Then [Jesus] told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

Devotion based on Luke 13:6-9

I struggle a little bit with being patient with other people. When I see things not being done as I would do them or when I give instructions to my kids, and they don’t do what I say, that frustrates me.

You might wrestle with this, too. We want to be patient. We know that we should be. But man! People can make that difficult, right?

Whenever I feel myself getting riled up and impatient with others, I try to remember how patient God has been with me. My goodness! How many times have I messed up? How many times have I pledged to God that I wouldn’t do that sin again, only to find myself reoffending? I try to be good. I try to honor God with my life, but there are episodes of my life where godly living would be hard to see.

Thank God, he sent us Jesus! Jesus lived the life that we never could—a perfect one—and he gave that life of perfection to pay for all the times we have frustrated God with our foolishness.

You might find yourself getting impatient with others like your parents, your spouse, your kids, or whomever! Remember the patience God has shown you and mirror that patience with them.

Prayer:

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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.