Five Lessons Every Young Black Male Should Know

I have often thought about the essential knowledge that every young black male should possess and master. I believe young black males have the God-given potential to accomplish any goal or objective presented to them. I am so disappointed in the current trend of our young men emulating people who have no future or self-esteem. When did it become acceptable for our young men to sag and show their underwear as a type self expression? That choice to disrespect themselves and everyone who looks upon them is saddening. Nevertheless, the solution to this fad and others is to ensure that black men intentionally impart specific traits into the hearts of every young black male. Allow me to share six practical lessons that our young men should learn:

1. Extend respect to all authority- We must teach our young men the value of displaying respect and humility to persons who have authority over their lives. This starts in the home. Our young black males must understand that their first order of respect must be to God, their parents and anyone who has the right to exercise authority over them. The lack of respect reaps terrible dividends that could ultimately lead to failure and destruction. Let’s stand as black men and demand if we must that our boys exemplify the highest level of respect and dignity to whomever they must take directives from or serve.

2. Learn the word of God- Black fathers who claim the name of Jesus Christ, must ensure that their seed hears, knows and understands the word of God. In addition, our children should see the practical application of honoring the word of God in our lives first. It is through the word of God that our young men will find strength in the time of weakness and encouragement in the time of despair and direction in the time of perplexity.

3. Learn to be responsible- Too many of our young men are derelict in their duties because they have never been trained to be responsible for their actions, words and decisions. Again, this begins at home. It starts with teaching our young men to keep their rooms clean and organized. How many times have you walked into your son’s room and found clothes under the bed, on the floor and a strong order that could spoil your appetite? It’s true! We look over it and never hold them accountable for their actions. The result is a grown man who does not clean his house and has a home that would be unacceptable for anyone to visit. We must start with the everyday practical things in the lives of our sons to ensure that they understand that strong black men are responsible for their actions, words and decisions.

4. Learn a work ethic- Young men need a job! They must learn the value of work early so that they do not develop a lazy mentality. Young boys should learn the value of work by taking out the trash, washing dishes, cutting the grass and contributing to the maintenance and care of the household. They must also learn to get things done in a timely manner. Often times they take the posture of putting chores off hoping that mom or dad will go ahead and take care of the tasking themselves. One of the worse things that we could ever do as fathers is to raise a lazy black man in our house who does not want to work or do anything.

5. Learn how to value money. Fathers, are your guilty of buying your sons shoes that cost over $100 dollars and your sons constantly demonstrates that they do not appreciate or care about the sacrifice made to provide them with the things that they have? If you do not teach them how to take care of the things that you buy them, they will always look to other people to give them something. Teach your sons how to save some of his money. Teach your sons not to spend all of their money on frivolous things. Teach your sons about stocks, bonds, IRAs and investing their money.

6. Learn how to respect females- Brothers, do not allow your son to be a player. Teach him how to treat young ladies with respect and dignity. Dads, you have to demonstrate this in the home so that your son sees that this is normal and acceptable. Teach him never to call a female out of her name. Teach him to never put his hands on a female to disrespect her, abuse her or misuse her. Teach him to open doors for ladies. Teach your son to bless the women in his life instead of degrading them.

There are so many more lessons that our young black males need to learn, but if they could start with just these five, then they will be well on their way to being that outstanding example of a strong, intellectual, confident and refined young man of God. My brothers, what we do not teach our sons about life, God and manhood can very well hurt them. Commit to teaching these first five lessons and look for great results in the future.