Tuesday’s Truth is a free weekly devotional shared by Rev. Gary Mimbs
The Rewards Of Teaching Your Children
In my last article I talked about teaching your children to work with their hands and letting them help you do tasks so that they can learn. I want to share an incident that shows the rewards of teaching them.
When our oldest son Ryne was growing up he would come out to the shop behind our house when I was working on something. Remembering how my Dad had not told me anything about the mechanic work he was doing but just had me hold the light, I tries to explain to Ryne what I was doing and what tools were best for the job.
When Ryne went to college he majored in Dramatic Arts / Theatre. One of the aspects of this major is that you have to learn how to build stage sets that will be used in the dramatic productions. It involves using hand wood working tools, power tools, tape measures, levels etc.
When Ryne started taking this class he called me after the first day that the class met to actually start working on building a set. When he called his first words to me were, “Thank you Dad” I said, “You’re welcome. But what am I being thanked for?” He told me that when they got the assignment to build the parts for the set to go on stage he was the ONLY one out of 20+ students who knew how to read a ruler, use a portable drill and screw driver, cut with a skill saw etc.
Everyone else in the class was clueless when the instructor told them to take a 2X4 and measure 36 inches and cut it at a 45 degree angle and then use the hand screw driver to put it together with 3inch wood screws. Ryne said that it was like he was speaking a foreign language to them and they had no idea what he was talking about.
For Ryne it was child’s play. He knew about every tool and task that the instructor was asking the class to do because he had done it many times with me and then on his own as he got older. Pretty soon all of the other students wanted to be on his set construction team because they knew that he could help them pass the class.
Now Ryne, besides being a great elementary grade teacher, is a master woodworker building many things. He even makes money on the side by making handmade wooden crafts on his lathe and other wood working tools. He also is a master at setting up stage lights and sound systems. All of this started when he was a little boy coming out to the shop with his Dad. Ryne is also teaching his son Aiden and is showing him everything about what he is doing and how to do it.
Parenting tip – Don’t just tell them to google it. Show them step by step and not only are you teaching them some important skills you are strengthening your relationship with them and helping to develop character.
In love with Jesus – Gary Mimbs