Getting Respect
Theme of the Week: Tough Love for Teens
Steve Farrar
Sunday, July 13, 2003
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Key Bible Verse: "Honor your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life" (Exodus 20:12). Bonus Reading:Exodus 21:17, Proverbs 30:17, Matthew 15:4
My friend has a soon-to-be-13-year-old boy who started to run off his mouth to his mother. Before a business trip, the father reminded his son that he expected him to speak respectfully to his mother while he was away, or face consequences on his return.
A couple of evenings later, the dad walked in the door from the airport at about 10:30. His wife soon described their son's latest bout of disrespect. The dad listened, took his suitcase upstairs, and got his son out of bed.
He went back over his instructions. The boy agreed that he'd understood them. The father commenced to apply knowledge to the seat of understanding. He then told his son that while it was his desire for his son to enjoy life, that it was up to him. Football and social activities at school, he said, were earned privileges, not rights. One more verbal barrage at his mother would mean that he was done with these.
Over the next few weeks there was an amazing transformation. The boy became kind to his mother and very careful of his speech.
—Steve Farrar in Standing Tall
Adapted from Standing Tall (Multnomah, 1994, 2001) by permission.
Copyright © 2003 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity.
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Heavenly Father, give me the wisdom and resolve to father my teens for their long-term benefit.
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