Obedience Training

Have you ever seen a child try to make their parent obey them? You know the scene- maybe it's in the middle of the grocery store, maybe on the swings at the park, but always someplace public with the maximum possible embarrassment for the parents. You might hear the parent say something like "Please don't kick your sister" or "you need to stop when I say stop" or "you need to listen and obey." A few minutes pass, the child goes about their play until an opportunity presents itself. Then the child might say something like "Mommy, come push me on the swing! You need to listen and obey!" It's endearing and annoying all at the same time. But the idea of the child making the parent obey seems silly. I might even go so far as to say it seems futile. The times when I have actually witnessed a parent obey their child, it just never ends well. Maybe there's a short term pay off but the parents really havn't done themselves any favors.

We all know the tale. So what's my point? My point is two fold.

The first fold goes like this. Daniel & I have been working extra diligently to help teach Isaiah about obedience. With me being pregnant with twins, I am not as fast as Isaiah and cannot chase him well. I need him to learn what "STOP" means and do so when I yell the command. I often find myself thinking "why won't you just obey me?!" Obedience training a 1 year old is just not an easy job.

The second fold goes like this. Ever since Daniel & I learned we were expecting twins I have been cleaning out our 3rd bedroom for their nursery. The room that they will soon occupy was once our office/guest bedroom/library/catchall room. There was A LOT of stuff in that room that suddenly needed a new home. So, slowly but surely I have been cleaning out the room, clearing out the junk, and setting up baby stuff. This has led to all-house sweep and thus piles upon piles of Read possessions, prime for a yard sale! The date was set for Saturday May 17. The weeks leading up to May 17, I priced and organized and scavenged. I made signs, I advertised, I researched the pricier items to make sure I asked a fair price. In short, I was really prepared! We even decided to partner with the Raakes for a 2 family yard sale. The Raakes live in a primo yard sale location + they have a garage. The Friday beforehand, we three Reads headed over to set up our stuff and get organized. Saturday morning, earlier than my body would have liked, I went over to finish set up and settle in to sell, sell, sell. The day dawned bright and clear if not a bit chilly, everything looked good. (I wanted to have the Target of yard sales so I made cute "department" signs, had fun music playing, hung paper chain decorations- things were looking good!) Things were starting to sell!

And about 2 hours into our sale, the first round of rain came through. UGH. We scurried to bring tables into the garage and cover up what wouldn't fit. But the storm passed fairly quickly and the sun came back out. We dragged the tables back out, dried off what needed it and went about our sale.

And then the second round of rain came through. UUUUUUGGGGGHHH. The boys were inside eating lunch so Lauren & I covered up what we could and decided the other table would be mostly fine if things got a little wet. The storm lasted longer than I liked but it did eventually end. This time we checked the radar. Looked like things were going to clear for the rest of the day-HOORAY! Off came the tarps and we again dried what we could.

And then the third round of rain come through. So as Lauren & I sat in the garage, lamenting the cold day and the unpredictable weather, I found myself angrily talking to God "Why can't you make this rain stop, Lord? Why aren't you bringing more people to our sale? I did everything I could to get the word out. Why won't you bless this effort? Why can't you just obey me?"

It is a wonder and a miracle I was not hit with lightning then and there.

Thank God for grace! No sooner did the thought occur to me did I begin repenting for my misguided, willful thought. And as I reflected on this kairos moment (a kairos moment is when the Holy Spirit makes you aware of spiritual teaching moment, according to this book) I realized that obedience training is something we never really outgrow. Wether you're a 1 year old learning to obey your very pregnant, nearly-waddling mother as she yells "STOP" before you run into the street or a 15 year old learning to make good decisions based on the training your parents have tried their best to give you your whole young life or a 30 year old still learning that God is not a genie in a bottle or an always-blessing-lottery-ticket.

Nobody really likes the immediate act of obedience, I think. It nearly always comes down to listening to someone else's counsel and believing that their request is better than your own will. But the consequence of obedience is always positive. (Please note I'm solely writing in terms of situations where obedience is happening within healthy, loving relationships.) So when Daniel & I teach Isaiah how to be obedient, it's not because we're mean parents who finally have someone to boss around. And when God teaches me obedience, it's not because He's some puppet master forcing me to carry out His evil plan. No. It's to teach me a better way, to lead me closer in step with Him, to guide me toward holiness. I hope I never outgrow my awareness for the need to be obedient to God. I hope I'm never so willful and self-centered I can't listen when God tells me to "STOP" before I run into the street, ya know?