W/W/P/D: Walk, Don’t Weary, Be Patient — and the Lord Will Lift You Up

Anchored in Tony Dungy’s Uncommon Life Daily Challenge — “The Rewards of Patience” (May 30)

“Be patient with everyone.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:14

“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” — Isaiah 40:31

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” — Galatians 6:9

Tony Dungy, in his Uncommon Life Daily Challenge for May 30, reflects on The Rewards of Patience — the hard-won discovery that the slow, careful, corporate method of building something lasting is always better than the urgent impulse to rush. In his football life, the temptation was always there: trade a high draft pick for an immediate fix, fill a hole quickly rather than build carefully. But experience taught him that patient discernment, seeking broad input, and trusting the process produced not only better teams — but a deeper, longer-lasting joy within the organization.

He closes with an Uncommon Key that cuts to the heart: Watch your patience meter today. Having a patient attitude toward life means you focus on God, not on the things of this world, which can so often drag a person down. And there’s a side benefit when you keep your eyes on Him: personal joy.

That single line took me straight back to 1987 — to the winding Wild Creek Horse Canyon road in Chesterfield, Missouri, and to one of the most defining moments of my life.

After my active professional football career ended, I channeled that same competitive drive into running — a minimum of three miles a day. That spilled over to the manner of my leading the business team as we built our EDI*Net B2B eCommerce business. My style and intensity needed to change. From early January 1987 into the fall of that year, I prostrated myself before the Lord in focusing on His Word and prayer. Those daily runs along the wooded trails near our home became something sacred — a moving sanctuary where I could meditate on God’s Word and pray through the ACTS pattern: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication.

During one of those spring runs, the Holy Spirit impressed something unmistakably clear upon me. It wasn’t audible, but it was undeniable: Turn your passion and energy over to Me. Let Me take control. Let go of your drive to succeed. Let go of your need to provide more for your family than your father was able to provide for you as found in Psalm 127.

What followed was a four-word framework that would become the compass of my life:

W/W/P/D — Walk with the Lord. Do not Weary yourself with extra effort. Be Patient. In due time, His purpose and plan will be clear.

For months after that spring run, I dug into Gordon MacDonald’s Ordering your Private World and journaled with Scripture on these four words. And to this day — nearly four decades later — God’s faithfulness in showing me how effective W/W/P/D is in my life keeps it at the forefront of everything I do.

As the summer of 1987 moved into early fall, I sat one afternoon in my office and simply marveled. The business had flourished. My leadership style had shifted — away from driving and striving, toward serving. My team was thriving. My family, my church, my friendships — all doing well. Never had I experienced such peace, contentment, and balance. My wife Pam saw it. My colleagues saw it.

One of the most significant shifts was relational. I stopped driving the business and started nurturing my network of friends and colleagues. It was through this shift that I learned about a mutual friend whose wife was fighting cancer. David and I had a strong connection through business and church. Over several weeks I reached out with calls just to check in and encourage him. I wasn’t pursuing anything. I was simply walking, not wearying, being patient.

Then David surprised me. He offered me an executive position in his investment management business — a firm he and his partner had just sold to a large Michigan bank. They needed someone to lead business strategy, marketing, and development. The offer was significant; a meaningful career move in every sense. I had not engineered that outcome. I had simply been faithful to W/W/P/D, and God had moved in a way I could never have manufactured on my own.

Tony Dungy asks a pointed question in this devotional: How well do you score on the patience scale? He warns that snap decisions can affect your health, your family, your vocation. His prescription: seek input. Wait. Trust the process.

W/W/P/D is my version of the same counsel — drawn not from a playbook, but from a canyon trail in Missouri, months of prostrate prayer, and the unmistakable voice of the Holy Spirit pressing me toward surrender.Isaiah promised that those who wait on the Lord will not merely survive — they will mount up. Paul told the Galatians that in due season, those who do not give up will reap. The question is not whether God is faithful. He is. The question is whether we are willing to walk, not weary — be patient — and trust that in due time, He will lift us up.

Pause today and assess your patience meter. Ask yourself:

• Where in my life am I striving when I should be surrendering?
• Am I exhausting myself trying to produce what only God can provide?
• What would it look like today to simply walk with Him — unhurried, trusting, expectant?

Consider beginning your own W/W/P/D journal — even for 30 days. Write down where you are choosing to walk rather than rush, to wait rather than force. Then watch what God does in due time.