Lured In
02-25-2002, 10:40 AM
I had a friend recommend a really good book to me for raising kids from a Godly perspective. I got married back in August and became a father of two very awesome little boys. (now 5 and 7). Although I consider myself a patient man, I was wrong. :wink: Being a father has taken more closer to insanity than I ever thought possible. In our efforts to teach our children, my wife and I felt like something was missing and in my oldest son, it was obvious. No matter what my wife or I did, we could not consistently encourage him to be obedient or to think of others as much as we would like. (Being realistic of course for a 7 year old.) Our daily prayer and bible reading didn't really seem to have an impact on him. My friend recommended a book titled "Shepherding a Child's Heart."
The book focuses on not trying to change your child's behavior without trying to shape thier heart and attitudes. After all, "from the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks." It provides some great insight from a Biblical perspective on what forms a childs attitudes and actions. DUH, it's the same that forms ours as adults. :rolleyes: If a child is not God focused neither will their actions be. I was so convicted in that I had been trying to change my children's actions without concern for the attitude of their heart. Essentially turning them into little Pharisees, or clean on the outside and dirty in the middle.
Needless to say, even as a former staff member at a church this was a real insight. graemlins/idea.gif It has been roughly a week since my wife and I have been trying to put this into practice and we have seen great strides not only in our children's lives, but in our own as well. :grin: Praise God for his faithfulness and that His Word never returns void.
Regardless of where you are in your parenthood, I would recommend checking it out. After all, it may not be just our children that need to look their hearts, but us as parents as well. :wink:
The book focuses on not trying to change your child's behavior without trying to shape thier heart and attitudes. After all, "from the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks." It provides some great insight from a Biblical perspective on what forms a childs attitudes and actions. DUH, it's the same that forms ours as adults. :rolleyes: If a child is not God focused neither will their actions be. I was so convicted in that I had been trying to change my children's actions without concern for the attitude of their heart. Essentially turning them into little Pharisees, or clean on the outside and dirty in the middle.
Needless to say, even as a former staff member at a church this was a real insight. graemlins/idea.gif It has been roughly a week since my wife and I have been trying to put this into practice and we have seen great strides not only in our children's lives, but in our own as well. :grin: Praise God for his faithfulness and that His Word never returns void.
Regardless of where you are in your parenthood, I would recommend checking it out. After all, it may not be just our children that need to look their hearts, but us as parents as well. :wink: