Last Thursday morning, my alarm went off super early. It was in the form of our dog wanting to go outside at 4am for no other reason than to get a treat when she came back in. This came after our son stayed up late, and was followed by the kitten wanting to play leapfrog from our bed to the window seat, over and over and over again. Oh, and the kid decided that was as good a time as any to be “all done sleeping.”
When my real alarm crackled out some falsely happy worship/pop music at 6:45, I cringed, sighed, and stumbled to the shower. Once there, I prayed for patience. Specifically I said, “And God, please don’t give me opportunities to grow or refine my patience. Please, today, just give me patience, and loads of it.”
Thursdays are our homeschool community day, and I tutor a group of eight kiddos. I adore them! They range in age from six to ten, and there are five boys and three girls. All of them are high energy. “Please, Lord, just give me patience.”
Two hours later our tutors had our morning meeting and prayer session. Everyone had been through one of “those” mornings, so I jokingly shared what I had prayed.
Our director said that her mentor taught her to pray, “Lord, teach me quickly whatever lesson I’m supposed to learn in this situation,” instead of praying for patience. One of the other ladies agreed, and said she often prays the same thing.
I really liked that. “Lord, teach me my lesson quickly.”
I have already prayed that prayer since last Thursday (it’s Monday– only four days have passed, for those of you playing at home), and I spent the majority of those days on a family getaway with my husband and son.
I’m a slow learner.
I think that is an excellent little prayer, though, to add to a woman’s repertoire. Frequently we encounter challenges in life, and there are lessons to be learned. We would do well to ask God to open our eyes quickly to those lessons, instead of struggling against and arguing with Him every step of the way.
Lord, teach us all to learn the lessons we are to learn, quickly. Teach us not to struggle against You. Teach us to see what You are teaching us, especially when things are hard, and the path is steep; and teach us to allow Your Light to show us the way.
danielthree18 