Thursday, November 16, 2023

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2023 November 16

Respect

 

“For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.” (Jeremiah 4:22)

 

Today’s Morsel: Respect seems to be losing its purpose and meaning in the schools, workplace, church, and even in the home. Folks just seem to have lost their minds when it comes to self-respect. Few if any seem to be teaching it anymore. Back in the 50’s and 60’s, when I went to school, we had classes in school to teach us about self-respect. You see, in the south, most schools were segregated. And one of the greatest teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was that of having self-respect for yourself. So, our black teachers stressed his teaching on us. Dr. King knew that if we, as black kids, were going to amount to anything good in life, we would need to have great respect for ourselves because that was what the Bible taught. In our health classes, personal hygiene was taught. Female teachers would talk to young girls about female issues to prevent embarrassment. We were all taught how to sit, stand, talk, and even walk. Dress and appearance were addressed. We even had daily devotions in our school where we read the Bible, prayed, sang hymns, and cited the pledge allegiance to the flag. But sad to say that today many churches don’t even have an American flag. Most people don’t even know the words to the pledge of allegiance, and some have never heard it. Men are not taught to take their hat off for the pledge, children are not taught to stand.  Some folks don’t even know how to pray and have no respect for oneself or others. I’m not being evil here, but the worst kind of destruction is self-destruction. We sit and laugh at all the, “You might be a Redneck If ….” Jokes, but do you know what the underhand meaning of those jokes are? That some people do not have self-respect for themselves. If we don’t have self-respect and teach it to our children and those of our household and churches, you and they both are going to self-destruct.  Start having self-respect, and then pass it on to those of your household.  

 

Sing: Let me walk in the light in the great gospel light, let me walk in the gospel light; Till my journey is over and I travel no more, let me walk in the gospel light. 

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