Training Wheels

Do you remember learning to ride a bicycle? Did your bike have training wheels? Did someone run along beside you to get you going? One of the great challenges of youth, after learning to walk, is learning to ride a bicycle. It requires balance and a sense of self confidence. To assist in this process, manufacturers came up with a special set of wheels that are attached to the back wheel of a bicycle. The two little wheels attached to the back wheel are there to help provide balance and confidence to the rider. It provides balance whenever the rider leans too far to the left or to the right. It provides confidence because the little wheels don’t always touch the ground. The rider builds courage because he or she actually rides under their own power until they begin to lean. Knowing that the wheels are there in case of a fall builds confidence.

Some who have never had bikes equipped with training wheels had to learn the old fashioned way. A parent or friend ran along beside the rider holding on until the rider got under way. Though wobbly at first, the rider got the hang of riding after a few crashes. Parents get tired but training wheels don’t. Training wheels were always attached. Riders who used training wheels never had to wait for someone to catch their breath. Training wheels were convenient.

Training wheels serve a purpose, but there comes a time when training wheels are no longer necessary. Let’s look at the little boy who was being trained to ride his bike by his father. On the first day out his father said to him. "Son, there are three things you should always remember if you are going to learn to ride a bike." The excited son committed all three to memory: "Keep your eye on the road, don’t lean to the left or the right and remember daddy’s right there." As the boy mounted the bike his father had him to repeat the three rules and then ran along beside him shouting encouragement and reminding the boy to keep repeating the three rules.. After each ride the boy was excited and thrilled. After the third ride has father ride along side him but didn’t say anything as the boy kept reciting the three rules. One day he mounted the bike as usual and took off chanting to himself "Keep your eye on the road, don’t lean to the left or the right and remember daddy’s right there!" Two blocks up the road he looked back and was surprised to find out that his daddy had not made the run with him but was waving from the front yard. When the boy returned the father said "Son let this be a lesson to you in life. You will succeed if you can keep your eye on the road, never stray to left or right and remember, even when you can’t see him, not me, your heavenly father’s right there!"

As Christians, we know that as we travel through life that our heavenly father is always there to help us. If we fall, he’ll pick us up. If we stumble, he’ll catch us. Our goal is to move through life with the full knowledge that God loves us and is always by our side.

This familiar text shares the Wisdom of Solomon on the raising of a child. Solomon, generally considered the wisest man the world has ever known, wrote hundreds of proverbs or wise sayings that were based upon his experience in life and truths revealed to him by God. Among those was this single admonition about child rearing. Greater insight into the passage shows the full thrust of its meaning. Solomon urges parents to train children. The Hebrew word for "train" is "chanak" (khaw-nak’) which has a variety of meanings that reveal the full extent of Solomon’s concern. DISCIPLINE, DEDICATION and THROTTLE

Training Wheels

Learning how to live is like learning to ride a bicycle. In the beginning we need a little help. We need training wheels. We really need someone to run along beside us to keep us from falling. The role of good parents is to implement the three dimensions of "Chanak" in the lives of our children.

A SENSE OF DISCIPLINE: The three aspects of discipline are self control, character and orderliness. Every child should be taught self control. It begins at home when he or she learns to obey the rules of the home. That’s when the child learns that there is a time and appropriate place for certain actions. Speaking out of turn, interrupting the conversation of others, disrespectful behavior are all signs of an undisciplined child. Controlling the impulses, selecting friends and deciding upon acceptable activity are other areas that indicate discipline. Character involves values. There are 13 important values that every child should be taught at home, at school and in every organization or group in which he or she participates: Honesty, loyalty, helpfulness, , friendliness, courtesy, kindness, obedience, cheerfulness, thrift, courage, cleanliness, respect for God and a good education. These values develop the essentials of character. They are learned in childhood. They are difficult to learn or unlearn in adulthood. In addition to self control and character, orderliness is another essential. Learning orderliness is important because it allows us to easily follow rules and to gain control of life’s situations. A lack of order results in chaos.