Talmidim

Meet my Talmidim

The what? (You might be asking). Any guesses as to what talmidim means.......

 

 

 

No it's not a terrorist group, nor it is a group of really cute kids (even though that is true). So what is a Talmidim? Let me explain, or rather I will have an excerpt from http://followtherabbi.com/journey/israel/to-be-a-talmid1 explain:

Like other rabbis of his day, Jesus had disciples called talmidim, devout followers who were probably in their mid-teens.
Gifted students approached a rabbi and asked, "May I follow you?" in effect, saying, "Do I have what it takes to be like you?" The rabbi either accepted the student as a talmid or sent him away to pursue a trade. Jesus broke this pattern when he chose his own talmidim. As he asked his disciples to follow him, they knew without a doubt that their rabbi believed in them.
A talmid followed the rabbi everywhere, often without knowing or asking where he was going. He rarely left his rabbi's side for fear that he would miss a teachable moment. And he watched the rabbi's every move, noting how he acted and thought about a variety of situations.
Talmidim trusted their rabbi completely. They worked passionately to incorporate the rabbi's actions and words into their lives. The disciples' deepest desire was to follow their rabbi so closely that they would start to think and act like him.
Jesus' twelve disciples ultimately succeeded in becoming like their rabbi: Their missionary efforts changed the world, and most of them gave their lives in the process.

Basically it is the Hebrew way of saying disciple, but to know more about the culture and the lifestyle brings about more detail into what that looks like. I read about talmidim in a book I was reading this past year. The question they then posed was who is your Talmidim?  For anyone who has kids the first obvious answer is our children.  Deut 6:6-7 says, "And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way and when you lie down, and when you rise."

After reading the definition of the talmidim and this scripture in Deuteronomy it seems like a bigger task than we make. Let's break it down:

Gifted students approached a rabbi and asked, "May I follow you?" in effect, saying, "Do I have what it takes to be like you?" The rabbi either accepted the student as a talmid or sent him away to pursue a trade. Jesus broke this pattern when he chose his own talmidim. As he asked his disciples to follow him, they knew without a doubt that their rabbi believed in them."

Do I believe in all my talmidim, or just the ones that seem more promising? Jesus knew that Judas would betray him and he continued to teach him, to love him. My prayer is that I will have that same kind of love, and devotion. That I would see the potential in each of my children.

A talmid followed the rabbi everywhere, often without knowing or asking where he was going. He rarely left his rabbi's side for fear that he would miss a teachable moment. And he watched the rabbi's every move, noting how he acted and thought about a variety of situations.

Now this seems easier when you have toddlers. They follow you everywhere and you can hardly get a moment by yourself. Once they become teens it seems like this happens less and less. But regardless of the age of my children they are still watching; they see how we react to them, the world, to our spouse. Sometimes I am utterly shocked by what my kids say and do, and sometimes I realize I have said the same thing or had the same attitude towards them. Sometimes their repulsive behavior is from watching us.

Talmidim trusted their rabbi completely. They worked passionately to incorporate the rabbi's actions and words into their lives. The disciples' deepest desire was to follow their rabbi so closely that they would start to think and act like him.

Do I strive to be someone my kids want to follow? Is the way I live so contagious that they can't help but follow? Am I following Jesus so closely that all they have to do is look over my shoulder and see Jesus?  These questions challenge me to following Jesus more intently. To strive for this lifestyle. It seems far away some days and close others, but I keep stepping one step behind my savior. I seem to trip many times but the important thing is getting back up and continuing. 

Jesus' twelve disciples ultimately succeeded in becoming like their rabbi: Their missionary efforts changed the world, and most of them gave their lives in the process.
I am not sure we will get to 12 children, but I do pray that I succeed in becoming like my rabbi, and that each of them would follow the Rabbi, and that in their own little world, or this great big world they would see change and give their lives in the process. My prayer is that when we return to Uganda I find others around me to be part of my Talmidim and that I would not act like someone who follows Christ but I would be someone who follows Christ and that this would be contagious and carry on to others. 

May God also give me the wisdom like Jesus to know when to rebuke and when to build up. May God contractually show me the teachable moments, and may my conduct always be worth following and when it is not, I pray your grace will abound, and fill the gaps. I pray that God would continue to teach me in His word, to grow me, and that my hunger for Him would grow insatiable each day.