Finding One's Wings

“Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it." – Proverbs 22:6.

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It's an old story that we've all read about, but it's a good reminder as found in the following parable about "a new mother who discovered a butterfly struggling mightily to escape its cocoon through a tiny opening at the top.

She became concerned when the creature seemed to give up after making no progress. Certain that the butterfly wouldn't make it out without help, she enlarged the hole slightly.

On its next try, the butterfly wriggled out easily. But the young woman's joy turned to horror as she saw its wings were shriveled and useless. Her well-intentioned intervention turned out badly because it interrupted a natural process.

You see, forcing the butterfly to squeeze through a small opening is nature's way of assuring that blood from the creature's body is pushed into the wings. By making it easier, she deprived the butterfly of strong wings."

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The same thing happens to children when we parents over-protect them by doing too much for them, by spoiling them, or doing for them what they can and need to do for themselves, and by making decisions for them that they are capable of and need to be making themselves.

It is our responsibility to train up our children so that by the time they come to adulthood, they are capable of and responsible for taking care of themselves and are healthy, interdependent adults.

Good parenting requires parents to protect their children from harm but being overprotective can cause children to grow up being emotionally immature or even emotionally crippled.

Oh! I didn’t mean you should let them loose, as the saying goes, “Spare the rod or have a spoiled brat.”

Proverbs 13:24 also tells us, “Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them.”

Stay Blessed!