The Marshmallow Test

I watched a video of a family who did a test with their little boys. They took their oldest son, a 3 year old, and had him sit at a table. The dad then explained that he could have the marshmallow that was sitting in front of him if he wanted it, but if he waited, and did not eat the marshmallow, then he would get another marshmallow and something better. Instantly, I thought, "Well I would choose to wait because getting two marshmallows would of course be better than just getting one," but I honestly did not think this little guy would be able to last very long with this marshmallow sitting in front of him. His dad left him for 5 whole minutes and he DID NOT EAT his marshmallow. This little 3 year old WAITED because his daddy had promised him something better, and he fully trusted him. 

After asking him a few questions, they then brought in the second son, a 2 year old. They went through the same procedure, and then left the little guy with the marshmallow. Well, he didn't last quite as long. About one minute in, he started licking the marshmallow and then finally went for it.  

Initially, I thought very little of this video, but then it hit me. How many extra marshmallows are we missing out on? How many "better things" do we sacrifice so that we can have instant gratification? 

Guys, I get that it is beyond hard to wait. I understand! It's hard. It's tiring. I'm going to be completely honest, I am not the best at waiting. I, like many of my friends, am in a season of waiting right now. I am waiting for the right guy to come along, waiting to graduate, waiting to begin "real" life, etc. The list goes on and on...and it might grow before it gets shorter unfortunately. 

Goodness, it is hard to wait. It is hard to not question God's plan. It's hard to be still and to be content. It's hard to encourage others to just keep waiting and praying when you are having a hard time doing that yourself. It's hard to tell others that God has a plan for them and that they need to just trust Him when you struggle to do that. It is just plain out hard. And God gets that. But, the thing is, he is just like the daddy in the video I mentioned earlier. He KNOWS that if we are patient and trust His promises that He has something bigger and better in store for us. He knows that it is difficult for us to not give into the temptation to settle. But, He also sees the big picture. He sees the end, when we are struggling to see how any of this makes sense. 

Guys, don't eat the marshmallow. Wait, wait, wait. That little boy waited what seemed like an eternity to him. You and I know that 5 minutes is such a short time in the grand scheme of things, but so is this time you are in. When your season of waiting is over, you will look back and realize that it was such a shorter time than it felt in the midst of it. Wait. Wait for the bigger and better. Don't sacrifice that reward so that you can have instant gratification. I know that it will be worth it.