Parents, have you ever found yourself completely
dumbfounded by something your child has done.
I remember calling a parent of a young child years ago to let them know
that their child had bitten another student.
Mom’s reaction was something along these lines, but I remember her
swearing for sure (read this as fast as possible to get the full effect):
“Oh my. What??? He bit someone,
like with his teeth? Is the child
OK? Is my child OK? Should I call the doctor, I mean a
psychologist doctor? What does this
mean? What is happening to him? This can’t be normal. Oh my, I don’t want anyone to know and make
fun of him – or us as parents. What was
he thinking?? Oh #$*#! I don’t know what to do. Can you help me? My husband is going to be so upset…he won’t
take this as well as I am.”
At that point, I held back my chuckle, and I was
thankful to be talking on the phone so mom couldn’t see me. The bite was small, did not break skin, done
out of anger, and her child cried because they were so remorseful for what they
had done. No need to worry, but I needed
to let them know what had happened.
As parents, we start asking ourselves a simple
question shortly after each child is born.
The question really never goes away even when our kids become
adults. The question is “Why did they do
that?”
I just asked that question this morning when a
child of mine ran the battery dead in the car for the second time in a
month. I then asked that question of the
car manufacturing company who designed a car with an electric button to open
the trunk. Hmm. No battery = no electric
trunk opener. No open trunk = no jumper
cables. No jumper cables = no starting
the car with a dead battery. “Why did
they do that?”
Parents, here’s the trick to the question: Stop and logically and lovingly think about your child’s thought process. For my child, the battery is dead because
they were cleaning the car and needed the interior lights on to see when
vacuuming. They just forgot to turn off
the lights. Simple reason for the dead battery.
Why did the child bite? Anger
Why do children sometimes lie? Simply to get out of trouble
Why do car companies build cars without a way into
the trunk without using an electric switch?
I bet there is a way I don’t know about, and I’ll read the manual
tonight!
Bible reference:
Jesus was about 12 years old when he stayed in the temple instead of
leaving Jerusalem with his parents.
After a day of travel, his parents couldn’t find him and had to go back
to Jerusalem to find him. Here is his
mom’s response as she wondered, “Why did he do that?”
“Son, why have you treated us like this?
Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”
“Why were you searching for me?” Jesus asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s
house?” Luke 2:48, 49
Family Discussion Points!
Parents, talk about this question together: Are kids inherently malicious or are they
caught up in being impulsive, forgetful, and selfish just like all of us at
times?
Have each family member talk about something that
they don’t understand about our bodies as humans. Like:
How does the brain work? Why do I
still breathe when I’m asleep? I never
think to blink, but I do – how does that happen? Why don’t my knees bend both ways?
(Parents, if you want help explaining things, it
may help to begin your answer with “Because God…” Remember, He made us)
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