimes even our despair. Why does God so frequently wait to respond? Doesn't He care?

God cares more than we realize. He sees a bigger picture, and He's working on a larger goal than we are currently aware of. James 1:2-5 offers this explanation: “When troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your patience has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your patience is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.”

Faith and patience are frequently called the “spiritual power twins,” and with good reason. Patience is like the physical weights in resistance training. As we apply patience to our current crisis, we actually build faith as we confidently wait upon the Lord. We learn to face and live out the situation in His strength and find new depths of intimacy with Him.

Of course, it would be easier if God resolved our situation the moment we asked, but what would we gain? What would happen to me if every time my trainer readjusted the weight upwards, I protested and wanted to remain at the old, easy level? I would never make any progress. God wants us to grow and experience more of everything He has for us. He knows this will only occur if we experience the spiritual resistance that brings us to the edge of ourselves so we must depend on Him. An easy way out of our crisis will not produce any change in our maturity and intimacy with Him.

God doesn't want us to operate in the dark, however. That's why He tells us that if we need wisdom to understand our current situation, all we have to do is ask. He will instruct us in what to do and how to cope with everything we’re facing. Our Abba God will always be there to meet all of our needs!

Come and join us this Sunday at our 9:30 AM and 11:30 AM services. I will be continuing our “Prosperity God’s Way” Series with a message that shares “Five Keys to Prospering God’s Way.”