A good friend of mine is a Colorado cowgirl; the genuine real deal.  She not only lives on a working ranch, but she also competes in rodeos as a barrel racer and in team roping.  To do these activities, Heather needs a really good horse.  The horse she had was quick, in fact very quick, but wasn’t as good as Heather needed him to be at following commands. 

So, she went horse shopping.  Heather had a budget she needed to stay within to buy a new horse.  She tracked down leads and checked out ads for good horses within her price range.  Nothing seemed to be panning out.  The horses she checked out didn’t follow her commands, needed more training, were older than she wanted, or were too skittish for a rodeo crowd.In the meantime, Heather had a friend with a horse, a really good horse, twice the price of what Heather wanted to pay. 

The friend sold the horse with a half-price down payment to someone else.  Over time, no more money came in to complete the transaction, so Heather’s friend took her horse back.  The friend then offered to sell Heather the horse for just a few thousand dollars.  Heather got twice the horse she could afford for a fraction of the price. 

Heather’s comment at the end of the deal was, “No wonder God kept me waiting!” God has a great deal waiting for you as well.  Sometimes we settle for something less because we are too impatient to wait for God to complete the deal. 

So where does patience come from?  From God, of course! 

Colossians 1:11 We also pray that you will be strengthened with His glorious power so that you will have all the patience and endurance you need. 

It’s also found in the Holy Spirit’s fruit; placed right between peace and kindness. 

Galatians 5:22-23 But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  

Lastly, Hebrews 7:12b let’s us know that we can inherit God’s promises when we are patient.   

Instead, you will follow the example of those who are going to inherit God's promises because of their faith and patience.

Allow God’s patience to work in you and don’t settle for anything less than His best for you!

Submitted by Marie Engquist