Discipline

Just the other day I was disciplining my eldest child.
We went and had a chat about her offence, she was disciplined, we prayed about it together, asking God to forgive her for her offence and to help her rid herself of the sin.
However something different happened that day - after we had prayed and hugged each other, she told me that she feels so happy after being disciplined.

Today, people are often criticized for still believing in something as 'old-fashioned' as disciplining children when they are disobedient.
The Bible however says in Proverbs 13:24 that 'Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.'.

The bible teaches us that not discipling a child is likened to hating your child. I can't think of many parents who hate their own children, but how can so many parents make conscious decisions to not correct a child when they need to be brought back in line?
The bible doesn't say that we should strong arm our children into doing what we want them to do, but it does tell us to 'diligently discipline'.

Proverbs 19:20 says that we should 'Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future'.

The reaction my daughter had to the correction I gave her brought such joy to us as parents. She is learning that Listening leads to Obedience which ultimately leads to Wisdom - which is the pinnacle of a parent's role in their children's lives.

Lord bless!