“We’re not making any progress,” I bluntly told the specialist at our follow-up appointment. My son had a health issue that we’d been dealing with for a long time, but after three months of following “the plan,” it seemed like we were back at square one, more frustrated than when we started. I’d run out of perseverance and patience.
The doctor listened carefully and then calmly said, “You’re making more progress than you think. This is just part of the process. Now we tweak the plan.” Have you been there? Maybe you have a health issue, a relationship that needs healing, a career goal, or a discipline issue with a child. Whatever kind of mountain you are trying to climb, here are 3 things to give you hope when you feel like you’re not making progress.
1. Tiny steps are still steps.
Our expectations skyrocket at the beginning of a journey toward change. We can already see the happy ending! We want to take leaps forward. But when it doesn’t work out that way, our hopes are dashed. We go to the other extreme and think it’s a failure.
But hold on! Take a step back and look at the bigger picture. Instead of focusing so much on this day, this week, this setback, look at the tiny steps that have been made from the beginning until now. How have you gained knowledge you didn’t have before? Is there anything to be thankful for from the first leg of the process?
2. It’s normal for progress to feel like it’s moving at a snail’s pace.
On TV, a house in total shambles is transformed into a gorgeous new home in 22 minutes. We start to believe progress in our lives should be that way, too. But the truth is, it’s pretty rare when you get to draw a straight line from the problem to the solution. More often, we draw squiggly lines all over the page that seem to lead nowhere. We wonder, “Am I going backward or forward?”
You are still heading toward your goal, just in a real-life kind of way. The writer Walter Elliot said, “Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other.”
3. Good things are happening in the meantime.
Some of our mountains take months, even years, to climb. If the process involves a child and depends on his cooperation (like mine did), you’re going to need large amounts of perseverance and patience. However, the waiting, the looking for answers, and the tough times leave room for faith. They provide an opportunity to trust and lean on God. Just beyond our limits is a unique place where we can find a new dependence on Him.
Leo Tolstoy said, “The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.” You can keep fighting this battle with perseverance, patience, faith, and trust. What other good things could be happening in the meantime? Growth? Hard lessons learned? Bonding? Could those things be part of God’s plan (even if they weren’t part of ours)?
How do you persevere when you feel like you are not making progress?
