Be patient; stand firm; wait. Easily said—not so easily done. Patience is a virtue desired by all. And yes, we all want it right now! But life doesn’t always operate according to our time frame or our demands. 

I was very impressed by John Force’s interview following his (first-for-the-year) Bristol victory—a race that itself had to be scheduled a second time. John didn’t merely win a race. He learned a huge lesson regarding patience and attitude. 

Patience is a difficult issue as it relates to our fast-paced sport of championship drag racing. Although it is a virtue highly regarded by many, it is still difficult to relate to patience in our “pedal to the metal” approach to life. “You snooze, you lose!” Every race fan knows that. 

One of the quotes that has greatly tempered my anxiousness over the years is a statement by the late Mahalia Jackson, who once said …"Lord, you may not always come when I call you, but I know you'll always be on time!" Right on, Miss Mahalia. That quote has always spoken volumes to me during my moments of impatience. 

Think about a farmer. Farming requires a tremendous amount of patience. But have you ever noticed how a farmer learns to wait. Does the farmer sit around doing nothing until it’s time for harvest? No. Waiting to a farmer means actively tending to business and constantly maintaining his fields and crops. There is an ongoing preparation for the coming harvest. To a farmer, waiting with patience is by no means passive. 

Be patient … stand firm

Be patient; stand firm; wait. Easily said—not so easily done. Patience is a virtue desired by all. And yes, we all want it right now! But life doesn’t always operate according to our time frame or our demands. 

I was very impressed by John Force’s interview following his (first-for-the-year) Bristol victory—a race that itself had to be scheduled a second time. John didn’t merely win a race. He learned a huge lesson regarding patience and attitude. 

Patience is a difficult issue as it relates to our fast-paced sport of championship drag racing. Although it is a virtue highly regarded by many, it is still difficult to relate to patience in our “pedal to the metal” approach to life. “You snooze, you lose!” Every race fan knows that. 

One of the quotes that has greatly tempered my anxiousness over the years is a statement by the late Mahalia Jackson, who once said …"Lord, you may not always come when I call you, but I know you'll always be on time!" Right on, Miss Mahalia. That quote has always spoken volumes to me during my moments of impatience. 

Think about a farmer. Farming requires a tremendous amount of patience. But have you ever noticed how a farmer learns to wait. Does the farmer sit around doing nothing until it’s time for harvest? No. Waiting to a farmer means actively tending to business and constantly maintaining his fields and crops. There is an ongoing preparation for the coming harvest. To a farmer, waiting with patience is by no means passive. 

Furthermore, have you ever seen a farmer standing in his field complaining to the land and shouting: “why aren't you producing yet?” The farmer knows he must wait patiently, but he’s willing to wait because he knows the crop will come in the proper time and that its value will make the waiting worthwhile. 

Perhaps we should learn a lesson from the farmer by actively tending to business while waiting for some of life’s anticipated results to materialize. 

I remember studying that during biblical times there was an early and late rain that was common to the dry deserts of the middle east. The early rain came at seed time and the late rain just before harvest time—insuring a ripe, full crop. Without both rains, however, the land would never be as fruitful. 

As a side note, it’s interesting how we (especially racers) view rain as such a negative thing in life. We’ve all heard the adage that into every life a little rain must fall, and that it rains on the just and the unjust alike. To a middle eastern farmer, it was these early and late rains that guaranteed a full, ripe crop. Perhaps it is true in our lives as well, that life’s occasional “stormy” circumstances ultimately come to ripen and mature us more than we know. 

So take courage and be strong. Don't sink under the trials of life. If we have any wisdom and insight into life, we should know that we are never going to be free from hassles and problems which may seem incapable of being solved—and we must not allow ourselves to be frustrated by such inevitable events. Be patient. 

The concept of waiting suggests a looking forward with patient expectation towards a coming deliverance. Looking forward suggests that our focus is to be more on our future freedom than on our present condition. This doesn’t mean we ignore present problems—just that we need to keep them in proper perspective. 

Life as we know it is not going to be easy. Life is not going to be fair. That’s why patience and endurance are needed in order to survive. So wait patiently for the answers and results you seek, which will come in their proper time. Have faith that the crops you have sown are going to ripen and mature in time for a fruitful harvest. 

Furthermore, for which crops does a farmer patiently wait? Whichever crops he planted. If the farmer plants "bad seed,” he will receive bad crops. If he plants "no seed," he will get no crops. But if he plants "good seed," he believes that he will receive a good, ripe, and full harvest in the fullness of time. 

What kind of harvest would you like to see in your life? Based on that desired result, what kind of seeds are you planting in your life today to insure that kind of harvest in the future? 

In other words, if you want apples, you plant apples. If you want oranges, you plant oranges. Rather elementary, isn’t it? Yet life follows a similar pattern as it relates to attitudes and choices. We indeed reap what we sow. 

Every farmer understands this basic principle, but so often the rest of us fail to grasp it. We plant apples but complain because we wanted something else. Or we plant no seeds and expect to reap a great harvest. Then we wonder with shock and amazement when no harvest is forthcoming. 

How do you handle affliction? With patience? You can make affliction a positive experience when you choose to apply patience. This works because endurance inevitably leads to blessing. Patience usually leads to more complete and mature results. 

Unfortunately, we have a serious tendency to worry more about the process of our circumstances than with the outcome of our circumstances. We need to view the circumstances of life from a more positive perspective. 

Do you remember the story of Job? In spite of the horrible and devastating circumstances that he faced in life, he eventually ended up with twice as much as he had prior to the trials that haunted him. In other words, if you examine the life of Job before its ultimate outcome, you will certainly get a distorted view of his life in its overall perspective. Yet, I wonder how often we do the same thing in terms of our own existence. 

As a person of faith, I have learned to believe that God is at work in the circumstances of my life. For this reason, I must never evaluate the extent of God’s compassion and mercy until I see the final outcome of all things in my life. To do so prematurely will often result in a bitter taste and the loss of a full and mature blessing. 

So when life throws you a serious challenge, be patient. Stand firm. Don’t complain. And learn to endure to the end. Only then will you see the full picture as it may have been designed for your life. And remember, if you plant the right seeds, you can stand firm and patiently wait for a fruitful harvest. 

Moreover, you can wait patiently because you know the ultimate harvest will be of value. Don’t be discouraged if life allows a little rain to fall. It's only to insure a ripe and full crop. And if your life continues to be void of fruitfulness, perhaps you need to plant better seed. 

Some people say it this way: What goes around, comes around. In other words, our behavior, our attitudes and our choices will to a significant degree determine the outcomes of our life and the extent of potential reward and blessing we may one day receive. I have to agree.