Day 17 — Treat Girls with Respect

“Do not rebuke an older man, but appeal to him as to a father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.”

— 1 Timothy 5:1–2 (BSB)

Paul was giving advice to Timothy, a young leader in the church, about how to treat different people. And his advice was simple: treat people like family.

Older men like fathers. Guys your age like brothers. Older women like mothers. And girls “as sisters, with absolute purity.”

What does it mean for guys to treat girls like sisters? Think about how a good brother treats his sister. He might tease her a little. But he’d never let anyone else hurt her. He protects her. He respects her. He wants what’s best for her. He wouldn’t do or say anything to embarrass her or make her feel uncomfortable.

That’s how God wants you to treat every girl: your sister, your cousins, the girls in your class, the girls at church. Not as someone to make fun of, show off for or push around, but as someone God made and loves, a daughter of the King.

Here’s what that looks like:

• Respect her. Listen to her ideas. Don’t talk over her or act like girls can’t do things.
• Don’t make comments about girls’ bodies. Not to her, not about her and not to your friends. Every girl is made in God’s image.
• Don’t join in when other guys do. If your friends are making crude jokes or rude comments about girls, don’t laugh along. You can say, “Come on, that’s not cool.”
• Keep your hands to yourself. No one should ever be touched in a way they don’t want.
• Stand up for her. If someone is picking on a girl or making her uncomfortable, speak up or tell a trusted adult.
• Be kind. Include girls, encourage them and treat them as friends and teammates.

“With absolute purity” means your thoughts, words and actions toward girls should be clean and respectful, the kind you wouldn’t be ashamed for God, or her family, to see.

Respecting girls doesn’t make you less of a guy. It’s one of the clearest signs that you’re becoming a real man of God.

Think about it: How do you think God wants guys to treat girls? What’s one thing guys your age do that doesn’t treat girls with respect?

Try this: Treat the girls around you today like sisters. Be respectful, kind and protective, and refuse to join in if others aren’t.

Dear God, help me treat girls the way You want: as sisters, with respect and purity. Help me never make fun of them or make them uncomfortable. Give me courage to stand up for them and to refuse to join in when others don’t respect them. In Jesus’ name, Amen.