Patience | Robert Wayne Atkins, P.E.

Introduction
Sometimes we know that something is going to happen but we do not know when it will happen. For example, in my article Social, Political, and Legal Corruption I discussed the four phases that societies experience on a regular basis: peak, decline, bottom, and improvement. These four phases have been repeating for thousands of years. But it not possible to predict when a specific phase will begin. And we cannot predict how long a phase will last. At the current time most people know that we are near the end of the decline phase. But we do not know when the bottom phase will actually begin (war, starvation, and serious hard times). And we do not know how many years it will last. But we do know that the bottom phase will occur. And we will not stop preparing for it even if it doesn't happen this month or this year.

Patience is the ability to wait for something to happen and to not become discouraged if it doesn't happen when we expect it to happen, or when we would like for it to happen. God has always been in 100% control of everything and things will happen according to God's timetable.

Individually we do not need to try to force something to happen. God promised Abraham (age 75) and Sarah (age 65) a son but 10 years passed and they did not have a child. In order to "help" God's promise come true, Sarah gave her servant Hagar to her husband and Ishmael was born. But this was not the son that God promised. 15 more years passed and when Sarah was 90 years old she gave birth to Isaac. Isaac was the son that God had promised that Abraham and Sarah would have. Ishmael became jealous of Isaac and Ishmael began causing problems. Therefore Sarah insisted that Ishmael and Hagar be sent away. God told Abraham to listen to Sarah and therefore Abraham cast Ishmael and Hagar out of his home. Ishmael became the ancestor of the Arab nations and they have been in constant war with Isaac's descendants for the past 4,000 years. This is simply one example of how Sarah's patience was tested. After Sarah had waited for 10 years and she was 75 years old, her patience expired, and she believed she had to do something to "help" God's promise come true. But God did not need her help. And her help only created 4,000 years of problems for her descendants through Isaac.

King Saul became jealous of David's successes in battle and King Saul tried to kill David by throwing a spear at David. But King Saul missed. When David went to hide in the wilderness King Saul went after David with his entire army. On two occasions David had an opportunity to kill King Saul but David refused to take matters into his own hands. David believed that if God wanted King Saul to die then God was able to make it happen. And God did make it happen. When King Saul was fighting his enemies in a major battle the archers shot some arrows into the air and one of those arrows mortally wounded King Saul. King Saul knew he was going to die so he fell on his own sword to hasten his death. This is an example of David waiting patiently for God to do whatever God believed was best. And David did not take matters into his own hands even when it appeared that circumstance had delivered King Saul to him for execution.

Many of the Psalms in the Holy Bible are prayers where a person who is in desperate need of help fervently asks God to not delay any longer but to act quickly to answer the person's prayer. Although God heard all of those prayers for help, God rarely answered as quickly as the person desired. But the person did not stop asking and the person did not stop believing and the person continued to patiently wait on God without trying to "help" God answer the prayer.

Discussion
When things do not happen the way that we would like for them to happen we usually become discouraged. And when we see dishonest people doing dishonest things without being punished then we are tempted to follow in their footsteps. This would be a mistake.

One of the devil's most successful lies is the lie where the devil has said that he created hell and that he is the supreme ruler in hell and that he can do anything he wants to the people who join him in hell.

Convict

How can we know that this is a lie? Because prisoners do not build jails and prisons. Jails and prisons are built to punish law breakers by depriving them of their freedom. A warden is in charge of a prison and the warden is not one of the prisoners. This is common knowledge and it does not need to be proved.

God Almighty created hell as a place of confinement and eternal punishment for the devil and the rebellious angels who followed the devil.

Matthew 25:41 (New International Version)
41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.' "

The above scripture clearly indicates that the lake of eternal fire (or hell) was specifically created by God as a place of confinement for the devil and for the fallen angels who had rebelled against God.

God and His Son Jesus are the Wardens of hell (also called the Abyss in the Holy Bible).

Luke 8:30-31 (New International Version)
30 Jesus asked him, "What is your name?"
"Legion," he replied, because many demons had gone into him.
31 And they begged him repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss.

The above scripture clearly indicates that Jesus has control over the Abyss (or hell) and that the demons (or fallen angels) know it.

The devil will be cast into hell and the devil will be a prisoner in hell.

Revelation 20:10 (New International Version)
10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

What does the above have to do with patience? If you believe the Holy Bible then you can be assured that the devil will be cast into hell according to God's timetable. And the devil will be a prisoner in hell. And anyone who does evil and who follows the devil will also be cast into hell. There won't be any parties in hell. There will only be pain day and night forever.

Therefore please be patient and continue to worship God and continue to love all of God's children, including God's disobedient children. Because the disobedient children may have a change of heart and one day they may ask God to forgive them. If they ask for forgiveness in the name of Jesus, then what do you think God's answer will be?

Conclusion
From the book of Genesis to the book of Revelation the Holy Bible has hundreds of stories of the four repeating cycles of prosperity, rebellion, punishment, and repentance.

It is not possible to predict when God will release His punishment on the world for all the evil that is currently being done by so many different people in so many different ways. But, in my opinion, God's punishment is long overdue. And I suspect that God is only delaying His punishment for the sake of His beloved children so that we can have just a little more time to prepare for the hard times that are going to devastate the entire world.

May God Bless,
Grandpappy.

Grandpappy's e-mail address is: RobertWayneAtkins@hotmail.com