Have you added the Status table to the query?
Add the field from the table you want to display to the query.

Yes I added the status table, and I am using that combo box. if I make the change in the query I get the primary key. I am thinking it has something to do with bound columns. The form reflects the correct value but the report and the query reflect the primary key.

I am trying so hard not to go back and use lookups in my table. But this gets so complicated. Frustration to no end.LOL

Can you post a screenshot of your query in design view?

Yes

I guess I could remove the auto number as the primary key and make the value my primary key. But somehow I do not think that would be the proper way to get the result.

I did try a dLookup in my query =DLookup("Status","StatusTBL","StatusID="&[Status]) but that creates a circular reference, what ever that means. So I removed that.

This is what I meant by adding the Status table to the query (see screenshot).

Kevin I ended up getting it to work but I did my Join a bit different. Am I wrong.

No not necessarily, but be aware that if you have tasks where the status hasn't been set they won't show up in your query or report. If you do find you are missing tasks, the join type would be the first aspect to look at.

So what I think I am learning. do not use lookups in my table. Create other tables with the values. In doing this I need to make sure that the primary key of the reference table format is the same as the primary key. So for example my main table has Status and my Status table had the list of statuses auto numbered primary key. In order to create the join my main table status had to be formatted to number or I got the error mismatch. This mean that my main table populated with the Primary key numbers but the quries, forms and reports will show the values. Am I understanding that correct

StatusID would be Foreign Key in the main table,

Well that went to hell. Now when I make an entry it is changing my reference table value list to numbers. I have no Idea what I have done.
I Changed my join to match yours.

Just when I thought I was really learning something. BOOM NOT.

I don't even know how to google that issue. LOL

A Select Query shouldn't be changing the data in the table like that. Are you still using lookups in your query as you first screenshot shows?

Here is a video on Outer Joins.

Well, when I create the form I delete the status field and replace it with a combo box so the user can update the status as they progress.
When I create the query it is not a combo box, but it appears that the form changes that when I insert the combo box.

How would I make it so the user can select a status?

Ok I stand Corrected, when I change the form to a combo box it does not change the Query. My bad.
But it sure enough is changing the data in my statusTBL

The value from your Combo Box is a number (StatusID), so the Control Source should be StatusID.

Then I am back to the query and the report showing the ID # as opposed to the value.
How would I get the form so the user can select the status? My frustration tells me to get rid of auto number! but I know that is wrong.
Richard made it look easy when he updated the form with the combo box!

So I watched the Relational Combo video several times and I thought I was doing what was taught in the video.
So where Richard was adding the titleTBL combo box I replaced that with my StatusTBL combo box.
Now I did notice that he did this to update the customer table and I was doing mine to update the query. Is that what I am doing wrong?
Should my form be based on the table and not a query?