Not a Destination

Chris getting therapy for his arms

I've been reading the book of James this week. He encourages believers to be patient with the process of faith. James talks about building endurance and growing in faith. In fact, maybe we've tried to make faith a destination rather than the journey it is! That's one conclusion I've come to, anyway.

Faith is definitely a journey! One of the recurring themes in James is patience. He encourages us to be patient as our faith grows. In fact, in chapter 5, he discusses how a farmer must wait for his harvest. Depending on the crop that was planted, it can be a loooooong wait from seed-planting to mature crop harvesting! The farmer can't really do anything to make the process faster, he has no choice other than to wait for the natural process to unfold over time.

I'll be the first one to admit that sometimes, it's the wait that is behind our greatest frustrations. We certainly can't hurry the caregiving journey. We have to take each day as it comes and walk it out as it unfolds. There are many things that are certain about caregiving. But there are also many unknowns. Well, at least it's an interesting journey!

Don't we find ourselves waiting for God over and over and over and over and....

James started this short letter with a discussion on patience and endurance and the testing of our faith. They all seem to work together for a single process. What should be the outcome? That we can be stronger in our faith and can endure life's challenges for the long haul. Well, that doesn't sound like much fun, does it? Maybe God should have made it all go away the moment we believe. Lol. Sounds silly, but we kind of act like that.

Again, faith is not a destination - we'll never truly "arrive." Instead, it's a journey. One that continues to lead us to His heart as we patiently work on developing our relationship with the One who created us and chooses to walk this difficult journey with us.

Today, I'll remind myself to be patient with the process of trusting God. I'll also remind myself to be patient with God...and with myself as I continue to learn how to trust Him more. My meditation will be on how patient He has been with me as I have worked out my personal faith journey, and how patient He was with me when I wasn't even sure I believed. I love that He just kept letting me be me and let me cry, whine, sigh, and think I was going to die - as He waited for the perfect moment to scoop me back up into His heart where I could rest right in the middle of life's stormiest days. I can trust Him for one more day, will you join me?


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cover of my Book of James study guide

Book of James Study Guide • Are you up for a spiritual challenge? • Can you answer James’ hard questions honestly? • Do you want to tackle this spiritual obstacle course? The Book of James study guide is great for individual or group study.   https://amzn.to/4dk0A4A


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