Patiently Waiting Upon the Lord

I do not like patience. I don't enjoy exercising it and I particularly dislike knowing that it is something good that I should like. Patience, though, is key to seeing the incredible work of God in the human heart.

My high school religion classes are forty minutes a day, five days a week, for half a year. In addition to the intention of catechesis, they are also intended to be academically rigorous. We have tests; there are papers to be written; mastery of the material is desired and sometimes achieved. Amidst the intensity and the rhythm of these worthy pursuits, conversion is not always noted. It isn't reflected in test grades and, among high school students, is not something they share freely with their teachers. It can be easy to be discouraged and wonder, "Is anything I am doing making any difference?"