Patience

Patience is something that really gets tested as a parent and something that kids seem to be short of. Parenting in these times makes this such a difficult issue. Everything is instant; super-fast down-load speed, fast food drive through, instant access to knowledge, instant access to each other via mobile devices. We have equated modern progress with the ability to instantly get what we want. Patience is a spiritual gift; meaning it is something God knows we can’t live without. Lack of it leads to anxiety, anger, frustration, a defeatist attitude, and the danger of either taking a short cut or settling for a poor second choice.

All your kids will come to the scariest time as a parent sooner than you think, when they have to start making their own decisions; smoking, alcohol, drugs, study, employment, relationships, and (dare I say it) sex. Without patience to resist peer pressure, to push back against society’s raging tide and to hold to what they really know and feel is right is like a blindfolded man in a minefield.

So how do you develop patience in your kids?

Prayer - always the start and finish of everything we want for our kids. Ask God for that spiritual gift for your children.

Model it - if that’s difficult for you see point one. Kids will do what you do not what you say. Every time you grumble about waiting rather than just commenting on how hard people are working or how busy it is today your kids are watching, listening and learning.

Live it - play games that require a longer time frame (board games are great for this, especially a game like Ludo which incorporates some frustrating set-backs as well), do bigger jigsaw puzzles, plan and save for holidays and let your kids know about it, help kids to choose a target to save pocket money toward, use countdown charts to major family events, go for longer walks with rest and play stops, prepare slower cooked meals, cook together (waiting for an oven to finish cooking, dough to rise, or cookies to cool is a fantastic lesson in patience, as is the whole process of preparing a meal).

You cannot devote too much time to this or deliberately develop this life skill too intentionally. Always remember God gives us all free will, this includes your kids, and they will be making their own decisions soon enough. Above all things try your best to live out yourself what you want your kids to develop - don’t mutter in traffic, don’t get grumpy in supermarket lines, and allow kids time to do things before pushing the “Hurry up!” button.