You know that moment when your 5 year old says, “Hey, dad where do babies come from?”
…but when you really think about it, all she really want so know is, “they come from mommy’s tummy.”
Has that happened to you, yet? If it hasn’t, it will, and I want to encourage you to field such questions based on what you know of your child’s mind and intentions. There are moments all over parenthood, where your job is not simply to be the “question answer-er,” but the counselor that answers the intention of their questions.
What I mean is, because you know them better than anyone, you have the ability to address the information they actually need, rather than simply what they are asking (in their limited communications skills). Often a young child’s limited vocabulary, and experience leads them to ask strangely worded questions, or to ask questions that seem to insinuate far more information than they are looking for. This becomes a great opportunity for you in two ways:
- A simple, matter-of-fact answer satisfies them, and they continue playing with the (inaccurate) knowledge that Dad knows everything
- You have an opportunity to teach them something that they didn’t even know they needed to know.
I call #2 a Teachable moment. A teachable moment, in my house, is defined as a moment when there is an overarching life lesson hidden in a natural piece of life, or brought to relevance by a question they ask. Most of the time these are set right in front of you. I want to encourage you to seize the opportunity when these teachable moments present themselves, but also know that often you need to be looking for them.
Teachable moments are all over the place. Here are a few examples:
COLORED BALLOONS – When you see a balloon filled with Helium, tell them a story:
A young boy came up to a balloon salesman. He had a fist cart full of multi-colored balloons, and was in the habit of releasing a red balloon from time to time to attract attention to his cart. He let one go, and it sailed on the wind just over the boys head. He let another one go and it rose swiftly over the buildings.
The young boy said to the salesman, “Why do the red ones fly?”
The salesman responded, “Young man, it’s not the color of the balloon that makes it fly. It’s what’s inside!”
HEADLIGHT OUT – When you see a car with a headlight out, point it out, and speak of how that person may not even know it’s out…
..sometimes you have a problem that you don’t know about. For me to tell someone they have a headlight out it’s ‘good.’ It’s not a personal attack, it’s an attempt to point out something they may not be aware of.
We need people to speak into our lives and point out the areas we may not be aware of too… to keep us accountable and constantly pursuing hard after God.
POPCORN – Next time you microwave popcorn talk about:
They’re just seeds, until power is put through them! Then “POP! POP, POP, POP!”
Christ wants to use you and has the power to use you for His Glory. But I’m just a seed, until the power of God is in me, and I “make room” for Him. Then He will dwell in me and use His power through me. (you)
Teachable Moments are all around you, keep your eyes open for them. I also plan to create a list of them as they come up on the site. Keep your eyes out for that too.