My three year old sat across the table from his sister waiting for her to pass the butter for his pumpkin muffin. When he kept asking “Butter please, butter please, butter please…” she answered, “Just wait. I’ll be finished in a minute.” To this he retorted, “We don’t need to wait for everything. It’s too hard to wait.” If he only knew, I laughed to myself.
These are the years to teach them the blessings of waiting. As we have opportunity to wait with our children at a doctor’s visit, in the grocery store, at a traffic light, for someone to get us something it’s a great opportunity to lay a foundation for them. They can learn to appreciate the wait.
Blessing is not usually the first word that comes to mind when we think of waiting. We hurry to put some form of technology in our children’s hands to avoid making it more “painful” for ourselves, and miss the learning opportunity for our kids. So what are the good things that come from waiting.
1. Waiting builds character…patience, perseverance, self-control, learning to love others as ourselves.
2. Waiting allows us to depend on God and see Him work in our lives.
3. Waiting enables us to enjoy God’s best, not to substitute a cheap replacement.
4. Waiting gives us time to create…draw, write, tell a story, make a friend, sing a song.
5. Waiting can open our eyes to the blessings in life. It is time for thanksgiving.
6. Waiting is an opportunity to build our relationships with those we love.
7. Waiting on the Lord is the way for us to soar (Isaiah 40:31)
Next time you find yourself waiting in line with a child take time to ask, “What blessings can we receive while we wait here?” Tuck a little note in your purse as a reminder if that helps. You’ll be surprised at what a child can think up.
emissions of faith 