My youngest son Micah is six months old and is in the process of learning how to crawl.  If you’ve ever spent time around babies you can probably imagine the scene – up on all fours, rocking back and fourth and screaming out triumphant squeals like he is already running free…

The problem is, he can’t actually crawl yet!

Now, as his dad, I see it as my responsibility to keep pushing him until he learns how to crawl.  Here’s a picture of how that looks for Micah right now:

You’ll notice that I put the things he really wanted just out of his reach.  Cruel?  Maybe.  Micah’s fussiness might lead you to believe it was.  But I believe that God puts dads in their kids’ lives to cast a vision for them to reach their full potential.  For Micah right now, learning how to crawl is the biggest challenge he is facing, so it’s my job to give him the incentive to move.  As parents and mentors our goal isn’t to react to our kids’ progress but to activate their potential and isn’t that how our heavenly Father leads us?

• God told Abraham to go to a land He had not revealed yet. (Gen 12:1)
• God told Noah to build an arc before it had ever rained.  (Gen 6)
• God told Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem while he was exiled in Babylon.  Jesus told a blind man to walk to a pool and wash the mud off his face before he restored his sight.  (John 9)

In your role as a leader, whether that’s as a parent, an eKidz small group leader, a boss, a spouse or a friend, take your cues from God’s leadership style and put some stuff out of reach for those you’re leading.  You may have to deal with a little more fussiness from them today but you’re not reacting to today’s progress you’re activating tomorrow’s potential.

John Bishop
Family Pastor