Midweek: As the Window for Our Graduates Begins to Close

The following was written by Ericka Loynes and was printed in Guideposts' Mornings with Jesus May/June 2023:

And He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of people." 
~ Matthew 4:19 (NASB)

As high school graduation approached, I found myself trying to teach my son all of the life skills I felt he still needed to learn before he left for college. Once I showed him how to do something new, I expected him to immediately apply that knowledge and be proficient. Clearly, my expectation was unrealistic.

I can be impatient with other people's development. Thankfully, Jesus doesn't respond the same way. When He recruited the disciples, they were not instantly the scholars, preachers, missionaries, teachers, evangelists, and martyrs that I read about in the Bible. In fact, they were self-centered (Matthew 18:1-4), unreliable (Matthew 26:36-45), and hot-tempered (Matthew 26:47-54). It was only after they followed Jesus, made mistakes, and learned tough lessons along the way that they developed into the "fisher of men" He was training them to be (Matthew 4:19).

Just like Jesus was patient with the pace of His disciples' growth, I must be patient with my son. As much as I wish my accelerated training prepared him for every possible scenario that will come his way, I recognize that he'll benefit from facing life's challenges, making his own decisions, and learning from his mistakes.

~ Ericka Loynes