What a Broken World Teaches Children

The Moment I Discovered I Was A Strong-Willed Child

In the corner
http://primitiveheartstrings.blogspot                .com/2012/08/in-corner.html

My father used to tell people sometimes in his sermons that he had two sons. One that in earlier years could be disciplined with a look…another that required a more “direct” form of punishment.

Almost every time he used that illustration I would ask him, “dad which one of the sons am I?” This question usually went unanswered, but one Sunday afernoon he resonded with “son you don’t want to know.”

At first the idea of being a stubborn seemed incredibly funny to me, but then I realized my dad wasn’t laughing.

 

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What a Broken World Teaches Children

We Teach Ourselves Chldren Don’t Respect Authority

kids-laughing
Image courtesy of http://iteachwithipads.net/2013/02/

There’s no doubt because of what our culture teaches there is a greater need than ever for Godly role models for young children[1].

Yet there are less and less people choosing to minister in children lives.

There are many reasons for this, but one of the greatest is that children don’t seem to respect authority.

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Teaching Structure to Children, What a Broken World Teaches Children

Culture Teaches Children Things Become Their Identity

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A few years ago I read a book about ways companies target teenagers with their products.

One of the most interesting was giving all of their clothes to popular kids for free. Of course other students after seeing this would be motivated to buy the same merchandise.

Thankfully that kind of marketing has yet to involve younger children. However there is something much more subtle (but just as deadly) used to reach them

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Teaching Structure to Children

Culture Teaches Children Discipline is Done in Anger

Image courtesy of http://www.sodahead.com
Image courtesy of http://www.sodahead.com

There are a lot of things that I love about working with children, but there are a few I absolutely hate.

One of those things is being “mean John” [1]

Mean John’s main focus is keeping control of a group

  1. He calls down students by name
  2. Separates children who are causing a disturbance
  3. Makes threats
  4. And uses a large number of naughty chairs [2]

What really frustrates me about being mean John is my actions are often motivated by anger [3].

I honestly hate being that way, but it’s necessary since children often don’t respect authority figures

Culture over time (through interaction with authority figures) teaches children that discipline will only be done in anger.

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Uncategorized, What a Broken World Teaches Children

Culture Teaches Children There Are No Consequences for Actions

Image Courtesy of raymond.wikia.com/wiki/Everybody_Loves_Raymond_(show)
Image Courtesy of raymond.wikia.com/wiki/            Everybody_ Loves_Raymond_ (show)

 

Okay I have a confession to make, I love watching stupid comedies.

My favorite is Everbody Loves Raymond. Even while watching an episode for the tenth or fifteenth time on netflix I still find myself laughing hysterically [1].

Of course it isn’t the deep plotlines of this program that draws me in since almost every episode goes like this:

  1. Raymond makes a stupid mistake
  2. He tries to keep it a secret from his wife
  3. She finds out in an incredibly funny way

Actually Everybody Loves Raymond is an escape to a world where every problem is fixed in a half hour, and there is no real pain or stress. This is okay for adults who understand the real world doesn’t work like that, but for a child’s mind this can create serious problems.

You see almost every television show deals with challenges in a way that doesn’t fit with the real world.

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