Patience

As I prepared the night before for our home school time for the next morning, I was excited about what my boys and I were going to learn during our devotion time. We talk about different character traits and focus on a particular one for the rest of the week so that we can learn to put it into practice.
 
I was very excited that the character trait we were learning about this week is patience. In Galatians 5:22-23 says: "But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

If you have children you know you need extra patience to be with them throughout the day because it takes effort and time to care for them without  you pulling your hair out. I thought, what a great opportunity this week to focus on this one particular fruit . My son is the type of little boy that is not patient at all.
So I thought, I got him now.

As our day went by, things of course began taking place and shaping our morning with chaos. Disobedience was taking place, distractions here and there, unkindness, disrespectfulness, bad attitudes, frustration, impatience,  and the list can go on.  I was begining to feel overwhelmed and frustrated with my son because he was not paying attention during our homeschool time and was not reading like I wanted him to, because he was not putting forth the effort, so I thought. I was actually not being patient with him and was giving him little credit for what he was actually doing as best as he could.

As our homeschool time came to an end, we pondered  on the memory verse to go along with being patient. Ephesians 4:2 says: " With all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love."

The Lord has quite  a sence of humor, because here I was thinking, I got him now. I'll teach about patience the whole week, but in reality the one being taught patience was me. In Matthew 7:3 says:  Why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?" Wow! The Lord sure does have a way to humble you doesn't He?

I was not doing what Ephesians 4:2 says. I was not being gentle with my son with my words, or patient. I was not tolerating him in love. I was being a terrible example to him in not demonstrating self-control with my attitude and  by being frustrated and not practicing patience. Most of all I was not  showing the love of Christ to him.

Thank you Lord for how your Word penetrates the heart so that our sin can come forth in order for us to come to you repented.  Help me be a great example to the young little hearts that you've place under my care, so that they can fall in love with you, through the examples set before them.

~ Karla