Protecting People's Feeling Of Self-Worth

Compassion can actually be the opposite of pushing a consequence aside.

While compassion is often thought of as pushing aside a consequence, someone who is genuinely interested in the feelings of others will find that standing behind a consequence is actually the compassionate choice in the right circumstances.

Christians,

Consequences can be very important to protecting people’s feeling of self-worth.  While compassion is often thought of as pushing aside a consequence, someone who is genuinely interested in the feelings of others will find that standing behind a consequence is actually the compassionate choice in the right circumstances.  Consider life in a family in the following example.

A son who is about eleven year old has grown into the habit of picking on his mother when he is in a bad mood.  He has a quick tongue and she is somewhat of a shy person.  These situations can leave her feeling bad about herself.  She finally tells him one day that he has to go to his room when he starts treating her like that.  The boy immediately goes to his father to complain.  The father later tells the mother he feels that type of consequence is a little old-fashioned and that he doesn’t approve of it. 

It is now two to one, and the mother ends up needing to face a situation each day that takes away from her feeling of self-worth. She tries to help her son understand that it is hurtful for him to talk to her that way.  However, it doesn’t seem to help very much.  The husband is rarely at home when this situation seems to happen, and he actually seems to blame his wife on some level for not being able to form a better relationship with the child.