Do You Have A Favourite Child?

Many parents have their favourite child for a lot of reasons.

One of the reasons is that the child is seen as an answer to their prayers, either perhaps because they did not begin having children early in their marriage or because the child is their last child.

Do you have a favourite child? Why, if l may ask? If you have, and irrespective of whatever reason you have that favourite child, know now that it is wrong to have a favourite child.

lt is not in the best interests of your other children, neither does it help your "favourite child" in any way. You only end up pitching one child against the others.

We will consider the biblical example of Jacob and his household as a case in point here - in order for you to comprehend the far-reaching consequences of having a favourite child.

Learn from the biblical example of Jacob.

He had Joseph as his "favourite child". Briefly, Jacob got married to two sisters through no fault of his. He had deep, genuine love for Rachael, the younger of the sisters but, by trickery, was given the eldest sister, Leah, in marriage by his father-in-law.

ln order for him to have the love of his life, Rachael, he was made to serve her father for fourteen (14) good years to pay the bride price.

Some would see this form of bride price as highly expensive and may be dissuaded altogether from proceeding with the marriage, but not Jacob. Due to his love for Rachael, those years were like "mere days in his eyes".

Thereafter, childbearing became a problem for Rachael. But, her sister Leah, on the other hand, was favoured by God with childbearing - due to the injustice of being in a loveless marriage in rivalry with her own blood sister. Thus, it became a continuous rivalry between the two sisters for many years to come.

So when Rachael eventually gave birth to Joseph, Jacob became so attached to Joseph and very fond of him to the exclusion of his other children.

"Now Israel (Jacob) loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the child of his old age; and he made him a coat of many colours." Gen. 37:3

So, what became the outcome of this "favourite child"? The account at Genesis (37:4) continues: "And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him." See the full story at Gen. 37:3-45:1.

Do you now see the foolishness of having a "favourite child"?

So, please, please, please, for the love of God, do not have a favourite child!

For more information on the proper upbringing of a child, please see the web page: Parenting With Love And Logic.

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