PARENT RESOURCES

While Kids Ministry is now having Sunday morning activities at the church, we understand that there are some families who are not able to join us in-person. We want to stay connected to our families and continue discipling all our kids, regardless of whether they are here at The Heights or at home.  

Each week, those of you joining us online can watch Kids Ministry live on our FACEBOOK PAGE Sundays at 9:30 AM. During this Livestream, kids will have the opportunity to worship and listen to Bible lessons from our wonderful staff and volunteers. We will also continue to have our Bible Review Activities and GodTime Devotionals posted to our blog as well as the church app.

Parent Equipping Blog - Discipline
Oct 4 1:55 PM

Parent Equipping Blog - Discipline

Oct 4 1:55 PM
Oct 4 1:55 PM

Discipline

It is 5:00 and the kids have been home from school for the last two hours. Backpacks and tennis shoes are strewn across the living room, the small, crunched up remains of Goldfish and granola bars litter the floor, and screaming emanates from every corner of the house. I have officially lost control, and my children now run our home. We need some discipline, and we need it fast.

The word “discipline”, even as adults, elicits many different memories and invokes different responses. To some, it may be that overbearing parent providing constant correction, to others, it resonates an almost militaristic adherence to structures and behaviors, and to others still an unfair punishment. No matter where your own personal history places you on the discipline spectrum, it is the reality of parenthood that our children need discipline.

Now, what can the Bible teach us about discipline and how to raise our children?

Discipline must come from a place of love.

Think of hugging your child. In that moment, what do they think and feel? They feel enveloped by a sense of security and care. Discipline should be no different. Our children should sense that we have put a protective barrier around them and are redirecting them to ensure their own security. Proverbs 13:24 states, “Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them.” 

The Bible is our go-to reference tool for guidance and discipline

Whether you are disciplining your child for disobeying, talking back to you, fighting with their siblings, or any of the other trying situations we find ourselves needing to address as parents, God has provided with us a guidebook, His Word, to help us address these challenges. The Bible should be our go-to reference on how to instruct, grow, and lead our kids. Through discipline, we can provide our children with a framework for evaluating and making decisions according to God’s will. In 2 Timothy 3:16, Paul reminds us, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.”

Discipline is corrective and necessary

Consequences are never fun but are necessary for helping a child learn and grow. We see many examples throughout the Bible where God uses discipline to correct His people. Take for instance His dealings with Israel. God provided for His children, guided them, reasoned with them, and punished them. While some punishments were rather harsh, His punishments were never out of spite or vengeance. God punished Israel to lead them to repentance. He does the same for us: “For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child” Hebrews 12:6. Without correction, our children’s behavior can lead to a life of sin and separation from God. Certainly not the life we would want for our children!

Discipline requires obedience and consistency

Almost always, when the wheels have fallen off, I feel I’ve lost all control of my children, and I find myself asking “Who’s in control here, my child or me?”, it’s usually because I haven’t been consistent in disciplining. I have not made active parenting a priority and have ignored, excused, or justified poor attitudes and behavior. Disciplining takes obedience on the part of the child AND parent. Disciplining is neither fun nor easy. Given that no one likes to be the “bad guy”, being obedient and consistent with your discipline is key.

If we want to bring order to the chaos, peace to the conflict, and respect to the relationships within our homes, we need not look any farther than God’s design for discipline and parenting. Instilling in our children a sincere fear and honor of the Lord paves the way that leads to salvation and harmony. It is up to us as parents to take the first steps down that path.

Weekly Challenge

As parents, sit down this week and decide what rules will take priority in your home. Spend some time as a family looking up what the Bible says about each of your family rules and display them prominently in your home. Discuss the consequences of being disobedient with your children and be consistent with your discipline as situations arise. Proverbs 22 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

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