Devotion: James 5:7

James 5:7 Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains.

Yesterday we talked about enduring or persevering in the face of hardship. Today’s verse continues in the same theme, though it is written from James instead of from the book of Hebrews. It serves as a final exhortation for believers as James wraps up his letter.

James uses an analogy to make his point. He compares our wait on the Lord to that of a farmer. Just as farmers wait for the early and late rains, which are crucial to their agricultural needs, we, too, are to wait in patience for the Lord’s coming. The farmer waits to receive their crops and believers must endure in hope of the future harvest of righteousness. The word used for waits is a present tense verb which indicates that the waiting process is ongoing, without end or not ceasing.

The context emphasizes that like a farmer working until the harvest, believers should continue to do good and not succumb to apathy. Patience is not something we are good at, usually, but sometimes we have no choice but to be patient as we await the outcome. A farmer can’t impatiently dig up their crops early to see how they are doing and if they are ready yet. They will ruin things and have nothing in the end. They have to be patient or risk losing everything. And sometimes that is true for you and I. Like it or not, in many cases we have no choice but to wait patiently for the outcome.

The ultimate wait we experience is the return of Christ. He promised He would come again and we see it in prophecy. We know it is going to happen. When, we do not know. But we wait patiently for the day it happens knowing that He will fulfill His promise.

Until that day, we move through life learning to be patient through the experiences we have. Each trial, each situation, each challenge is another lesson in patience and waiting on the Lord. Are you learning to wait on Him patiently?

Prayer: Lord, Help me to be patient for Your promises. Let me be like the farmer awaiting the final harvest, trusting in the coming rains to grow their crops. Amen

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