We have not stopped praying for you.
—Colossians 1:9
In Colossians 1:11, Paul prayed that the Colossians would possess three qualities:
- Endurance, which no circumstance could defeat.
- Patience, which no person could defeat.
- Joy, which neither circumstance nor person could defeat.
Endurance pertains to circumstances. It is an attitude of perseverance despite affliction, suffering, and disappointment.
Patience pertains to relationships. It is an attitude of self-restraint with those who rub us the wrong way—governed by kindness, compassion, and forbearance.
Joy permeates the life of the person who masters endurance and patience.
William Barclay wrote that Paul’s words should prompt us to pray: “Make me, O Lord, victorious over every circumstance; make me patient with every person; and withal give me the joy which no circumstance and no man will ever take from me.”
Endurance, patience, joy:
three qualities worthy of cultivation.