Wait, Because God is Faithful
Sunday’s Verse:
From James 5:7 ESV
“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.”
Waiting is a hard posture. It can easily feel like a strain. We wait for an answer, for healing, for justice, for relief that comes slower than we want. James does not dance around it. He writes to Christians who are weary, under pressure, and tempted to think God has forgotten them.
So he points to the farmer.
The farmer does not rush the field or shout at the sky. He tills the soil he’s been given, trusts the seasons he cannot control, and waits for rain that comes only as a gift. His patience is not laziness. It is faith lived out in daily labor.
James calls us to the same posture. Our patience is not rooted in optimism or inner strength. It rests on a promise: the Lord is coming. Christ has come once already, in humility and on the cross. He will come again to set things right. That future anchors the present.
This is deeply Lutheran ground. Our waiting, our endurance, or our spiritual grit do not save us. We are justified by Christ alone. And because we are already held by grace, we are free to wait without despair.
In the meantime, God gives us rain. Not always the rain we want, but the rain we need. His Word preached. Baptism remembered. The Supper received. These are not small comforts. They are God’s steady care while we wait for the harvest we cannot yet see.
So be patient, James says. Not because waiting is easy, but because the Lord is faithful.
✝️ A Prayer for Today:
Lord Jesus Christ, you know how heavy waiting can feel. Teach us patience rooted not in ourselves, but in your promise. When we grow weary, return us to your Word and Sacraments, where you meet us with mercy. Keep our eyes fixed on your coming, and give us trust for today. Amen.
Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Luther’s Morning Prayer:
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.
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