Hold on to the Rail
As a parent, you realize that life’s lessons are most often taught in teachable moments. We can not sit all the children down, in a one-time lesson and teach them everything they need to know on safety issues, to keeping a home to living a Godly life. So we use teachable moments. I have two such teachable moments, I’d like to share with you.
It’s been awhile since I’ve posted about the MacGuyvers in Training (MIT), but I assure you, they are still quite busy. The first story involves the youngest MIT. All three MIT’s have taken to watching me cook, even helping. As I do not enjoy cooking, I’m more than happy to speed up the learning process for them, so they can take over this duty. ;-) Of course, we begin each cooking session with the safety reminder: don’t touch, this is hot! A couple weeks ago, I had just finished boiling up tea for a pitcher of iced tea, with the youngest MIT watching the whole time. I had cleaned my mess and left the room. A few short minutes later, here she comes, holding her hand, crying and mumbling something about hot. Oh dear, I realize what she’s done: I scoop her up and as I’m carrying her to the first aid kit, ask her if she touched the hot stove. Out comes the pouty lip and her little head nods. “Yes, and it was hot and my fingers hurt!” I grab the teachable moment and remind her that’s why momma tells her not to touch the hot stove! She is quiet and nods. Ahhhh - she finally gets it! Even if the lesson was learned the hard way.
Fast forward to just a few days ago. My oldest son (now 22 years old) was at a friend’s home one evening, and missed the top deck steps and fell and broke his wrist. The break was bad enough to require surgery to put in pins. As his mother, of course I need to be there the day of the surgery. Well, the sitter had to cancel at the last minute, so that meant the MIT’s were going to have to go with me to the hospital. Since I had just had surgery myself only seven days before, this was not a prospect I was looking forward to, but I had no other choice. So I’m getting everyone ready, reminding them of the rules while we’re out, and the MIT’s ask me how their brother broke his arm (I think they were trying to change the subject away from rule reminding ;-). So I explain that he fell down the deck stairs at his friends house…. and before I could finish my sentance, they all three gasped in unison: “He didn’t hold on to the RAIL?!!!” I paused, and then the light bulb goes off and I grab the teachable moment: “Yes, that’s right! See what happens when you don’t hold on to the rail!”. 
So even if you don’t think your children are listening, they are. Grab the teachable moments when you can. Persevere in your parenting and training. They may have to go through learning the lessons the hard way, but they will eventually “get it”, even if it takes them longer than you’d like. And yes, when I arrived at the hospital, I could not resist another teachable moment, when I told my 22 year old son: “See, this is why I tell you to hold on to the rail!”. NOW he gets it.
God too teaches us in teachable moments. If you are discouraged in your parenting, please let God be your rail. Hold on to the rail! He will see you through.
Joshua 22:5
