Thursday; October 18

Last weekend I got to participate in something called “Cops And Bobbers” where our local deputies took some kids fishing.  First of all I have to say that you just can’t go wrong with kids, cops, donuts, BBQ and fishing – that combination just couldn’t fail!  It was great to see the law enforcement officers interact with (and be impacted by) the children.  Yet, as I reflect back on the day, I may have gotten more out of the event than did the children because it was a good reminder about the process of learning and teaching.  Many of the young people and never fished before, so we had to start at the beginning.  We had to talk them through what we were going to do, show them how to do it, help them practice the techniques and even do a little coaxing when it came time for some of the ickier parts of the process – like handling the worms or taking the fish off of the hook.  Through the morning there was some pouting and shrieking.  There were lines tangled in the trees and hooks imbedded in various places.  We had to clean worm-dirt and blood (mostly mine) off of hands.  Yet, in spite of all the challenges, everyone learned something new and everyone had fun.
As I thought about spending the morning teaching children how to fish it got me to thinking about how we should be teaching others about how to live.  It is easy to forget that our young people aren’t born with innate knowledge – they have to be taught and developed.  New leaders don’t instinctively have a sense of maturity, it is something that must be fostered.  We can either get frustrated when they don’t seem to be “getting” it on our timeline or we can instruct them in what they need to do, show them how do it and help them do it on their own ... and then applaud their successes and development.
Are we willing to help out the next generation?  It is bound to be helpful ... and if we aren’t careful, it just might turn out to be fun.
Think About It!

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday; November 29

The biblical story of the Good Samaritan has changed our world. Notice I didn’t say that it had change religion or even Christianity, it has influenced the world. There are very few people who don’t know the moral of Jesus’ parable about the Good Samaritan. In fact, the phrase has become a common description of everyday people doing good to their neighbors. While Jesus’ parable from Luke 10 shares several spiritual lessons, one of the most practical is that good can be done by anyone. You don’t have to be a church official to do good, it is not only possible for each one of us to help, it is required of all of us. If a Samaritan can be good, so can we! After presenting the parable, Jesus asked the man who had originally asked the question about being a good neighbor which character in the story was a good neighbor, “… he said, ‘The one who showed mercy toward him.’” at which point, the discussion from theoretical to personal, “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do the same.’” (Luke
Read more

Thursday; January 12

The other day I was watching a television show that used a rather common term applied to overcoming challenges. When organizations experience unexpected setbacks – especially when they lose key people – they rely upon the concept of “Next Man Up”. In essence, when our starters (or stars) go down, effective organizations rely upon their next levels to step into the vacancy. While this is an effective response, have we given much thought as to how we prepare to be the “next people up”? First, we must know our job. Even when we aren’t the primary players, we need to be preparing ourselves to be ready when we get the opportunity to shine. Second, we must do our best when we get the chance. Knowledge is important but what turns potential into talent is effort. Yet, maybe the most underappreciated aspect of this concept is a willingness avoid excuse-making and whining about the unfairness of our situation. When we complain about the circumstances that caused the need for replacements
Read more

Monday; September 25

When I was a youngster, I remember hearing about this thing called the Generation Gap. I was a little bit too young to be active in the social movements of the 1960s, but I do remember listening to the challenges the generations were experiencing way back then. Interestingly, now that I have been on both sides of the aging process, I have to admit that the Gap of the 1960s was nothing new. With the development of each generation comes conflict. The young people don’t feel like the older people understand them and the older folks tend to believe their input is being underappreciated. Too often trust is the casualty when two generations collide. The sad thing is that it doesn’t have to be this way. When we can capture the innovation and energy of the younger folks and harness the wisdom of those who have been around for a while we can develop a winning combination. No, we won’t always see things eye-to-eye nor will we necessarily speak the same emotional language, but when we app
Read more