I have been praying...PRAYING...that the Lord will grant me patience! I don't want to feel so frustrated in my heart, and I especially don't want to be short with my sweet husband and my precious babies.....therefore....... I need patience!
This morning, with Emilee bouncing all over me, (because I finally asked Tyler to get her up after listening to her bawl and yell for an hour and a half, because we wouldn't get her up at 5:30 a.m. because it is just too dang early, and quite frankly she needs more sleep)......I had a thought!
Patience is like any other skill or talent. If you want to get good at it, you MUST practice!
There are some prayer requests that can be granted immediately. I guess patience, at least in my case, is not one of them. So, as I lay there completely exhausted.....with self pity, and waves of frustration crashing over me....I finally allowed LOVE to enter my heart. I looked at Emilee and chose love. My mood shifted and I took her into my arms and snuggled her. I listened to her jabber on and on, and asked her several times to put daddy's earplug back on the night stand, and some how I was able to speak in a soft and gentle tone with my "slow to obedience" sweet little daughter. When she finally put the earplug back, I praised her and thanked her and snuggled her some more.
It was a good practice! And I was given a measure of patience.
The happy feelings lasted for about a half an hour until she started whining and bawling in her high chair for something she had to have, but I couldn't understand and was unable to give her. ARGGGH!
Deep breath.
It looks like my prayers are being answered! Thankfully, my girls will provide me with a lot of opportunities for practice.
Wish me luck!
I had a similar epifiny come to me when I was really struggling after my second baby. I realized too that I had to learn patience by practicing and that the Lord was giving me situations and opportunities to learn patience. We aren't just born with it! We have to work at it! Your doing great! Good job!! Somedays we can be more patient than others its okay because its something we are working on. We aren't perfect!
ReplyDeleteBy the way--this is julianne :)
ReplyDeleteAmen. I am dealing with the same stuff :) I've decide that if I quit praying for patience the Lord will quit giving me practice sessions...hahah! I never thought that I'd be praying that I could get along better with a 3-year old.
ReplyDeleteMichelle--you are such a tremendous example to me of a wonderful mother. Thank you for your insights and for your love.
ReplyDelete