Teaching Obedience

There are three different reasons we obey Gods commandments.  First, out of fear, second, for the blessings we will receive, and third out of love.  As I look at these three reasons to obey God I can see a progression that can be used in teaching a child to obey a parent.  The first step may be to discipline through some form of punishment.  When I was growing up it was normal for my parents to say, "do such and such or you will get a spanking".  Today we are a little kinder, "do such and such or you will sit in the naughty chair".  Either way you put it the principle is the same.  Do what I say or you will receive punishment.  And so to protect our tushies we do what our parents said out of fear of the possible outcome. 

Hopefully children learn this lesson soon at which time parents can move into the next form of teaching which is to do what I say and you will receive a reward.  For me this came mostly as I was a teen.  I knew if I did what my parents said that they would trust me to stay out late with friends or give me ten bucks for food or cloths.  I obeyed what they wanted me to do and in turn I was blessed with money when I needed it and freedom to stay out late with friends.  I guess you could say that a certain amount of trust was built up between us all.  Because of this trust and the constant practice of do good and get a blessing I see now that I did what my parents asked me for an even greater reason.

Eventually I didn't need rewards to do what my parents asked of me.  It became habit to follow the household rules and I did because I loved my parents and I knew they loved me due to the trust they placed in me and my ability to do good.  As I transitioned away from home and into college it became easy to obey the commandments of God as I already had good practice from home in being obedient and i knew that great blessings were in store due to obedience.  I gained a lot of freedoms as a teenager that many of my friends didn't have. Because of the model followed by my parents I gained an understanding of gospel principles I didn't recognize until now.

I really appreciate the model followed by my parents in my upbringing.  It has molded me into the person I am today.  A person who finds it easy to follow the princiles of the gospel not because I fear the punishment or want a reward, but because I have a deep love for my Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ and I know that they love and trust me.