Teach them to know… Or teach them to do?

by Larry Flohr

“Don’t just give them all the things you wish you’d had. Instead, teach them all the things you wish you’d known.”

This picture caught my attention a couple of days ago. It showed up in my Facebook newsfeed and probably had nothing to do with religious or spiritual things, but it gives us some insight into the ministry of Jesus, the invitation to His would-be disciples to “Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men,” and his final commission to go and “make disciples of all nations…”

This picture got me thinking about how Jesus discipled the twelve compared to how we function in the family and in the church. At church we tend to pew-teach and classroom-teach. We teach from books and memorize quotations.

At home, do we let our children watch us work? Do we let them help? Do we give them the opportunity to spoil a recipe or two as they hone their skills? Do we let them work with tools and experience what it feels like to look back on a job well done? Do we let them plan and prepare a simple meal for the family?

This picture got me thinking about how Jesus discipled the twelve compared to how we function in the family and in the church.

Whether at church or at home, learning and discipling don’t just come from books or from watching what other people do. It comes from following, helping and doing. Growing up at home, when mom was working in the kitchen, she’d let my sisters and me help. I’m not sure how much help we were when we ate half the cookie dough raw, or when she was peeling peaches to can and we’d sit there and eat them before they went in the jar. She probably could have done it faster without us, at least at first, but how it must have pleased her when she could pass on the recipe and let us make the fruit cake, or the sugar cookies, or even tackle a brand-new recipe using the skills and lessons she had passed on (Separate two eggs doesn’t mean break them in different bowls!).

Discipling is hard work, especially when you could have done it better and quicker by yourself. I wonder if Jesus got frustrated at the disciples when He’d give them something to do, like feed the crowd, and they shrugged their shoulders helplessly … “We don’t have enough food!”

Discipling is hard work, especially when you could have done it better and quicker by yourself. I wonder if Jesus got frustrated at the disciples when He’d give them something to do, like feed the crowd, and they shrugged their shoulders helplessly … “We don’t have enough food!”

I don’t remember my dad being great with tools, but my grandfather was, and I can still remember when he took me out to the garage that he had built by himself on the farm and picked out some tools for me to keep. He even gave me a tool box, which I still have, along with a hammer that I still use, and an electric drill. Just being entrusted with those treasures gave me confidence.

Over the years, the workmen that my mom and dad would hire to fix the plumbing or the wiring, or whatever … they would let me watch … they would explain what they were doing, and over time they would let me help. I was thrilled to crawl on my hands and knees to run new wiring through the attic. And Mickey, our electrician, was even more thrilled that he didn’t have to subject his old knees to the task.

Epiphany is the mission season of the church, and now, more than ever, we need to examine how we do things in the church and how we must do more than simply pass on “book knowledge.”  God’s people are called to be “hands on” in ministry. It’s more than just knowing … it’s doing.

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Rev. Larry Flohr was part of the first graduating class of Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary in St. Catharines and, in 2020, celebrated 40 years in the ministry. In his retirement, Pastor Flohr continues to write and share daily ‘musings’ (like this one) on his Facebook and by email. He and his wife, Marjorie, reside in Minden, Ontario.

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