A Father’s Instruction

Raise your hand if you have a wild child? My kid is not quite 2 years old, and while he is so sweet, he also knows exactly which buttons to push to get a reaction out of Dad. Just the other night, we were sitting down for dinner. We recently moved him from a high chair to a booster seat. We sat him down and put his plate in front of him. After turning around to grab our own plates and walk to the table, we turned back to discover our child on top of the dining room table, trying to reach the chandelier above. All the while, laughing at his adventures.
 
This verse, about fathers driving their children mad, well, sometimes I don’t get it. I am not driving him mad. He is driving me mad! Right?! 
 
It’s in these small moments when I have to realize—he’s not even 2. This is what he is supposed to do. He is learning the boundaries. My job is to guide him in the right way. My job isn’t to force upon him a heavy yoke. My expectations need to align with his abilities. As he develops, more responsibilities will fall on him, but my job as a parent is to recognize when he is ready. I think that may be what this verse is speaking to—overloading our kids to the point of breaking.
 
How many times do we see in our community kids breaking under the insane pressure of their parents or schools?

QUESTIONS FROM THE FIELD