Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. Ephesians 6:4 (NIV)

Exasperate v. ig-ˈzas-pə-ˌrāt
1. To excite the anger of: Enrage
2. To cause irritation or annoyance

From the home office in Pella, Iowa. Top Ten Ways I tried not to exasperate my children:

1. Let them become who they are called to be, not who I wanted them to be.
2. Be patient with their small mistakes and accidents. I make them too.
3. Be patient with their big mistakes and accidents. I make them too.
4. Expect progress, not perfection.
5. Life is short: Enjoy letting them be children/teens/young adults with all the irritations, aggravations, lessons, and foibles. I’m the adult, and should be the one to understand that it’s a stage of life they are in and be patient with it.
6. Found and complimented the beauty in who they were in the moment, refusing to tease or be critical of them in the awkward stage(s) they went through.
7. Be critical of their behaviors, never of their person.
8. Believe in and trust: Make my default answer “yes.”
9. When angry or frustrated, express it appropriately. Sometimes yelling, ranting, and screaming are counterproductive. Let silence do the heavy lifting.
10. Forgive them, just as I have (and need to be) been forgiven.

This post was originally published on April 25, 2014.