I often get ahead of God in my plans, healing, and growth—and I am far less patient with myself than I am with others.

This Advent I’m being reminded of the importance of patient trust. This is a season of hopeful waiting.

Be still in the presence of the Lord,

and wait patiently for him to act.

-Psalm 37:7 (NLT)

Trust is the language of the heart and its pace is slow and steady.

Several years ago, while on a meditation retreat I shared my frustration with my teacher about not being able to quiet my mind.

“Why do you want to meditate?” he asked.

“So I can hear what God speaks to me,” I said.

With a gentle laugh, he replied, “God doesn’t speak to your mind—He speaks to your heart.”

That moment shifted my practice. Whether seated or moving, meditation now holds more freedom—more heart, less striving.

Last week I wrote about the strength that forms in the silence of God’s presence and often doesn’t happen without struggle. Parts of us desire some outward sign or visible proof that God is at work in our lives. Still, much of His transformation happens quietly within us.

I believe the impatience lives in the mind, not the heart. Waiting is hard. Patience is a discipline. We know who we want to become or how we want our circumstances to change, but trusting God’s timing requires a letting go.

My prayer today is this: Jesus, create in me a trusting heart. Release me from any critical, intolerant spirit. Soften what is hard.

One of my favorite prayers comes from the French Jesuit priest and writer Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. It is especially fitting for this Advent season of hopeful waiting.

What parts of your life feel anxious and unfinished?

What small rhythm could you create to let God set the pace of your days?

What belief or preference is resulting in fear and not freedom?

Breath Prayers:

Inhale: Patient trust

Exhale: In you alone, Jesus

Experiencing life through our body is an invitation to encounter God more deeply. Yoga is a way to move and breathe and dive deeply into self-inquiry and lasting change.