Self-Identity

Jacob started crying in the car when I picked him up from school today (“pajama day”) and it left me momentarily speechless. As I gathered myself, I slowly began to probe. Apparently, some kids were making fun of the PJs he wore, calling them a baby’s. So, I slowly started to peel back the layers of emotion, because I didn’t want to miss this opportunity to build up my son and teach him an important life lesson about his self-worth.

Teaching our kids (or anyone we’ve taken the responsibility to mentor) to have a secure self-identity is so important because it’s so fragile early on. An image that I keep in mind when building self-esteem in people is a pyramid because the earlier in the process they are, the more positive inputs they need; but as people get more secure in themselves and their abilities, they can move upward with fewer and fewer inputs. When we take the time to lay sufficient bricks at the early stages, when they get older, they will not wander far from the identity that was instilled. Thus, the Bible says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it” (Prov. 22:6).

So, I spoke words of worth into his heart, shared advice for how to deal with such kids, laughed with him, and smothered him with a bear-hug, and because my words and opinion are more important to Jacob than those kids, we were able to lay bricks down today.