"because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in." Proverbs 3:12 NIV- emphasis mine "Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty." Job 5:17 NIV- emphasis mine "He will die for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly." Proverbs 5:23 NIV emphasis mine I mentioned earlier that hubby was out of town. It used to be the norm that he traveled on a frequent basis and was rarely home on weekdays. That all changed about 8-9 months ago and he is now truly home based most of the time. The exception is this week, in which he was required to go out of town for training. My little fella sure misses his daddy. He has a hard time going to bed unless he gets to talk to his daddy. He even sleeps with a picture of him each night. He is such a sweetheart but at the same time he is a very strong-willed child. I have been trying to be more consistent in my discipline of him ( meaning giving him less warnings), especially now that my hubby is out of town. Typically, he is more well-behaved because he knows Daddy won't tolerate most of his shenanigans. Plus, I don't want to make my hubby the "bad guy." My little guy has made strides this week with improvement in his manners. He still resists listening to me when I call him or ask him to do something. He feels that he doesn't have to act when I call. He will get to it when he feels like it. I explained the processes that we would begin immediately in order to help him be more responsive and to follow directions. One process I started is to tell or ask him to do something ONE time. If he doesn't respond or act then he gets to go to bed 5 min earlier for each offense. Tonight he went to bed 30 minutes prior to his 7:30pm bedtime. In addition, one area in which we struggle is for him to stay in his chair and eat his meal. I told him that once he gets up from the chair without having a good reason, then I will consider him to be finished. Once he is "finished" I put the food away and he can have nothing else until the next meal. Well, tonight he took 30 minutes to pick at his food and he got up several times while I was cleaning up the dinner dishes. I even warned him several times (which I should not have done since I set the expectation prior to dinner), so I when he got up the last time and went into the next room, I put his food away and started his bath. Of course, at this time he was 'hungry." I refused to give him his dinner or give him any snacks. This continued even after the bath and into his bedtime (early to boot). He continued to tell me how hungry he was. I explained that he needed to learn that what I say goes and that he needs to respond and obey me, not just Daddy. I told him that just as people in the Bible had to face consequences for their actions, so should he. I shared with him that God also disciplines Mommy and Daddy when we sin. That is one of the ways we know that God loves us. Furthermore, the hunger he felt would remind him to obey me and that I mean what I say. (I must add that he was in no way "starving" as he had a nice snack an hour and half before dinner -- so don't think I am abusing my child.) We talked and I advised him that the only reason I correct him is because I love him. I think he is not too young to learn life lessons and have to suffer consequences. The loss of toys and privileges help but there are other times that he needs to understand "life lessons." God uses "life lessons" to humble us, correct us and get us back on the path He wants us to follow. Just as our Heavenly Father disciplines us, earthly parents are called to correct their children. An undisciplined child is a spoiled child and one that will not do well in the "real world." I would rather that my little fella learn his lessons when he is young so he doesn't make bigger mistakes when he is older. God does the same for us. That "still, small voice" that tells us not to do something; that little "nudging" that steers us in a different direction; proverbial doors that close when we think they should be open; a period of time when nothing goes right; what I can only explain as a 2X4 being smacked across my backside; loneliness; loss; feeling that God is not around; etc... These and many more ways that the Lord has gotten my attention. His correction has followed for my disobedience but along with the discipline, He also showers me with love and the assurance that I am still His child. He loves me no matter what I do but I need to be corrected. Just as it pains me to discipline my little guy, I am sure the Lord feels the same pain. But, I must say that I have caused Him more pain in my time than my little fella has shown me. I correct him because I love him just as God corrects me since He loves me. As the scripture says, "because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son." (Hebrews 12:6 NIV). Dear Lord - thank you for correcting me. Thank you for giving me the love for my son so that I want to correct him and give him the foundation to make good choices. Please be with me as hubby and I try to raise him in the ways of the Lord. AMEN Application:
- How do you feel when corrected by the Lord?
- How do you feel when you have to correct your child?
- Pray for God's guidance and direction in both ends of the spectrum - receiving and giving correction.
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