This post is Day 22 in a series of studies about “James”. I strongly suggest you begin with the introduction to this study, please click here to read it.

Feel free to comment below with your own thoughts about each verse and how you will be acting on each thought. Also, if you haven’t yet signed up to receive the notifications of new studies, you can do that today (the form is at the bottom of the page).

James – Day 22

We pray and if we do not see immediate answers we think the Lord has forgotten us, or is refusing us. But no. He is teaching us perseverance. He is also waiting for us to be ready for the exciting things He has prepared for us in the future.

James 5:7

Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains.

The Thought

Back to the farming analogy today, reminding us that the farmer must be patient. One of the problems of our 21st century western mentality is that we expect everything to be instant.

We have instant communication, instant responses, deliveries to our door of almost everything, including fast food. Even the farmer gets crops to produce much more quickly than they did in Biblical times. But there is still the lesson to be learned there.

Learning to be patient can be difficult, and for some it is one of the trials we read about in chapter 1. We pray and if we don’t see immediate answers we think the Lord has forgotten us, or doesn’t like us, or is refusing us. But no. He is teaching us perseverance. He is also waiting for us to be ready for the exciting things He has prepared for us in the future.

But this verse is speaking specifically about the second coming of Jesus. James is encouraging his readers to be patient! We can imagine that the first disciples expected Jesus’ return to be very soon after His departure. They were getting tired of waiting. God’s plan was always much bigger than their thoughts!

If the end time harvest began tomorrow in your area, and thousands came into the Kingdom, is your church prepared to cope with the crowds?

One pastor cannot do it all, he needs help, and much prayer.

Action

Praise God for His perfect timing. Praise Him for the harvest that is coming.

Pray for the workers to bring in the harvest of souls, and pray for your church to be ready.