Mike Parker: Capitalizing on a teachable moment

My son Michael asked if I would like to make a trip with him to Greenville. He had a few items to drop off to his sister Rachel. Since I had an item or two to deliver myself – and since I enjoy spending time with my son – I jumped at the opportunity to go with him.

When we pulled into Rachel and Joe’s driveway, Rachel met us and asked if we could stay with her girls for “a little while.” Since I was not born yesterday, I asked for a time frame. She needed us for about an hour and a half. I looked at Michael. He looked at me. We both shrugged and said sure.

Before we arrived at Rachel’s, Michael and I had discussed staying about 15 minutes and then heading to someplace for lunch. He had not eaten all day, and I had not eaten since breakfast. By 3 p.m., we needed to eat. So I asked Rachel’s girls, Hannah and Abby, if they would like to grab a bite. Nearly any 10- or 11-year-old, when asked about eating, will nearly trip running to the car.

We ended up at Pizza Inn near Hastings Ford. While we were eating lunch, Hannah looked at me and said.

“Papa, I think I know that song now.”

I have eight grandkids in the 6 to 13 age range. I offered them a challenge some time ago. If they learned Psalm 1 by memory and could recite it for me, then each one who completed the challenge would earn a five dollar bill. I am a believer in the importance of scripture memorization. David wrote in Psalm 119:11: “Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee.”

Of course, when Hannah told me she had “learned the song,” I was confused. Then I heard her say:

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful …” I knew then she meant she had learned the Psalm.

She continued in her sweet 10-year-old voice to recite the six verses of Psalm 1. She stumbled a bit at the last verse, but her sister Abby gave her the hint she needed to complete the recitation.

Michael looked at Hannah.

“But do you know what it means?” Hannah shook her head no. We were at a teachable moment, so I gave a brief explanation. In the course of Psalm 1, the writer tells us we will be happy if we do not do three things: 1) walk based on advice from the ungodly, 2) stand in the same path as sinners walk, and 3) sit down in company with those who scorn and mock God and His word.

Then we looked at the positive things we are to do.

“But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.” Reading the Bible is not enough. Even memorizing scripture is not enough. We must “meditate” – think carefully and ponder God’s word and law. We are to preoccupy our minds with the teachings of God’s word “day and night.”

At this point, I explained the idea of “God’s law.” We talked about sinful behavior. All sinful actions violate what Jesus called the two greatest commandments: Love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength – and love our neighbor as ourselves. All the rest of the law of God hangs on these two overarching commandments.

“Basically, we should treat others the way we want them to treat us,” I said.

“That’s the Golden Rule,” Abby said with a smile. “Exactly right,” I said.

We talked about a number of practical applications of the command to “do to others as we would have them do to us.

I left our lunch conversation thinking about how much better things would be in our homes, our communities, our state, and our nation if we treated other the way we want to be treated.

Obeying this second great commandment is one way we show that we love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength.

Mike Parker is a columnist for Neuse News. You can reach him at mparker16@gmail.com.