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The Patience of Job

The Patience of Job

The Patience of Job--Bible open to book of JobDo you know people with the patience of Job? Those I admire include:

  • Parents with a houseful of children
  • Teachers with rowdy, disrespectful students
  • Doctors with full waiting rooms who take time to answer questions

The patience of Job refers to people with great patience.

They stay calm in the middle of chaos. They treat others with kindness — even those rude to them.

People with the patience of Job endure through every circumstance.

They rarely waver despite:

  • Illness
  • Financial problems
  • Relationship struggles
  • Work overload

The patience of a saint means the same.

We often wonder how those people stay cool as a cucumber while others sweat bullets.

They rarely:

  • Yell
  • Act frustrated
  • Blame others

Instead, they:

  • Speak quietly
  • Do what needs to be done
  • Take responsibility when they do anything wrong

This expression refers to Job, a man in the Bible, who lost almost everything.

His losses included:

  • All his children
  • Possessions
  • Health

Job could not understand his suffering but stood firm in his faith.

Although he received little support from people, he relied on God.

Eventually:

  • Job’s health was restored.
  • He had more children.
  • His possessions doubled.

One constant for Job: Through all his ups and downs, God was always there.

“I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God” (Job 19:25-26 NIV).

Thanks to Jessi Gowen for the suggestion.

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Keep Your Head

Keep Your Head

Keep Your Head--Hope and Despair arrow signs pointing opposite directionsWhen life goes out of control, it’s hard to keep your head. Uncertainty leads to panic rather than patience.

Keep your head means to remain calm.

Although everything around you falls apart at the seams, you don’t. Instead, you find calm in the middle of the storms.

Keep your head does not mean you never feel stressed.

With so much turmoil in the world today, stress affects everyone. Daily news bombards us with updates on:

  • Wars
  • Price increases
  • Abuse
  • Disasters
  • Crime

Everything goes haywire. Yet you find personal control in the worst of it.

Rather than give in to problems, get a grip on solutions.

As a former teacher often said, “Think. Just think.” Apply the good sense God gave you.

Choose:

  • Faith over fear
  • Hope over despair
  • Peace over pressure
  • Calm in chaos

“But you, keep your head in all situations” (2 Timothy 4:5 NIV).

Thanks to Joanne Viola for the suggestion. Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay.

Do you have an expression you want explained or a thought about this one? If so, please comment below.

Subscribe to receive my weekly posts by email and receive a free copy of “Words of Hope for Days that Hurt.”

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