We should be patient with the faults of others as well as our own faults. If we want to learn to be patient with others, we can pray that God will give us strength to be patient and kind. We can remind ourselves that others have to bear with our faults. We can remember that we usually cannot correct our own faults without great effort; why should we be impatient with the habitual faults of others? Besides, human faults are an opportunity for us to allow our character to be refined, especially learning to be patient with others.
If it is our place to say something about someone’s fault, and we have mentioned it more than once then we should not nag someone so that we get into a dispute over it. We can just fulfill our proper role without becoming angry or aggressive. We should not take the situation out of God’s hands and into our own, but rather seek to honor God with our meekness and humility. God can change someone if he wants. If we have fulfilled our responsibility then we need to let God fulfill his role however he sees fit. Then our role is to be patient with others.
We tend to want others to be corrected without pursuing correction for ourselves. We want others to be restrained but we don’t like being restrained. In general, we do not apply the same standards to ourselves as we apply to others. We would do well to be fair with our standards.
Everyone has faults and shortcomings which is why God wants us to be patient with others and bear one another’s burdens (Gal. 6:2). Otherwise, how can the body of Christ become one? Moreover, no one has enough wisdom or abilities to live a complete life on their own. We all need the wisdom, kindness and encouragement of others. This means that the person who is irritating you also needs your kindness and encouragement. And you need kindness from others. Adversity will reveal whether we have the character to be humble and look to others for help. Then we can learn that we need others’ patience in the same way they need ours. (1)
Is there someone in your life with whom you struggle to be patient? How can you change your attitude now so that you are more patient the next time they irritate you?
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- This post is partly based on Chapter 16 of The Imitation of Christ.
