Dinosaurs are my middle grandson’s whole world right now. Ashton will tell you all about them, the Cretaceous period, apex predators, and why a Triceratops could hold its own against anything short of a T-rex, and he does it through a speech impediment that never slows him down.
The trouble is, I catch about every third word.
He’ll launch into a story about a Spinosaurus or a Velociraptor, and I’m nodding along, trying to piece together his sentences from the sounds I can make out. Extinction. Herbivore. Paleontologist. Ankylosaurus. My grandson is working hard to say these words, and I’m working just as hard to understand them, and somewhere in the middle of all that effort, my patience starts to fray.
One day God convicted me. He reminded me that it isn’t Ashton’s job to manage my patience.
What Does the Bible Say Patience Really Is?
Grandchildren will show you the true condition of your heart every time. Remember the fruits of the Spirit? “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23, ESV). Notice what isn’t on that list. There’s no fruit of easy grandchildren. No fruit of quiet grandchildren. No fruit of grandchildren who obey the first time or say every word clearly on the first try. Patience is produced by God working through us.
If my patience only shows up when I understand every word Ashton says on the first attempt, that’s not patience. That’s convenience wearing patience’s name tag.
What Is the Real Test of Patience With Grandchildren?
Let a preschooler ask the same question forty-seven times. Let an older grandchild argue with you about bedtime. Let you be worn out after a long day, and then let a grandson launch into a five-minute dinosaur explanation you can only half follow.
In those moments, our grandchildren aren’t testing our patience. They’re revealing where it still needs to grow.
What My Grandson’s Dinosaurs Taught Me About Patience, Fusing Faith and Fiction™ by @HeidiGrayMcGill
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How Can Grandparents Practice Patience in Frustrating Moments?
One habit has helped me more than anything else. Before I respond to Ashton, or to any of my grandchildren, I pause.
I pause because I can feel frustration rising, and I don’t want my first reaction to become my final response. I take a breath. Sometimes I whisper a quick prayer. Sometimes I ask Ashton to say it again, slower this time, and I actually listen instead of just waiting for my turn to nod. I give my mind a moment to catch up with what I’m feeling before I speak.
So many of our mistakes happen in those small, pressure-filled seconds when we don’t leave room for God’s wisdom to take over.
Why Does James 1:19 Tell Us to Be Slow to Speak?
James 1:19 says, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (NIV).
Notice it doesn’t say we’ll never get frustrated. It says to be slow.
Being a grandparent isn’t just about helping raise these kids. It’s one of God’s gracious ways of continuing to shape me, one dinosaur name at a time.
If this encouraged you today, pass it along to another grandparent who might need the reminder.