Long Suffering

Leslie: This is Seeking Him with Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth.

Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth: When the apostle Paul begins to describe true, godly love, he starts with “Love is patient.” Some translations say, “Love suffers long.”

Woman: For about the last nine years of that marriage, the marriage was just plagued with alcoholism. I would just repeat these words, ‘Lord, I cannot do this. I cannot love the way You intended me to love. Just give me Your love. Let it flow through me to this man.’

Nancy: Sometimes true love requires suffering, not just for the short term, but over the long haul.

This kind of patience means that you don’t pay someone back when he hurts you, even when it’s in your power to do so.

How is it possible to love someone in that way? Because we love God. Showing long-suffering and commitment in marriage brings Him glory.

When we’re filled with God’s love and it overflows with patience toward others, it’s evidence that we’re seeking Him.