Side By Side Training

Have you ever asked your children to do something and been fairly disappointed with the results? Maybe you asked them to clear the table after dinner. They tell you they are finished. You go to look at the table and it is not exactly what you were expecting. This happens all the time at my house. It seems that my idea of a completed task and their idea of a completed task do not exactly match up. This can sometimes lead to disappointment on my part and frustration on theirs. Two things I try to avoid.

I was thinking about this very concept this weekend and wondering why this seems to occur so often in our home. My conclusion....it was my fault. Like with most things that perplex me about my family, it came down to me and what I have failed to do. Bummer!

I discovered, that I haven't really taught my children how to complete the task I am asking. I have come to assume that they should have seen me complete the task 100's of times and they should just know. Or, because I have taught one of them how to do something...they all know what to do. When thinking about the situation some more, I discovered that there is no way I could back up a trailer even though I have seen it done many times. I can't really play the piano, even though I have seen it done 100's of times. My children need me to teach them how to complete the task.

Teaching them to complete a task correctly can be time consuming and may take more than one lesson, which is probably why I have done such a poor job of teaching them in the first place. But, if we complete the task together, side by side, with me explaining the steps as we go, it becomes a blessing for us both. A little time invested now should produce many years of correctly completed tasks without disappointment and frustration.

It occurred to me, that this is what Jesus did with the disciples. He called them to leave what they were doing and walk side by side with Him. He took this time to invest in the disciples and teach them how to complete the tasks the way He wanted. As we read the scriptures, we find that there are times when the disciples didn't complete the task correctly, even though they had seen Jesus do the same thing many times. Jesus needed to take time and guide the disciples over and over again.

I can see that I have been called to do the same. I need to have our children walk side by side with me. I need to invest in them and teach them the tasks that need to be completed. This will not only bless me and our family, but it will help prepare them to bless their own family in the future. I can only imagine how much joy it will give me to see our grown children walking side by side with their own.