Yes, Praise Them

I'm pretty sure all parents praise their kids at some point.  At least I hope they do.  I was praised as a child.  From the little things to the big things.  I was praised for good grades.  I was praised for any accomplishment at track meets whether I placed or not. I was praised for the awards I received in school.  If I made the paper, one of my parents would cut it out and leave it on my bed for me to see.  Both of my parents were always there from piano recitals to church softball games when I was in collage.  They were there to capture the moment with disposable cameras and sometimes, if I was lucky, my dad would bring his gigantic video camera.  I never had to beg them to tell me "job well done."  It was a given.  As long as I was trying,  there would be words of encouragement.

I find myself praising my son more and more as he gets older.  The other night, he hit a home run and I went on and on about how proud I was of his hit.  Yes, I was very proud of him. Our team needed his hit and we ended up winning the game that night. So, what parent wouldn't be proud?  It made me pause for a moment though.  Do I really praise him when he does something small but something that will matter later in life?  When he holds the door open for a lady, do I tell him how proud I am?  When he wants to pray for someone because they are sick, do I go on and on about how much his prayers matter?  When he gets excited about church, do I praise him and remind him how important it is to be in the house of God?  There are moments that we often overlook because they may not be moments that parents typically praise a child.  Your son hits a grand slam when the game is tied and there are two outs.  Very exciting and praise worthy moment.  Right? Of course.  Your child stops to help another child because he sees him struggling.  Praise worthy moment?  You better believe it.

Watch the news.  Watch social media.  Listen to those around you. Every single day, someone around you will praise someone.  Will those moments being praised matter for eternity?  I'm not saying ignore the grand slams.  Don't ignore the perfect routine your daughter did or the first place trophy brought home.  But don't overlook the smaller moments that will matter more later in life.  The moments your child needs to know that what they did was good.  When praised, they will want to do it again.  When they know what they did was right, they'll want to do it over and over again.  They will remember the moments that you got excited when they are older.  I certainly know I do.

So praise those big and small moments that matter.  Make a big deal about those moments that truly matter.  Teach them what matters now and what will matter later.  Yes, praise them.