by Marcia Sanders
“No, Skip. Over here. Walk beside me,” David pleaded. “I’ve told you that a hundred times!”
“What’s up?” Dad asked, walking outside.
“I’m trying to teach Skip to walk beside me. I’ve explained it to him, but he just doesn’t listen.”
“Have you tried using a treat to reward him when he does come to stand beside you?”
“No, I haven’t,” David answered. “I don’t want to bribe him into obeying me,”
“It’s not bribery. It’s how to teach dogs to do what we want them to do,” Dad explained. “Skip doesn’t understand words, so the explanations don’t help. You can, however, teach him simple commands like ‘heel’ and ‘come’ by giving him a small treat each time he responds correctly. Let me show you.”
“Skip, here!” Dad commanded. The dog trotted to him, tail wagging.
Dad turned to David. “Now, you try it.”
David imitated the action, and Skip came right to him. “That’s good,” David said. “But he already comes when I call.”
“So, take it to the next level. Walk a couple of steps and repeat the command. This time, if he follows you, give him a small treat. I brought a few because I thought that was what you were doing out here. Now you try.”
David followed Dad’s advice, and soon Skip was walking by his side through the yard.
“Thanks, Dad,” David beamed. “I didn’t realize that I needed to control my words, break the task down into smaller steps, and give Skip a reward. That really worked!”
His dad smiled. “You know, Jesus had a special way of teaching people how to follow Him, but it didn’t involve any treats. He used stories to help people remember. Can you think of any?”
“Are you talking about parables?” David asked. “If so, yeah, I do. Let’s see . . . there was the one about planting seeds in different kinds of dirt. And others — God’s kingdom as a treasure, talents, what a good neighbor is, lost things getting found, a son’s obedience. . . . Oh yeah, and the one about the unforgiving servant. What a loser that guy was!”
“Good memory!” Dad exclaimed. “I’m proud of you! Do you know why Jesus told such stories instead of the lessons He wanted people to learn?”
“Hmmm . . . ,” David thought. “I’ve never considered that. I remember stories easier than rules.”
“Exactly! We all remember stories better. Just as Skip didn’t listen to your explanations, people don’t listen to explanations as well as they do stories. When we remember the story, then we also remember the lesson. Look at how many stories you remembered just now,” Dad pointed out. “What was the lesson with that unforgiving servant?”
“We should forgive others because God has forgiven us,” David answered. “I don’t want to be like that guy!” Dad laughed.“Agreed! Keep studying your Bible, son — especially the parables — and you won’t be.”
