“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” — 2 Peter 3:8-9

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Few things feel as diametrically opposed as our culture’s addiction to immediacy and the brutal reality that most of life is spent waiting. We live in an age of instant gratification — same-day shipping, streaming on demand, meals in minutes. Whether it’s in traffic, in line at the grocery store, or for that text message reply, waiting feels inefficient or like wasted time.

But impatience doesn’t just show up in the small annoyances of daily life. It creeps into how we view relationships, careers, personal growth, and even how we evaluate people in the public eye. We expect immediate results, overnight success, and instant change. And when it doesn’t come, we grow restless.

It’s always kind of been this way in sports, but the early part of the 2025 NFL and college football seasons accentuated it.

After a Week 1 loss on the road to defending champion Ohio State, college football fans rushed to write off Arch Manning after his very first start at Texas. Met with the expectations of stardom akin to uncles Peyton and Eli and his grandfather Archie, the young Arch struggled, and the internet declared him overrated within hours. But he ended up throwing for 3,163 yards with 26 touchdowns and seven interceptions to lead Texas to a 10-3 season. He’s considered one of the top quarterback prospects for the 2027 NFL Draft and could potentially be the No. 1 overall pick.

Last year in the NFL, analysts said that if Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams didn’t have a big second year, the Bears might have to bring in a veteran quarterback to challenge him. Williams ended the season with a single-season franchise record of 3,942 passing yards, to go with 27 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He helped lead the Bears to an 11-6 season, an NFC North division championship, and a win over the rival Green Bay Packers in the wild-card round.

Sports commentary has always leaned dramatic, but our culture in general seems to have lost its ability to be patient. We’re ready to consider someone a bust after one bad game or one bad season.

While the Bible doesn’t speak directly about sports, it gives us plenty examples of how God is never in a hurry:

• Abraham and Sarah waited decades for the child God had promised. Their waiting wasn’t wasted. It revealed God’s faithfulness and their need for Him.
• Joseph endured betrayal and years in prison before God raised him to power in Egypt. His story is one of perseverance and trust, even when the timeline seemed unbearable.
• Israel wandered in the wilderness for 40 years before entering the Promised Land. That season of waiting was a season of shaping. God was forming their identity as His people.
• David was anointed king as a teenager but didn’t take the throne for years. That in-between time taught him humility, dependence and courage.
• Even Jesus waited 30 years before beginning His public ministry. If anyone could have rushed the process, it was Him, yet He submitted to His Father’s timing.

God has sovereignty over everything in our lives. We don’t need to hurry Him along. Even if we try, those attempts will be futile (Philippians 4:6).

As Proverbs 21:5 warns, “The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.” Proverbs 19:2 adds, “Desire without knowledge is not good — how much more will hasty feet miss the way!”

The Gospel itself is a story of patience. From the moment humanity fell in Genesis 3, God promised redemption. But that promise unfolded over centuries. Even now, we wait. Christ has come, and yet we await His return. We live in patience, trusting the slow work of God.

— Cole Claybourn

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