Today’s world has become so reliant on instant gratification and while that has offered many modern benefits, it has come at the cost of one of our most important virtues – patience.
I have seen it all over the place, someone’s online order comes in late, food takes a while to arrive at the table, your friend takes forever to send a response text. Whatever it looks like, it is inconvenient and not fun when things get delayed.
That feeling has only been amplified by the vast number of outlets that offer instant access to whatever we want.
Eric Solomon from Psychology Today said, “We’ve been trained — and we’ve trained ourselves — to expect instant everything. Amazon delivers in hours. YouTube videos load in milliseconds. Streaming services start fast and never stop, rolling right into the next episode before you can even blink.”
StudyFinds, a research summary website, cited a survey by OnePoll where researchers interviewed 2,000 British adults about what makes them impatient.
“Waiting in line seemed to especially annoy respondents, with 45% admitting they had lost their temper after waiting an ‘excessive’ amount of time.”
Excessive is a subjective term, but the study’s researchers found that many respondents would switch lines after only 30 seconds of waiting.
It is disheartening to hear that waiting in line for 30 seconds has become an issue, but I get it – I have a hard time waiting as well.
This is where the Bible kicks in. Patience is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), and the Bible makes note of its importance many times. Paul is no stranger to talking about it.
Paul wrote in Romans 12:12, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”
Another passage where Paul encourages his readers to be patient is 1 Thessalonians 5:14 where he writes, “And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.”
Every Christian should practice healthy habits to increase their patience so they can be a light for God. Some examples could include waiting to buy something that you really want, pushing yourself to not react when things slow down or delaying small gratifications.
Be intentional about finding ways to practice patience in your life. Developing the biblical virtue of patience will be worth the wait.
The bottom line is, and I hold this to be true, that the best way to win the virtue of patience back is to do what Psalm 37:7 so plainly lays out, and that is to be still in front of God and wait patiently for him.
Warden is the opinion editor for the Liberty Champion.