By Tommi Vincent
How do you get your children to buy into the process of success? It is not an easy task. The process requires FAITH, MENTAL TOUGHNESS, and PATIENCE. The requirements are challenging for adults, let alone young developing minds. Keeping your mind geared up for the process maybe the most challenging aspect. In VINCENT COUNTRY, we have children with ages ranging from one month to thirty-five. That is a wide spectrum of perspective and thought! Nonetheless we are required to give our children tools to be their best, even as they navigate the highs and lows of the process of success.
How do you get your children to buy into the process of success? It is not an easy task. The process requires FAITH, MENTAL TOUGHNESS, and PATIENCE. The requirements are challenging for adults, let alone young developing minds. Keeping your mind geared up for the process maybe the most challenging aspect. In VINCENT COUNTRY, we have children with ages ranging from one month to thirty-five. That is a wide spectrum of perspective and thought! Nonetheless we are required to give our children tools to be their best, even as they navigate the highs and lows of the process of success.
Tool #1 —FAITH
Faith is the substance of things hoped for and evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1) We have to teach our children how to believe despite what they see. We parent our children showering them with words of affirmation and encourage through aspiration. Why is that significant? If we can get our children to know who they are before they step out of our home, no one will be able to tell them differently. Not that someone may not try to discourage and use disparaging language toward them; however, the truth we speak over them will nullify the lies.
Tool #2 —MENTAL TOUGHNESS
Our minds can talk us out of conquering challenges. That impedes our growth. We are only as triumphant as our last challenge. Why is that? If our granddaughter is learning how to ride her bike and falls down, our response will shape her perspective on falling down and trying again until she masters riding a bike. We may have to clean up a scratch or two, even wipe away some tears, but will always encourage, and to a degree require her to get back on her bike and try again! As children get older, challenges well exceed riding a bike. It is our job as parents to nudge beyond fear and push them toward conquering. Every challenge they are able to conquer builds onto their faith. As the challenges become greater, they can draw from their past experiences of overcoming.
Tool #3 —PATIENCE
The LORD is good to everyone who trusts in him, so it is best for us to have patience— to wait for him to save us — And it is best to learn this patience in our youth. (Lamentations 3:25-27) The lack of patience could cause our children to walk away from triumph. As adults, we may consider past experience and have regret. We stopped just short of realizing victory. When we know better, we must do better. We do not want our children to carry the burden of regret. Training our children to be patient in the process is a key to success. Despite the everything “right now” of today’s society, we must teach our children to be disciplined in waiting and enduring until the end.