Whitney Williams - I’m working on it

PAUL BUTLER, HOST: Today is Tuesday, July 27th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Paul Butler.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard. WORLD commentator Whitney Williams now on the virtue of patience. The right kind

WHITNEY WILLIAMS, COMMENTATOR: My three boys have had a hankering for M&M yogurt lately.

“Can I have M&M whoaaaa-gurt?” one of my 4-year-olds recently asked while I was in the middle of a Zoom call. He pulled on my sleeve for emphasis. I covered my mouth so that it looked like I was coughing, made sure I was muted, and told him in a nice mom, Mary Poppins voice that I would get it in just a few minutes, after I was done with my call.

But the nice mom, Mary Poppins voice didn’t work. He’s started to act a fool to the side of the camera. I feigned a cough once again and broke out the Batman Dark Knight voice: “I’ll get it in a minute.”

By the time I signed off the video call, my other two boys had put in their whoa-gurt requests. I head to the kitchen, get out the tubs of yogurt, the mini M&Ms, three bowls, and three spoons—but not THAT spoon ... THAT spoon!

I tell everyone to get out of the kitchen. It takes great concentration to concoct such culinary masterpieces, you know?

As I start in on the second bowl, an impatient cry comes from the living room. “Mom! I want M&M WHOOOOA-GURT!!”

“I KNOOOOOW. I’m WOOORKING on it ...” I say, one-quarter Poppins, three-quarters Dark Knight.

On super stressful days, I might launch into a diatribe about the fact that while THEY are enjoying their TV show and barking requests from the living room, I’m laying down my VERY LIFE to serve them. I’m not saying these are my finest parenting moments. I’m just telling it like it is. Sinful kids meet sinful mom.

I was reminded of this a few days later, as I stood watching a Sonic employee prepare five drinks for my family. I had ordered ahead on the app JUST as I was walking into the fast food restaurant. But for some reason, I thought our drinks should already be waiting for me on the counter. I had hit the app’s ASAP button, after all! But then I was reminded, it takes time to gather five cups, fill them with ice, and put a different drink in each, making sure it doesn’t overflow. Then to put lids on each cup, wrangle the appropriate size straws, and find a drink carrier. And this poor employee had to do all that while dealing with other customers’ orders, as well.

God met me right there. “You know that thing you’ve been praying about, Whitney? Your M&M whoa-gurt? That thing you hit ASAP on? It’s a good prayer that aligns with my heart for you. But I want you to think about all of the pieces that have to come together for that prayer to come to fruition. Take a look around and you might even see my hands at work piecing it all together. Have some patience, dear daughter, I’m working on it.”

I’m Whitney Williams.

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