WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
MAY 26, 2026
TOPIC: BE PATIENT WITH OTHERS
BY T. O. BANSO
“Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all” (1 Thessalonians 5:14 New King James Version).
Proverbs 19:2b says, “Impatience will get you into trouble” (Good News Translation). The New Century Version puts it this way: “If you act too quickly, you might make a mistake.”
Impatience is a silent relationship killer. In your relationships with people, cultivate patience. Be patient with others. Patience is one of the traits listed in the Bible as the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). A lack of patience often leads to struggles in sustaining relationships. Without patience, relationships rarely endure. If you’re not patient, you may end up walking alone in life because you refuse to give others grace or be tolerant.
The apostle Paul, writing to the Ephesians, said, “Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love” (Ephesians 4:2b New Living Translation). Make allowance for people’s faults. Nobody is perfect, including you. Don’t be easily provoked. “Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, for anger rests in the bosom of fools” (Ecclesiastes 7:9 New King James Version). Don’t be a fool. Proverbs 19:11 says, “The discretion of a man makes him slow to anger, and his glory is to overlook a transgression” (New King James Version). According to Proverbs 16:32, “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city” (New King James Version). Be patient with others.
It takes time for some people to change; give them time to change. And that means you must be patient. I’m not talking about people who’re out deliberately to injure or harm you.
You can’t force yourself on people. It takes more than one party to be in a relationship. Friendship is not by force; it is by choice. Romans 12:18 says, “Do your best to live in peace with everyone” (New Century Version). The New King James Version renders Romans 12:18 thus: “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.”
This means that the Bible acknowledges that sometimes living in peace with everyone requires more than just your own efforts. You can do all you should do, but the other person does not do what he should do for peace to reign. You’re not responsible for what he should do that he didn’t do; you’re only responsible for what you should do. Do all you can to maintain peaceful relationships. The New Living Translation renders Romans 12:18 thus: “Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.” Did you see that? Do your part for peace to reign.
Human beings, including you, aren’t “ready-made.” Everybody has issues that he is dealing with in his life. So be patient with people. If you’re impatient with people, you may get rid of them from your life too soon, or they may walk away. The other option is that they may be around you or with you, pretending to be who or what they’re not. That is not good for either you or them.
Some people change faster than others. Some are slow learners. It takes a long time for some to change. Remember 2 Timothy 2:24 says, “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient” (New King James Version). The New Living Translation renders it thus: “A servant of the Lord must not quarrel but must be kind to everyone, be able to teach, and be patient with difficult people.” Be patient with people, including those who are difficult, but also be sensitive when the Holy Spirit prompts you to end a troubled relationship.
Husbands and wives who are impatient with each other may end up with separation or divorce, contrary to God’s will for them. God’s will for marriage is a lifetime commitment. Be patient with your spouse, but don’t continue to expose yourself to domestic violence that can lead to physical harm or death. You may have to leave an unrepentant abuser first, giving them time to come to their senses or allowing the dispute to be resolved.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:14, Paul, writing to the Thessalonians, said, “Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all” (New King James Version). Note the last phrase in this scripture: uphold the weak, be patient with all. Not everyone has the same strength. Some may be weak and others strong.
Hebrews 12:12 says, “Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees” (New King James Version). Also, Romans 14:1 says we should receive one who is weak in the faith but not to dispute over doubtful things. According to Romans 15:1, “We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves” (New King James Version). The weak must be upheld, and we should be patient with all. The latter part of 1 Thessalonians 5:14 says, “Be patient with everyone” (New Living Translation). Be patient with others.
In 1 Samuel 13, because of Saul’s impatience, he sacrificed to God a burnt offering that he was unqualified to offer. The prophet Samuel had told him, “You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and surely I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and make sacrifices of peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, till I come to you and show you what you should do” (1 Samuel 10:8 New King James Version). Saul waited at Gilgal for seven days, the exact duration of time appointed by the prophet Samuel. It is generally understood that Saul waited till the seventh day, but not until the end of that day. Impatient and seeing his army desert him, Saul took matters into his own hands and sacrificed a burnt offering to God. But as soon as he finished offering the unlawful sacrifice, Samuel arrived.
Saul should have been patient and waited for Samuel, considering that Samuel was to offer the sacrifice, not him. In addition, Samuel was to come and show him what he should do. Saul didn’t wait for that. Against the backdrop of the command that God had given Saul through Samuel, his excuse—that he offered the sacrifice because his people were scattering and Samuel had not come—was untenable. He was not a priest; he was a king. It wasn’t his job to offer a sacrifice on behalf of the nation, especially when God had not commanded him to do so.
By contrast, during the deadly plague in 2 Samuel 24, the LORD commanded David, through the prophet Gad, to erect an altar to Him on Araunah’s threshing floor. David obeyed and went to build an altar to the LORD on Araunah’s threshing floor, where he offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. The LORD answered his prayer for the land, and the plague stopped (2 Samuel 24:18-25). David had caused the plague by taking a census of Israel and Judah, but he acted on direct prophetic instruction from the prophet Gad to offer burnt offerings and peace offerings.
Reacting to Saul’s unlawful sacrifice, Samuel said, “And Samuel said to Saul, ‘You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you’” (1 Samuel 13:13-14 New King James Version). Did you see what impatience cost Saul? What has impatience cost you?
Be patient with others.
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you must give your heart to Jesus now. Please take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself, and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your heart. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching, and Bible-practising church. There, they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner, and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me, and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I invite Jesus into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You must join a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching, and Bible-practising church where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Father, deliver me from impatience. Help me to cultivate patience, especially in my relationships with others. Let me not, through impatience, destroy relationships that are vital to my destiny fulfilment. I shall not hasten in my spirit to be angry; anger shall not rest in my bosom. I shall not be a fool. Father, help all your children to be patient in their relationships with others. Let them be patient with one another and with non-believers.
(For over 900 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
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