Skip to main content

We are like 10-year-old Boys and Girls

 

My 10-year-old son doesn’t always answer right away when I ask him a question. Often, I have to repeat myself two or three times before he responds. One morning, though, his reaction caught me off guard.

We were in the car on the way to school. It was Boy Scout day, so he wore the brown uniform shirt with its badges—the scout logo and the Philippine flag. Knowing how cold the air-conditioning can be in classrooms, I noticed he hadn’t brought his school jacket. So I asked, “Gab, are you wearing a sando?” (A sando is a sleeveless undershirt in Filipino.)

In a soft voice, he muttered, “No, I don’t have it.”

I didn’t quite catch his reply, so I asked again: “Are you wearing a sando?” This time he said, a bit louder, “I’m not wearing it.”

I heard him, but I still couldn’t believe it, so I asked a third time, raising my voice: “You’re not wearing a sando?!”

This time he shouted back: “I’m not wearing a sando!”

To check for myself, I slipped my finger between the buttons of his shirt—and there it was. He wasn’t lying. He wasn’t wearing a sando, but a scout t-shirt under his uniform. I fell silent and drove the rest of the way.

Lesson Learned

We are often like 10-year-old boys and girls. We may speak the truth, but if we don’t frame our answers clearly, the message can be misunderstood. Sometimes the fault isn’t in the answer itself, but in not considering the perspective of the one asking.

In this case, my son was only 10. I was the adult, yet it was really my mistake—I failed to listen carefully the first time.

As Christians, we can do better. When people ask about our faith, our task isn’t just to give factual answers. Every question has a context, and behind many questions lies a deeper emotional or spiritual need. If we only answer the question and miss the person, we risk missing the point altogether.

Proverbs reminds us that fools are conceited—they may ask only to mock. But there are truth-seekers out there, genuinely longing for answers. And sometimes, even a fool may reconsider if given a thoughtful, gracious reply.

Answering with Clarity and Grace

When we respond, let’s remember: we’re not just answering a question, we’re engaging a person. That requires clarity, sincerity, and honesty. And even when we don’t know the answer, those qualities can still build trust and connection.

After all, our ultimate goal is not to win an argument but to reach hearts with the truth.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Between God and the Politician

Often we hear during election time of Politicians platform of government and promised infrastructure projects should they be elected in office. But all those talk and speeches just go back to the filing cabinets once elections are through and kept hid until the next elections. So between God and the Politician is a great chasm, a great divide between truth and lies because Man's words are often empty, but the Word of God is never empty. Not because Man wants to lie but because he is not capable of keeping his every word. God on the other hand is able. God said: But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings, and you shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts (Mal 4:2-3). Those words are not empty. Surely they come to pass to them which receives them. And God has declared it that ...

Treasure Nuggets

(Gen 2:17)  but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die." This goes to show that God never intended man to die. Man was meant for eternity with God. It was when Adam ate of that fruit that death entered in and reigned. (Rom 5:20)  Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, Where to find grace? It is in the very area of your shortcoming. Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more! Paul rejoices in his weaknesses for God says, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness (2Co 12:9). "   Paul declares, "For when I am weak, then I am strong!" Receive the grace of God where you have fallen, for it is there that grace abounds all the more! (Joh 15:3)  Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. The word of God is powerful. Let it dwell in you richly. It is through th...

Faith Must Produce Results

Faith must have results for the word of God are not merely words, they are spirit and they are life. Christians ought to be results oriented not only in their worldly chores but more importantly with regard to their faith. Faith without results is dead. Yea. I truly believe that. I just cannot accept that a Christian can die of Cancer. That is not just compatible with the Gospel. I refuse to accept it, it is not from God. A Christian cannot be sick for Christ lives in him and Christ cannot be sick. But why do Christians get sick? There must be something that we do not know that's why we still fall to sickness. The Lord said, "The spirit is willing but the body is weak." But why is the body weak? And if it is weak, can we strengthen it? I believe it is only through the word of God that we can answer these questions. And so we must constantly, diligently search the Scriptures. One thing I am certain of, the body is weak because we have fallen far away from God. God is...