There is an old and very wise saying: "Be careful what you pray for, you just might get it."

In her wonderful book, Chasing Grace, Martha Manning tells the story of the challenge of raising a daughter to think for herself and stand on her own two feet...which she eventually does in a most provocative and disconcerting manner.

During Sunday Mass, the daughter decides that she can no longer sit in a sanctuary filled with, what she claims to be, abject sexism.

And so she stands. All through the service. A few other parishioners, after discovering why she is standing, do the same. This causes great consternation on the part of the priest and a vast majority of the congregation. As a pastor myself, I can tell you that the very thought of such a protest brings sweat beading upon my worried brow.

But the point is, this young woman stood up for her beliefs. Right or wrong, inappropriate or not, she rose to the occasion. And for that she is to be congratulated.

In a world that too often tends to advocate conformity over creative thought, such an outrageous action is a breath of fresh air. It hearkens back to those troubling times when brave men and women sat at lunch counters while hatred raged around them.

Every time I see the film footage of non-violent protesters being set upon by dogs and fire hoses, I marvel at the courageous commitment of those willing to risk embarrassment, ostracism and much worse for the sake of their beliefs.

The morning paper often brings the sad report of another example of quite the opposite. Rationalization, misrepresentation, deceit are more than occasionally the order of the day. Just listening to some of our political leaders glibly dismiss precious promises for the sake of calculating convenience is sickening.

Integrity is a rare commodity these days.

Of all the things that we try and teach our children, surely honesty, commitment and integrity must be at the forefront. Without these necessities, little else is of any worth. It is for this reason that we find ourselves so upset when we discover our child has tried to deceive us. And yet our modeling often points in precisely the opposite direction. We glibly, perhaps even poignantly, describe our compassion for the downtrodden and then carefully avoid the poor sections of town each time we head for the city. Or we seek to instill the value of forgiveness while clearly bearing grudges against others.

Once, I remember driving along, dramatically denouncing the idiot who had just cut me off, when a voice whispered from the back seat,.

"Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive..."

I didn’t know whether to be angry or proud but quickly decided upon the latter.

The task of turning children into mature adults is both daunting and delightful for most parents. We have so many hopes and dreams that it would take our kids several lifetimes to fulfill only some of them. What is more realistic, perhaps, is to guide them toward a few foundational qualities and then get out of the way.

Of course, we need to realize that teaching our kids to stand up for their beliefs may mean that they will do just that.