Rejoice, be Patient and in Constant Prayer

                “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Romans 12:12

I was reading through Romans today and this verse jumped out and hit me across the face. I immediately started thinking about my life and began to wonder if I was displaying this truth. What am I rejoicing in? Is patience a part of my life even in times of tribulation? Then I came to the last part of the verse. This is when Paul’s words hit me like a bat, am I in constant prayer?

Rejoice in Hope

What does this mean? Sure, I rejoice in hope. I am happy that hope is alive. This is when I realized that this hope was so much more than an expectation or desire for something to happen. “I hope the Vols win tomorrow.” “I hope it doesn’t rain this weekend.” This is not what Paul is talking about here. Paul is screaming at us to rejoice in the hope that only Christ can give. This is a hope of salvation. This is a hope of righteousness. This is a hope of eternity celebrating our Savior, our God. Are you rejoicing in that? We must understand that apart from Christ there is no hope. Apart from Christ there is an eternity in hell. Rejoice in Him, the One who made you. Rejoice in Him, the One who spoke the universe into existence. Rejoice in Him, the One who willingly took the cross. This is the hope Paul is referring to. Don’t walk through life with a “slothful zeal” (Romans 12:11). We must quit being lazy and settling for “mud pies”.

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” C.S. Lewis

Matthew 6:19 tells us that the things of this earth will be destroyed by moth and rust. This is why we store up our treasures in heaven. Jesus is the treasure we seek. Don’t miss that. Rejoice in that. Rejoice in that hope because without it we are lost.

Be Patient in Tribulation

I am amazed at the truths God can put into one verse of scripture. We are told here to be patient in tribulation. I am not even sure if I am patient in the good times. I can look back at certain parts of my life and learn real quick that I fail here miserably. Are we waiting for His plan to be revealed? Paul is commanding us to wait and see what God has in store. It is so easy to take the ball and run with it.

We compartmentalize certain areas of our life. I can cover my job situation and finances if you, God, can cover my marriage and protecting my child. Why do we insist on being in charge? We want control because we are sinners. Paul is telling us here that patience is a fundamental quality of a believer. We are not smart enough or tough enough to handle everything on our own. Remember, we are hopeless apart from Christ. He and only He can bring us through. We must have patience during the good times or we certainly will not answer this command and have patience in tribulation.

We should find comfort in this. We can be patient and trust Him because we know that He is sovereign over all of creation. He spoke the universe into existence. He sees all and knows all. We have no foreknowledge. We, man, have no absolute certainty in our actions. I can say that I will get home safe from work but I have no knowledge of that. I become reactionary. I react to circumstances around me. This is not how God operates. Jeremiah 1:5 tells us that before we were even formed in the womb He knew us. He is in control. He is the “I AM”. He doesn’t simply react to circumstances. He is in it—past, present, and future. There is no guessing with Him. He set out this plan long before we stepped foot on this earth. Praise Him for that! Praise Him for all that you have. This is why we seek patience through tribulations. We are seeking and waiting for His plan to unfold. Your plan, my plan will always fail. God never fails.

In Constant Prayer

I love how the Lord used Paul with this scripture. We rejoice and have patience when we are in constant prayer. If you are not talking to the Father than what are you rejoicing about? If you are not talking to the Father than how can you expect to have patience? Prayer is a must. Read through the Gospels and see how much time the Messiah prayed. He was constantly talking to the Father. So why do we spend such little time doing it? Are you busy? Do you have other things on your mind? What could possibly be more important? Ask yourself these questions and then ask for forgiveness from God when you are done. These questions broke me.

I encourage you to be consistent in your prayer life. Spend time just thanking Him for all that He is and all that He has done for you. Praise Him through your words. Pray for the lost and the broken. Pray for the unreached people groups around the world. Pray for your work, church, school, family, and friends. Pray for your heart and your mind so that all you do is focused on Him so that your deepest desires and longings are to bring Him glory. Pray for patience!

I understand this sometimes can be a struggle. Our minds drift and we follow. When this happens go to the word. See how David prayed. See the desires of Paul and his prayers. Imitate our Savior and His prayer life. Notice all of their focus was on God’s glory and not on self. The Word can be of great assistance in your prayer life. The Word of God will get your mind right. The Word of God will steer your thoughts and actions to Him.

“I often spent a quarter of an hour, or half an hour, or even an hour on my knees, before being conscious to myself of having derived comfort, encouragement, humbling of soul, etc.; and often after having suffered much from wandering of mind for the first ten minutes, or a quarter of an hour, or even half an hour, I only then began to pray.”

“Now what is the food for the inner man: not prayer, but the Word of God: and here again not the simple reading of the Word of God, so that it only passes through our minds, just as water runs through a pipe, but considering what we read, pondering over it, and applying it to our hearts…” George Muller

I pray that this short verse out of Romans would encourage you to rejoice, be patient and pray. It is my hope that we would long for Christ and a relationship with Him. Dive into the Word and seek Him above all else.