Many of you know I am a preschool teacher. Thus, I work with many different children who come from many different places. One child came to my classroom who was a 5 year old who had never been in childcare before. My co-teacher and I quickly realized that she was used to getting what she wanted.
For example: one time the children were on their beds after lunch. During this time the children are being called to use the bathroom and working on independent work on their beds. Well, during lunch this child was playing with her food (we could also tell that she was sleepy). My co-teacher and I decided that she would not be allowed to have independent work until she could sit quietly on her bed. When it finally registered with her that she was not allowed to have the toy she wanted she began to cry, scream, and kick her bed.
Now, for those of you who have not worked with children this age, this is not typical reoccurring behavior for a 5 year old. Yes, children would have temper tantrums every once in a while but this one was the third one that day. My co-teacher went over to the child and told her that she seemed tired and that maybe she should go to sleep. If you guessed that didn't get her to calm down you are right.
Why was this child crying so hard? She was crying and having a temper tantrum because she wanted what she wanted when she wanted it. In her mind, she should get the toy to play with because she wanted it. She wasn't thinking about the fact that she wasn't using good manners at lunch. She wasn't thinking about the fact that she was tired. She wasn't thinking about the fact that her teachers were trying to prepare her for life; because in life you don't usually get what you want if you throw a temper tantrum.
Okay, so at this point you may be wondering why I am telling you this. Again, I have a point; and that point isn't how you should care for your kids. My point is that sometimes we act like this child. We may not cry, scream, and kick but we do pout and complain. When something bad happens in your life what do you usually do? Normally, if you are a Christian, you ask God to take the problem away. When you really want something to happen what do you usually do? If you are a Christian, you usually ask God to give it to you.
When we ask God for something we may get a few different answers: no, yes, or wait. And, there is one outlier that we sometimes get: yes, but not in the way you expect. God is a good Father. He loves us and gives us what we need and not always what we want. However, sometimes we forget this fact and act like this child. We complain about how hard our lives are. We pout when things don't happen the way we expected.
What happens in these hard times or when we want something is that we forget something very important. We forget that God is a good Father. We forget that God loves us and cares for us. We forget that we are called to be joyful in all circumstances. We forget that God is at work even if it doesn't seem like it. God works all things together for our good. At times, we may wonder what he is doing but we need to have confidence in him and trust in him. We need to remember that in good times and bad times God is at work.
So, what do you do when things are not going the way you expected? Will you trust that God has a plan for your life? I encourage you to thank God each day for the blessings he has given you and for him loving you.
For example: one time the children were on their beds after lunch. During this time the children are being called to use the bathroom and working on independent work on their beds. Well, during lunch this child was playing with her food (we could also tell that she was sleepy). My co-teacher and I decided that she would not be allowed to have independent work until she could sit quietly on her bed. When it finally registered with her that she was not allowed to have the toy she wanted she began to cry, scream, and kick her bed.
Now, for those of you who have not worked with children this age, this is not typical reoccurring behavior for a 5 year old. Yes, children would have temper tantrums every once in a while but this one was the third one that day. My co-teacher went over to the child and told her that she seemed tired and that maybe she should go to sleep. If you guessed that didn't get her to calm down you are right.
Why was this child crying so hard? She was crying and having a temper tantrum because she wanted what she wanted when she wanted it. In her mind, she should get the toy to play with because she wanted it. She wasn't thinking about the fact that she wasn't using good manners at lunch. She wasn't thinking about the fact that she was tired. She wasn't thinking about the fact that her teachers were trying to prepare her for life; because in life you don't usually get what you want if you throw a temper tantrum.
Okay, so at this point you may be wondering why I am telling you this. Again, I have a point; and that point isn't how you should care for your kids. My point is that sometimes we act like this child. We may not cry, scream, and kick but we do pout and complain. When something bad happens in your life what do you usually do? Normally, if you are a Christian, you ask God to take the problem away. When you really want something to happen what do you usually do? If you are a Christian, you usually ask God to give it to you.
When we ask God for something we may get a few different answers: no, yes, or wait. And, there is one outlier that we sometimes get: yes, but not in the way you expect. God is a good Father. He loves us and gives us what we need and not always what we want. However, sometimes we forget this fact and act like this child. We complain about how hard our lives are. We pout when things don't happen the way we expected.
What happens in these hard times or when we want something is that we forget something very important. We forget that God is a good Father. We forget that God loves us and cares for us. We forget that we are called to be joyful in all circumstances. We forget that God is at work even if it doesn't seem like it. God works all things together for our good. At times, we may wonder what he is doing but we need to have confidence in him and trust in him. We need to remember that in good times and bad times God is at work.
So, what do you do when things are not going the way you expected? Will you trust that God has a plan for your life? I encourage you to thank God each day for the blessings he has given you and for him loving you.
Image from here.
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