TEACHING CHILDREN RESPECT Ephesians 6:1–3 As parents, we must be teaching our children four critical traits. We already looked at the first trait—choose friends and companions wisely. The second trait is this: Walk in respect and humility. “Honor your father and your mother” is the fifth commandment, but it is the first commandment that includes a blessing—“so that you may have a long life” (Exod. 20:12). So honoring and respecting mom and dad is the key. It is crucial. Disobedience and disrespect receive punishment. Children should respect their parents. They should respect their elders. Let me give you a few of words that will open more doors for them than anything else: “Yes, ma’am,” “please,” and “thank you.” If we do not teach proper respect and humility, our children will be ungrateful, and they will want anything they see. We have to teach our sons to respect women, and that comes with us saying, “You are not going to talk to your mom like that,” “You are not going to treat your sister like that,” “You are not going to treat your friend like that,” “You are going to be a man of God who respects and honors women.” Let me give you a thought on humility. You, the parent, need to realize that your kid is not the center of the world. The Duke of Wellington once said this: “The thing that impresses me most about America is the way parents obey their children.”* You do not have to pay for your children’s college; it is fine if they get a job and learn to work for that. Some of you have been saving for that, and if you can bless them that way, great. But they should not be the center of your universe. We should not be running all over the place to keep them satisfied and then feel parental guilt if we do not give them everything or aren’t at every single thing they ever do. As a parent, be there as much as you can. But you will have a business trip or something will come up, and you will not be able to be there. That is okay. If you make them the center of the earth, they are going to be fired from a job someday because nobody thinks they are the most important person in existence. They are going to take a class, and they will get an F because nobody thinks they are the center of the world. Are you raising humble and respectful children? For further study: Proverbs 23:19–21
AUGUST 2