“Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old: Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.
For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children: That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments.”
Psalms 78:1-7
It has been said that God has no grandchildren. What they mean is that it isn’t enough to be born into a Christian home or a Bible-believing church. Every child has to choose to follow Christ. It has also been said that Christianity is always one generation away from extinction. What they mean is that unless we intentionally pass the faith on to our children, it could be lost. So, we need to be diligent about passing our faith and heritage on from generation to generation. In Psalm 78 we learn that the entire Christian community shares the responsibility for raising up children in the faith.
Recently, during the Coronavirus pandemic we had a wonderful opportunity to teach our children some powerful lessons. Parents always need to be on the look-out for teaching moments. We have to learn how to take everyday situations and turn them into lifelong learning experiences for our children.
Consider this: If you were in a museum with your child you would have two choices as to how to conduct the visit. First you could make it all fun. The object would not be about education but about having a good time. Sure, the child may learn a few things, but that would not be the primary reason for the visit. The second option would be to make it an educational trip. Make sure you teach your child all about the various exhibits. You might even do a little personal research before the trip so you could help insure your child might glean as much knowledge as possible from the excursion.
Most parents would probably try to hit a balance between the two extremes. We would try to make learning fun or even hope our kids have so much fun they might not even realize how much they are learning. Of course, the type of museum you are visiting might make a huge difference also. Visiting a site dedicated to antique toys would certainly convey a different approach than visiting the Holocaust Museum.
We have just endured one of the most life changing events to happen in recent memory. Unemployment has been higher than at any time since the Great Depression. The school year has been interrupted for several weeks; for most of us that has never happened in our lifetime. There have been shortages of vital goods. Some of us may remember the gasoline shortage back in the 1970’s, but it is unlikely that since the Second World War have we seen grocery store shelves as empty as they have been recently. Graduations and hospital visits were canceled. Visits to the nursing home have been curtailed for weeks. Folks isolated themselves, often afraid to venture outside. We will all breathe a sigh of relief when this thing is over; totally over.
But, as we have begun to loosen the coronavirus-related restrictions, some of us are beginning to look up from where we are, to look ahead. I can’t help but wonder; in this pandemic inspired museum of life, have we used the learning opportunities it presented to teach our children? For example:
Have you used this crisis to teach your children to accept change? Have you reminded them that daily norms can change overnight? Just like during the world wars, or the Great Depression, this pandemic re-emphasizes the ways in which global tragedy can change things. Children living now will have real-life proof that just because parts of life are routine, it doesn’t mean it will stay that way. Every generation eventually learns that few things remain unchanged for a lifetime. But this generation can learn it quicker. They don’t have to wait for the wisdom of old age or for some future tragedy to unfold. Of course, such knowledge has to be taught carefully so as not to disrupt their sense of security. But, with patience and prayer it can be taught…and it should be taught.
Have you taught them that deep and sustaining relationships can be achieved without face to face contact? Most young people cannot fathom being close to someone they never see. It is very likely the Coronavirus will modify some social circles. Their “best friend” at school may not be the same when they return to class. Some boyfriend-girlfriend relationships likely will not survive either. Years ago we might send cards or letters to our special friends, but today meaningful connections can be made virtually. Teach your kids they can be close to a grandparent or friend that might be down the street or across the country by using social media. That text message they send to their school chums, can also be used to brighten the day of an aging grandparent who may live miles away.
Have you taught your children that “learning” can happen anywhere—and with anyone who will put forth the effort to teach? No longer is learning confined to the classroom under the professional leadership of a trained and credentialed educator. This is a wonderful time to turn everyday life into a learning experience for your child. Quite often my Dad would ask: What have you learned from this?
Have you had opportunity to teach them how to celebrate, show compassion, or mourn with someone, without physically gathering? Let’s use our inability to attend weddings, graduations, or funerals as a learning experience. Teach them to pray for those in the hospital or in the nursing home that we cannot visit. Sometimes you simply cannot “be there.”
Have you helped them understand the reality of having and having not? Although your family might not have traveled the journey from “riches-to-rags,” most of us have endured some financial cutbacks and shortages due to the pandemic. Teach them that sometimes they simply cannot have everything they want. Suddenly, they may be playing on a level playing field with the poor kid down the street, and that may be a good thing.
Have you instilled within them a heightened comfort with, and respect for, solitude? Teach them that higher rates of innovative problem-solving and heightened emotional and spiritual awareness usually comes from being alone. Following the example of Christ, teach them that being alone is often when they will enjoy their greatest fellowship with the Lord. Teach them that being alone and being lonely is not the same thing.
Have you taught them a new respect for the “blue collar” professional? Many parents have hopes that their kids will grow up to be great leaders in business or industry. But, now is a good time to teach them that it is no longer just the executives and white collar workers that make the real contributions to society. Teach them that being an honorable truck driver commands the same respect as a lawyer or politician.
Have you taught them that blaming someone else for our problems should not be our first reaction? Sure, there is a place for assigning responsibility, but it always comes after implementing a plan to deal with the problems we face. It is possible that someone may be held accountable for this outbreak, but first we must clean up the life-threatening mess, then we can deal with those at fault.
Have you discussed various constitutional compromises that some of our politicians may have taken? Protection and security often come at the price of freedom. Although in some cases intentions may have been good, we can all think of instances where our Constitution has been violated over these past few weeks, especially by governors and local politicians.
Have you taught them about our responsibility to one another? There have been many opportunities to serve other members of our community. If we have done so, then we have helped our kids understand the connection between their actions and the well-being of members of their communities. It’s now undeniable that we are all connected to each other, that actions matter, and that we can have a dramatic influence on the health and well-being of others.
Of course, the instruction you give your children will be influenced by their age and maturity. However, if we will use this as a teaching opportunity, we might go a long way to prepare our kids for the future. Maybe this new generation will have an appreciation for accepting sacrifice and making adjustments. They may even learn how to wash their own socks and cut their own hair. And while social-distancing might spawn a comfort with solitude, the distance from each other might also create a generation that appreciates the value of community, more than any other.
Often the generation that children grow up in is given a special name. We have all heard of the depression era kids, or the war kids, or children of the baby boom. Perhaps our kids will be known as the “Masked Generation” for the fabric that they strap to their faces and for the ways they will have to protect themselves from a range of a new generation’s unknowns. Or maybe they will be called the “Corona Kids” for the ways in which they might be lauded for finding solutions to new viruses or older issues that have plagued society for centuries. Or, perhaps these kids might be known as members of the “Distanced Generation,” because of the social-distancing reality, but also for the ways in which they will learn to distance themselves from the mistakes of past generations. Whatever label history may assign to them, let’s use this opportunity to teach them principles of life that can best be taught in the classroom of a pandemic.
We should not go back to life as usual, living a life unconnected to anything other than our own well-being. We can move forward knowing the value of living a life engaged with the needs of society and seeing a bigger picture of what’s possible when we work together.
In the end, the lessons we learn and teach our children is up to every individual family. It will be easy to slip back into old practices, especially for those whom the old system was serving well. But we have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to course-correct, to take what we have experienced and learned and create a vision for our family and our children that is more inclusive, responsive, and purposeful than it has ever been before.
Dr. Worthington has been in the ministry over forty years and serves as President of Pathway Ministries.