I spent most of my childhood years in Nigeria, West Africa, from the early 80s to the mid 90s, and learned from a very young age that respect was demanded by parents from their children. Parents never believed that they had to earn the respect of their children; in many homes, respect was demanded and simply formed a part of the upbringing of a Nigerian child. A girl kneels down to greet her parents and a boy prostrates to show reverence for their parents. This wasn’t necessarily bad, after all, we are to ‘honor our parents so that it may go well for us,’ but several parents in those years equated respect to servitude- the child didn’t have an opinion of their own and had to do exactly as the parents said.
Respect wasn’t servitude in my household. My parents didn’t provoke us children to anger but instead brought us up in the discipline and instruction that came from the Lord. I disagreed with my dad on a number of issues and was considered the ‘bold’ child, but I followed our traditions- I knelt down on my two knees to greet my parents early in the morning and, in turn, was prayed for, while growing up, and had to do this on my wedding day (pictured).
My understanding of love was first learned from my parents and over the years, I reciprocated that love to my parents because they first loved me. The memory of this early morning tradition from my childhood is still vivid and has never left me. This tradition was so impactful that I carried it on in my family. My parents loved my siblings and I so much that they were kind enough to deposit those seeds of prayers into our lives for decades- they blessed us and didn’t curse us and prayed for God’s blessings, good health and prosperity for us- those prayers have carried us through life and still do today. I have also been inspired to be creative about praying for my children and those that I love. When my children were younger, i deposited the seeds of prayers into their lives just like my parents did for my siblings and I. As my children have grown older and I see less of the older teens, I have been more deliberate about carrying on this tradition of ‘daily prayer.’ Whether I am praying with them, in agreement, about their prayers requests, or praying for them over the phone or praying over their passport photos, which typically lay on my bedside table, you will find me praying for my children because I love them.
From the moment children are born, as parents, we first loved them. We love them even when they offend us. We love them and they learn from us how to love. They love us back because we first loved them when they were born… when they are were young impressionable. We also don’t provoke them to anger… instead we pray for them. We have been asked to pray for our enemies (those that persecute us), but let us start with those that we love- this is an easy place to begin. Perhaps our relationships truly can be better if we pray for those that we love. Could there be hope for a more loving world? DON’T YOU EVER FORGET THIS….YOU FIRST LOVED THEM. STAY PRAYED UP!! Read at https://spidnetworking.com/2021/09/12/dont-you-ever-forget-this-you-first-loved-them-pray-for-them/