15 Then Delilah pouted, “How can you tell me, ‘I love you,’ when you don’t share your secrets with me? You’ve made fun of me three times now, and you still haven’t told me what makes you so strong!”16 She tormented him with her nagging day after day until he was sick to death of it.
NAGGING
Delilah nagged Samson until he finally revealed the secret of his strength. The phrase "tired to death" sums up the effects of nagging, doesn't it? Sometimes we give in to our kid's requests, even when we know it's not best for them, just to buy some momentary peace. It comes at a price, however, because we've rewarded the very behavior we want to discourage.
Parents can be good at nagging, too. One reason we default to nagging is because it's easier than following through with consequences. But we have to ask ourselves whether relieving our anxiety for a moment is really producing the behavior we are seeking?
Relationships suffer when we nag. It's not a behavior that earns respect and it can cause our kids to grow "tired to death" of us. Even though it's tough to give consequences with empathy, it's a much more considerate way to treat our children.
Giving consequences with empathy is far more effective than nagging.
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