Learning

 As previously mentioned, over the past few months Ive been spending time with small people.  One of them had his first birthday a few weeks ago and has got his first teeth, has learned to walk and is now on the great adventure which is learning to talk.

Amazing isnt it?  Within the space of a year most children go from being utterly dependent little scraps of cuteness  to being fully fledged personalities who are able to act independently, speak their minds and venture into the world.  Im quite glad we dont have to be like the animals - up and ready to run within five minutes of being born.  But when you ponder all the things a human child has to learn how to do in their first ten years of life its astounding.  

On Friday Kit ( the aforementioned 1 yr old) started to clap his hands.  We were listening to some kids music and ' If Youre happy and You Know it'  came on.  I clapped.  He clapped.  I expressed my deepest approval.  He smiled and clapped again.  He clapped for his Mum when she came home. She and I both made another big fuss about it.   Safe to say he's got the clapping thing down.  Tomorrow he will learn how to do something else.   And that right there is the essence of learning something.  You see it being done, you have a go at doing it yourself, you get positive feedback, you do it again ( sometimes a million times) until you have perfected it.  And then you move on to learn the next thing.

Over this very strange year so much learning has gone online.  Ive got three teenage sons all of whom have had to do some lessons and lectures on the computer.  Ive got friends who are teachers tearing their hair out about trying to communicate through screens.  And Ive worked out what it is that doesnt work about online learning - its the feedback.  Its the grin of appreciation when someone gets it right.  Its the high five for success.  Its the joy on the face of a job well done, the pride in someones eyes - all those little personal signs between people which make teaching and learning such a human experience.

God knew that words in a book wouldnt teach us what we needed to know.  He knew that we needed personal interaction so 'He came down to earth from heaven, who is God and Lord of all'.   Jesus is our example to follow - we watch and listen to Him so that we can learn how to live a life fully dependant on God and filled with the Spirit.  But He also came to give us feedback , to cheer us on, to high five us when we do well.  He came to have tea with Zacheus and congratulate the centurion for his faith.  And  ultimately so that He could release the Holy Spirit into our spirits - the spirit who steers and guides us and brings us the sense of God's favour on us and His peace within us.

Have you ever heard God's ' Well done' ?   Have you felt His hand of blessing on you?  His smile of pride when you have taken a chance, stepped out in faith, done what you thought He was telling you to do?  I think that we learn from Him best when we know His appreciation.  Unfortunately many people are so unaccustomed to receiving praise that they dont know how to receive it.  But Im not sure that we can really learn properly if we cant accept praise when we do well.   Think of that baby - so pleased with himself because he has done a very simple thing for the first time.  He thrives on the smiles and the coos and the applause.  Think of how many times a day a baby gets praised - every smile, every attempt at words, every puzzle piece assembled or scribble on a page made.   We know what happens to the neglected, unpraised, unappreciated child,  They fail to thrive and fail to learn.

So.... if you want to learn from Jesus you HAVE to be prepared for Him to praise you.  To hug you, smile at you, put His hand of favour on your life.  You have to expect Him to be pleased with you.  For some people that's really hard. But just as the adult delights in every insignificant and simple achievement of the toddler, so Jesus delights in every faltering prayer, act, brave step of faith you make. We sing ' Jesus loves me this I know' but do we really know it? Do we believe that He likes us and is cheering for us and delights in us as the apple of His eye? 

  

If you havent heard God's 'Well done!' for a while then do a couple of things . 1) Ask Him to make you particularly sensitive to His ' Well done' in the coming days.  2) get yourself around people who will properly cheer you on ; who will genuinely rejoice for your achievements, pray for your endeavours, stand with you in your attempts and help you where you need help to learn.   We all need much more encouragement than we tend to get.  Receive it when it comes your way and be glad because it means you are learning.