James 1:4 (AMPC), "But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work, so that you may be [people] perfectly and fully developed [with no defects], lacking in nothing."

In order for us to victoriously outlast the pressures and ordeals we may be dealing with today, we need to cultivate an attitude of enduring, steadfast patience. I'm not talking about being satisfied with the status quo, or accepting things we feel we have no power to change. That isn't what the Bible calls patience at all. God's view on patience is the very opposite. When a believer is faced with a seemingly impossible situation, he finds out what God's Word says about it, comes into agreement with it, and declares it over the circumstance he is facing. In other words, he calls things that are promised in God's Word but do not exist in the natural - as though they already exist. This is part of our covenant promise according to Romans 4:17. Now, at this exact point patience comes into play. It is a determined state of mind that says, "No matter what I’m facing, I've decided to be in complete agreement with God's Word and not be moved off of what it says, and I'll stay this way while I see God's promise become my reality." In other words Godly patience turns down every opportunity to quit. The Greek word for this kind of patience is used in a military sense, to depict soldiers who were ordered to maintain their positions even in the face of fierce combat. They were to stand their ground and defend what had been gained. Their goal was to hold their position until they had outlived and outlasted the resistance. These soldiers had to stand their ground until the enemy realized they couldn't be beaten and retreated. Today, make up your mind that you're going to let patience have its full play in you, as you stand your ground in the Word, outlast the devil's resistance and see God's promise become your reality.