Have Patience

Patience is an important topic to young people because it is a quality that is needed to deal effectively with three of the most prominent areas of a young person's life. First, patience is needed in interactions with parents. Second, patience is needed to deal with school. Thirdly, patience is needed to navigate through the world and life in general.

The first area of a young person's life in which patience is desirable is the interactions with parents, and there are several reasons why young people should have patience with their parents. First, it is commanded by God. Ephesians 6:1 says, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." We also know from 2 Tim. 3:2f that those who are disobedient to their parents do not love God. Second, it is wise to be patient with and obedient to parents. The book of Proverbs teaches that "a wise son accepts his father's discipline" (13:1) but "a fool rejects" it (15:5). Since it is both commanded and wise, young people should be patient with their parents as they attempt to establish rules and guidelines for them. Parents are not trying to ruin their children's lives by restricting certain activities, but are demonstrating how much they care by attempting to protect them (see Prov. 3:24). Parents have gone through this stage in life before and have gained wisdom from their experiences. Parents can also be more objective about friends and activities. They are not facing peer pressure as faced by young people and, therefore can make decisions based on what is right or wrong rather than what everyone else is doing. Young adults cannot always see the wisdom of their parents, but later in life will look back and see that parents were trying to do what was best for them.

Another area of a young person's life that requires patience is school. The young person should understand that school is not designed to torture them but to prepare them for life. School requires patience due to grades, assignment deadlines, difficult teachers or students, difficult subjects, and time constraints brought on by extracurricular activities. Enduring these aspects of school can directly prepare a young person for life in several ways. In school, performance is measured by grades but later, in the workplace, it will be measured by performance on the job. Currently, a student has deadlines to finish homework assignments, but in the future they will also have deadlines to finish work-related projects. Occasionally, students must deal with a difficult teacher or fellow student but this will prepare them to be able to deal with a difficult superior or co-worker. Some subjects in school may seem difficult but, as adults, they must also learn to master work-related subjects to be competitive in the job market. Time constraints created by activities at school will teach them to maintain a balance between their professional and personal lives. The young person should realize at this point in their lives, school is their job. We must all have patience with what we are doing whether it be school or work and do it well because Colossians 3:23 says, "whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men." If we work in this manner, it will enable us to be examples as both a student (or employee) and as a Christian. The Bible says one should "enjoy oneself in all one's labor in which he toils" (Eccl 5:18) and that one should "be content in whatever [his] circumstances" (Phil 4:11).

A third area of a young person's life where patience is needed is with the world in general. Teen suicide and drug use indicate that many young people are impatient with their lives. These problems also indicate that they are looking for an escape from the negative aspects of the world in which they live. Young people must have patience to endure their problems and situations, realizing that our lives are described as only a vapor in James 4:14. The teen years will go by very quickly and the problems encountered will soon be gone as well.

We can learn how to become more patient from the example of Joseph in the Old Testament. In Genesis 37-39 we read of how Joseph was sold into slavery and, shortly thereafter, thrown into jail. He was able to endure these circumstances by working hard, making the most of his situation, and, most importantly, depending upon God. We all can endure our problems in the same way. So have patience with parents, school, and life in general and remember that if we do not grow weary, we will reap the reward that God has promised for us (Gal 6:9).