Tuesday, February 24th | Daily Devotion
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door.” –James 5:7-9
TRANSCRIPTION:
Good morning, good morning. Grace and peace be unto all of you, my Father’s children.
I pray that you are warm and safe wherever you are on this Tuesday morning as we continue our focus this week on patience.
If you have your swords, turn with me to the book of Romans, chapter 12, beginning at verse 12. You will find these words:
“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.”
In Romans 12, Paul begins by urging believers to present their bodies as a living sacrifice. From there, he shifts into what can only be described as a blueprint for Christian living. What’s interesting is that these directives seem to run completely counter to human nature.
“Rejoice in hope.” Hope means it hasn’t happened yet. And yet we are called to rejoice as though it already has.
“Be patient in tribulation.” You mean when I’m going through? When the manifestation of what I desire has not yet appeared, and I’m still facing trial or persecution—that’s when I’m supposed to be patient?
“Be constant in prayer.” Meaning that no matter what is happening around me, my primary response should be prayer.
On the surface, these commands sound good. But in practice, they are challenging. It is not easy to bless those who persecute you. It is not natural to bless and not curse when someone wrongs you.
Christian living often feels like an out-of-body experience. The flesh wants to react one way, but God calls us to respond differently.
That is the essence of this walk: rejoicing in hope, being patient in tribulation, remaining constant in prayer, blessing those who persecute us.
As we continue moving forward, we are asking God to help us become more like Christ—more aligned with His will, more attuned to His ways. It takes a different kind of person to bless those who persecute them. It takes spiritual maturity to remain patient and peaceful when chaos surrounds you.
And we cannot do that in our own strength.
To live this way requires the power of the Holy Spirit. Christian living denotes a life governed by the Spirit. When we invite the Holy Spirit into our hearts, we are not asking Him to simply redecorate our interior life—we are asking Him to transform our natural tendencies so that they align with how God operates.
You can recognize someone walking in the Spirit by their actions, their demeanor, and their responses. And that is what we should strive toward daily.
God often gives us opportunities to demonstrate that growth. He allows tribulation. He allows situations that require hope. He brings us to our knees in prayer. He even allows moments of persecution—then watches to see how we respond.
So today, I challenge you: look at the situations God allows in your life as opportunities to walk in the Spirit.
That’s good, folks.
I pray your day is incredible and that God blesses you in a special way.