Chapters 9 & 10

Hey, ladies! Last night's book club discussion was awesome! I'm thankful for all of you who have committed to reading and studying what God's Word says about training our children in righteousness. I'm grateful for God's Word that always instructs us as moms! Alicia reminded us that the BIBLE is our Bible, not our book, Don't Make Me Count to Three. Good point!

The last 2 weeks we have spent on learning and refining our strategies for giving a Biblical reproof--the VERBAL part of what we do. We obviously do this all day, everyday--for all kinds of situations. We spent a lot of time talking about reproving our children for disobedience, but let's not forget the JOY of instructing them when they're NOT disobeying. . just as we go about our day. It's so sweet and powerful at the same time to be able to say "Thank you, God, for the ______ (sun, wind, rain, friends, keeping us safe in the car, providing all these groceries, providing new shoes for you, giving you courage on the playground, giving you endurance to complete your homework). I've always loved the "catch your kids being good" game--letting them know in a specific way that I see and appreciate them for ______________(being patient, kind, generous, helpful, etc).

Last night (and next week) we're talking about the other major piece of training our children--the rod. We know God's Word says to use the reproof and the rod--and that we are showing faithfulness to God and to our children when we take up the rod. Somehow it's so sensitive, though! We want to "do it right"! We all have different life experiences that play into our view of spanking, and we need to sort through them in the light of God's Word! Ladies, remember to bring ALL your cares to the Lord! If you feel unsettled about the spanking issue--bring it to Him! He cares for you! He loves your children! Pour out your heart to him--what your fears and concerns are, your desire to be obedient to his Word, your desire to trust His plan, whatever it is! He will be faithful to hear your cry!

Here are a couple of questions from last night that we discussed. Tell us what you think. Click on the "comments" button--it will pop up a place for you to comment and post! Easy!

From chapter 9 (pages 101-106)
Ginger Plowman gives us 5 Worldy Methods that parents use in an attempt to obtain obedience from their children. They are:
1. Bribing
2. Threatening
3. Appealing to their emotions
4. Manipulating their environment
5. Reasoning with the child

Which do you tend to use the most? What is the fundamental problem with these 5 methods? Do they ever work/are they ever appropriate?


From chapter 10
Do you agree/disagree that "if [your child] is old enough to disobey then they are old enough to be trained to obey"? (page 110)

Do you agree/disagree that it is "unfair" to inconsistently apply the rod? (page 113)