I loved hearing my husband explain his interpretation of Ephesians 6:4 to a friend this past weekend. (Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.)

Rafa started a “pony pool party” for the girls on the deck. This is when the girls gather up all of their small My Little Pony figurines and dunk them in cups and buckets of water while pretending the ponies are at a swimming pool.

While playing, the girls start to get wet. No, not wet – drenched. Friend is concerned that girls are making a big mess. Additionally, they are now as wet as the Rainbow Dash toy they are dunking in an ice cream pail. Rafa replies,

“It’s okay. I have to remember they are kids and play like kids. I don’t want to exasperate them by getting frustrated with that. I have to save my discipline for when it really matters. If I give them a command and they don’t listen, that’s worth it. But if I discipline them just for playing like kids, it will exasperate them and it’s not worth it.”

It was a good reminder for me. Exasperation come from unrealistic expectations and poor communication of requests. Discipline and growth comes from clear commands and appropriate response to those commands.