One of the things I have found to be so difficult within the Christian life is that progress doesn't come over night. For those of us trying to follow the way of Jesus, we want to live our lives according to his principles, but doing that seems so much easier to talk about than actually accomplish.
I say all that to tell you. This morning in doing my devotions, I read a passage of scripture that I have read countless times, and you have probably read or heard it preached about multiple times yourself. This morning though God revealed to me something about this passage that I had never read before. It comes out of Luke 8. Jesus tells this story about a sower who sows seeds on the ground, and he talks about that these seeds fall on all sorts of different kinds of soil, four to be exact. Then after telling the story he goes on to explain the parable to his disciples, and it was what he said about the good soil that stood out to me.
Here is what he says, "As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience" For some reason, I don't remember reading that phrase, "bear fruit with patience." That phrase should gives such encouragement to all of us. It takes time for the seeds to grow, and to begin to produce fruit in the way we want it to. The same is true in your life and mine. In order for us to look the way that God wants us to look it takes time and patience. So don't be discouraged if you are trying your hardest to follow Christ, and sometimes it just doesn't come easily. Be patient. The Christian life is a marathon not a sprint.
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