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One of the best things in life to teach our kids is that they are capable. The stereotypical advice printed on posters in schoolrooms and advertised to most kids is “you can do anything you put your mind to, if you’re willing to work hard enough for it”. I agree with the sentiment, I just don’t like that it’s become a vague catch phrase in schools. By doing so it has become easy to dismiss amongst the over stimulated youth of today. Kids need verbal affirmations about their capabilities, but this is too important of a topic to let their only thought on the matter be that one fairly vague sentiment.
Children need both living examples of good stewardship and ample practice in an environment that lets them experience failure. You can learn way more from a failure than a victory but your only able to learn from failure if you’re not afraid of it! Failure is uncomfortable, awkward, scary and has unintended effects. Failure requires us to test our own humility and to think on our feet. The only way to get comfortable in the uncomfortable is to be uncomfortable a lot!
This should be done in a loving environment and affirmations will still be immensely important, children need to feel loved to be able to look at failure the right way! They need an example of owning failure by the person that makes them feel loved, that person is their safe space. If there is room for failure in their safe space than failure won’t be as scary to encounter. A child that owns their own humility will have the right foundation to learn their true limitless potential. Give your kids the opportunity they deserve to test their own capabilities because they will never be disappointed with what God has equipped them with!
Psalms 23 NIV
1 The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.