ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

 SAPATE SUNE 14, 2026

SAAME 36-39; KALETIA 6:6-10

Willing and humble patience is a significant aspect of faith in God.

Ko e loto ke fa’a tatali ‘i he angavaivai ko e konga lahi ia ‘o e tui ki he ‘Otua.

In his infinite wisdom, God faithfully delivers, in his own time, what he has ordained and promised. God's timing is never wrong. Not only does he give us what is best, but he gives it at the very best time. This means that if, by faith, we place our lives in God's hands, then we must be willing to wait. Waiting is an essential element of biblical faith. This is hard for me. For reasons I don't completely understand, I am very time-oriented. I hate being stuck in traffic. I don't like waiting in long lines. I dislike waiting for my name to be called in the waiting room of a doctor's office. I have a hard time being patient as I am waiting to go somewhere with my wife and she is not quite ready. I do understand that impatience is prideful. It puts my needs, wants, and schedule first. Impatience is frustrated self-sovereignty, a desire for greater control over people and situations than God designed us to have.

Because patience is such a significant function of biblical faith, and because it is a personal struggle for me, I have found Psalm 37 to be both convicting and motivating:

Fret not yourself because of evildoers;

be not envious of wrongdoers!

For they will soon fade like the grass

and wither like the green herb.

Trust in the LORD, and do good;

dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.

Delight yourself in the LORD,

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the LORD;

trust in him, and he will act.

He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,

and your justice as the noonday.

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;

fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out evil devices!

Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!

Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

For the evildoers shall be cut off,

but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land. (Ps. 37:1-9)

What does waiting look like? It looks like not giving in to fear even when it seems as though the bad guys are winning. It looks like not envying the prosperity of those who break God's rules. It looks like delighting in the Lord while you are waiting. It looks like willingly committing your life to the wise rule of the Lord. It looks like not giving way to anger and believing that God blesses those who are willing to wait. Now, none of these aspects of waiting is natural for us. So, in order to wait with joyful, fear-free patience, we need God to meet us and empower us with his grace. If waiting is an essential aspect of true faith, then it is also a fruit of divine grace.

So, we wait. Ultimately, we wait for the fulfillment of the promise that we will be with our Savior face-to-face.