Wednesday, March 10, 2010

A Nation of Appeasement

Yesterday, while web-surfing, I came across an article about Parents Lying to their Children. Rather than condemn such behavior, the author treated it like a joke; since all parents "do it." But, as disgusting as the article was, the comments below were even more appalling, as parents laughed about their wiles.

One mom "humorously" confessed that she often lies to her four-year-old, saying that a favorite (annoying) CD was left in Daddy's car. 

Most of the replies were in favor of this behavior. Only one person had the courage to tell this Mom that it's OK to say, "No, we're not going to listen to this right now." Then she reminded all the parents of the age-old truth; "You reap what you sow." How can you expect honesty from your children when you are not honest with them? And is it possible that we are more afraid of "hurting little feelings", than telling the truth?



Recently, at Walmart, I watched a man (you know; the obnoxious kind that know they're good-looking) as he bragged about how he stopped being his girl's daddy when she was three. He's her buddy now. Then, he reached out to caress the 8 or 9 year old in front of him. I was both amused and saddened to see her pull away snobbishly, rolling her eyes at her "buddy."

Parents, what is wrong! We've been commanded to train our children, (Prov 22:6) and to provide for them, (I Tim 5:8) but never are we ordered to be their buddies; or even to make them happy. Sadly, even the "church" has become brainwashed by an ungodly culture, as we forsake the truths of God's Word to cater to selfish children.

Somehow, in the past hundred years, our country has become a nation of appeasement: We care more about the feelings of a rapist than the innocent lives of his victims. Illegal aliens are granted rights and privileges that natural-born citizens must obtain through sweat and labor. And special-interest groups carry votes which the majority of Americans oppose.

The societal effects are evident. But where did this start?

As for my people,
children are their oppressors,
and women rule over them.
O my people, they which lead thee
cause thee to err,
and destroy the way of thy paths.
(Isaiah 3:12)

4 comments:

  1. Overhead last night at a consignment sale: "My daughter wears 3 outfits a day." No thought that this is unreasonable, creates extra laundry for mother, and that the child needs to be corrected. Instead, the mother bought extra clothes!

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  2. To me it's sad to see parents in bondage to their children's whims. This is so wrong, on a number of levels!

    I will say; on the flipside of this, that children do not always need all the information. While I try desperately not to lie to my children, neither do I give them excessive details. They need to learn "no" without "why."

    Parents, like the mom who buys extra clothes instead of training her daughter, act like victims, rather than teachers.

    Parents, you are not a victim of your child's fancies! It is your job to correct their flaws; not put up with them! (Yes, I'm preaching at myself, here!

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  3. I was just reading a bit of BabyWise II - and came upon a core concept! One of the foundational concepts is teaching Self-Control. So that's why you expect obedience when you say, "No" and then DON"T move the placemat out of reach - you expect them to exercise self-control and obey. I knew that, deep down somewhere, but now I can articulate it and tell myself WHY I'm not taking the easy way of removing everything up to 4 ft off the floor - I want her to learn self-control so that she can be trusted in the home and other's homes without destroying everything. :)

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  4. True, Christie, self-control is a key issue with little ones. They have none naturally, and must learn it; from demanding food at the table, to screeching noises, and getting into everything-- pretty much all of discipline in the first few years can be summed up as teaching self-control.

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