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Raising kids is serious business. As parents, none of us should take the responsibility of rearing kids lightly. Much is riding on the shoulders of moms and dads in terms of expectations, accountability, and even judgement. So to consider something as serious a discipline, we need to be well versed in what disciple is and how to properly apply it.
I've been thinking about this a lot, lately; and having just preached a 4 week series on the first 4 chapters of Genesis, I am all the more aware of the importance of good discipline and proper application. So what I would like to do is begin a discussion about what disciple might/should look like in the home. My hope is that you, our wonderful readers and followers might share in the discussion by offering your thoughts, stories, and lessons learned in the comment section below. To get us started, let me first lay out 3 things that I think are most important to our conversation. As we go forward, I will break these thoughts down and share some examples, stories, and application. But for now, let's just consider these as very broad ideas. What is discipline?
I think for most of us, if we were to define discipline, we might say something like, "Discipline is what is handed out following an act of wrong doing." In other words, the child acts out in an improper way and is thus disciplined. The problem with that thought is that leave discipline as the response to ill behavior, when really, discipline is a process that should begin before the action is ever carried out. To full understand this, let's consider how discipline is defined. To do this, let's look at how this word is defined by Hebrew and Greek, the two languages that we get our Bible from.
Without getting into the nitty-gritty here, we can say that both, Greek and Hebrew, present the idea of discipline as the act of instruction or teaching. That means that one part of our discipline as parents is to be teachers first. We are to instruct our children in matters of behavior, right and wrong, and what is expected of them as members of the family and members of society. This instruction I believe is to be applied early in the life of the child and as an on-going practice of training the child. As he or she grows, the instruction increases thus expanding their learning base and hopeful the lessons learned. But discipline is also defined as the corrective action that is applied to remind and reinforce the first principle of discipline. You see, for me, discipline is the process of parents teaching and instructing their children with the rules or expectations that are being passed down while maintaining a corrective position when the rules or expectations are broken. It's a before and after, not just an after. I'll give an example of this idea a little later. the bible is the resource for all Discipline
When it comes to discipline, parents, we are to use the Bible as the source for all instruction and correction! More than just on Sunday, we are to be teaching our kids the things written in God's Word on a daily basis. We are to use the every day experiences to reinforce God's truths. And when corrective action is required, the Bible should still be used to teach and apply the corrective effort.
Pray before, during and after
When the kids were younger, the matters of discipline were simpler. Infractions were, well, minor. But what I always appreciated was how Amy would pray with the kiddos when she was dealing with them. Fast forward to today and we're now raising teenagers. Suddenly the infractions are not as minor as they once were. Influences such as friends, culture, media, and their own sinful nature are now pushing the envelope and we're dealing with much weightier matters. One of the things I am learning is that as parents we must take serious the need to pray over our children in all matters of life. When the time arrives to sit down and apply discipline, prayer must be part of the endeavor. Pray before the confrontation. Quietly pray in the spirit while you are talking. End your time together in prayer. But then, take it one step further and continue praying for your child as they work through the discipline and consequences that follow.
As we unpack these thoughts this week, I want to encourage you to join us in this discussion. Share your thoughts about discipline in light of God's word. We would love hear story of how you handled matters of discipline with your kids. For those of you who are now enjoying the bliss of being grandparents, your experience can be most helpful, so please take some time to share.
And of course, please feel free to ask your questions. Where you are now in raising your children might be the same place someone else was in 5, 10 or 15 years ago. Perhaps their experience could offer you some hope and guidance. - jay and amy
1 Comment
Christie Farmiga
7/18/2023 06:17:31 pm
I think, making this a discussion is fantastic! I think everyone will benefit from that!
Reply
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Welcome to the Life in the Higham House , we are glad you are visiting. As a family of 7, we have had our fair share of adventures. We share our stories with the hope of passing along what we have learned, what we love, and what God is doing in our lives to encourage you and your family. But we love to hear from our readers, so please share your thought in the comment section of each post.
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