Self-Esteem<\/a> for more information). A Christian parent should not be concerned with developing or maintaining a child’s pride.<\/p>\nThe question should be, is it good for a child to be sleeping with his parents? There are cultures where families are unable to afford private sleeping areas for members of their family, but since you mention that he has his own bedroom, this is obviously not the case where you live. Even in cultures that share sleeping areas, they do not generally share their beds, except with their spouses. The reason we have private sleeping areas is that parents need their privacy. For example, while sexual activity is proper within a marriage (Hebrews 13:4), a child is better off not knowing about it. Also, a child needs to learn boundaries. There are proper and improper times to interrupt people and intrude on their lives. There are proper and improper behaviors to be displayed. Therefore, it is best to have your children sleep in their own beds.<\/p>\n
In addition, you must realize that soon your son will begin to develop sexually. He will want his privacy. It might be cute to have a small child cuddle up with you and fall asleep in your arms. But when that child becomes sexually developed it is no longer cute. The knowledge of good and evil intrudes on that relationship.<\/p>\n
Under the Old Testament law, there is a reason why there were laws that stated: “None of you shall approach anyone who is near of kin to him, to uncover his nakedness: I am the LORD. The nakedness of your father or the nakedness of your mother you shall not uncover. She is your mother; you shall not uncover her nakedness. The nakedness of your father’s wife you shall not uncover; it is your father’s nakedness. The nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father, or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or elsewhere, their nakedness you shall not uncover. …<\/em>” (Leviticus 18:6-9ff). It is not so much that God doesn’t want family members to see one another without clothing, else changing a baby’s diapers would become very difficult. The implication is not to see family members in a sexual way. Thus, as children develop they need to learn to keep their bodies private. Not that this is all that difficult, children naturally develop shyness about their bodies just before they reach puberty. Instead of being fought, it ought to be encouraged. Sharing a bed is too intimate for family members capable of having sex.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Question: My nine-year-old son doesn’t want to sleep in his own bedroom. Is this good for his self-esteem? Answer: Self-esteem is just a nicer way to discuss pride (see Self-Esteem for more information). A Christian parent should not be concerned with developing or maintaining a child’s pride. The question should be, is it good for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1028,1032],"tags":[1046,665,29,107,724],"class_list":["post-13956","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-parenting","category-preteen","tag-bedtime","tag-child-rearing","tag-parenting","tag-raising-children","tag-self-esteem"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13951,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/those-with-positive-self-esteem\/","url_meta":{"origin":13956,"position":0},"title":"Those with Positive Self-Esteem","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 24, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Text: Romans 12:1-5 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The concern for a person\u2019s self-esteem continues to permeate the thoughts of our society. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It is not unusual for a concept to be argued for or against based on its supposed impact on a person\u2019s self-esteem. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Spanking, giving grades, or even keeping score during a game\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Sermon"","block_context":{"text":"Sermon","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/sermon\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":19916,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/self-esteem-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":13956,"position":1},"title":"Self-Esteem (Sharp)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 13, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"by Keith Sharp via\u00a0Tri-County Church of Christ. Perhaps the one goal American parents and educators agree on for children more than any other is \"high self-esteem.\" John Rosemond, a professional family psychologist who writes a nationally syndicated column that appears in the Watertown Times, wrote an article entitled \"Self-Esteem Isn't\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/self-esteem.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":13940,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/self-esteem\/","url_meta":{"origin":13956,"position":2},"title":"Self-Esteem (Hamilton)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 24, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Let me tell you about a man I know \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He tells me that while he is not incapable, he is the most insignificant person in the group he associates with. Sometimes, he is ashamed to be connected with his friends because of the awful things that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Sermon"","block_context":{"text":"Sermon","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/sermon\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":11868,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-pride\/","url_meta":{"origin":13956,"position":3},"title":"What is pride?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 30, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I was just wondering what pride really means. Checking the dictionary gave me too many definitions. I was wondering why it would be a sin. I mean, of course, you should love God with all your heart, but can't you also have some self-esteem or self-confidence? Answer: Pride is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12610,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/we-suspect-our-daughter-is-stealing-but-she-hasnt-been-caught-any-words-of-wisdom\/","url_meta":{"origin":13956,"position":4},"title":"We suspect our daughter is stealing, but she hasn’t been caught. Any words of wisdom?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 28, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hi, I read\u00a0the article about the family dealing with their two daughters stealing and we are in a similar situation, but the only thing is that, while we have gone through similar experiences, our daughter (14-years-old) has never been caught and denies that she has been stealing (we have\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":61029,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/who-has-low-self-esteem\/","url_meta":{"origin":13956,"position":5},"title":"Who Has Low Self-Esteem?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 29, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"From\u00a0Meditate on These Things, November 2009: Particularly enjoyed the article\u00a0self-esteem, as blaming \"low self-esteem\" for all of the behavioral problems of children seems to have been a special problem for many in my profession, but especially therapists who come out of the very liberal schools of \"social work.\" I had\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13956","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13956"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13956\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13956"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13956"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13956"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}