Is Parental Discipline of Our Children a Thing of the Past?

Raising children never has been an easy task. Methods for parenting have varied dramatically based on what time in history you are bringing up children. Disciplining children in an “appropriate” way looks entirely different now than it did just a few generations ago. The culture you live in as you raise a family also has a powerful impact. We live in an age and culture of technology, where much of life is easily lived through watching or typing onto the screen of your phone. This convenience carries a great potential cost. Are we allowing technology and social media to not only unduly influence our children, but ourselves as well? Are we Christian parents listening to social suggestions regarding what our children need to the exclusion of going back to the basic biblical principles for those answers? No matter what age in time we live in and no matter what culture we find ourselves a part of, we all want something good or special for our children. A portion of the book of Proverbs is King Solomon writing to his son. He shares some of the wisdom God blessed him with, his life experiences and his warnings about the pitfalls of growing up. As we read these things, it becomes apparent that little has changed over thousands of years when it comes to loving and protecting our children. What if? While the desire is the same, the experience of raising children has been completely overhauled. Because the world now fits into the palm of your hand in the form of a cell phone, the variety of challenges we face would be unrecognizable to Solomon. One simple example: the parental challenge of managing all of the “what ifs” their child may face. In ancient times, the “what ifs” were about things like crops, herds, weather, warring factions and overall security. Now our "what if" list is endless. What if my child has emotional, learning or physical issues? What if they get bullied or become a bully? Christian parents don't need to be overwhelmed! Just putting the “what ifs” of raising children in perspective is a massive undertaking. While the Bible does not deal with each and every one of them, it does teach us the principles we need to face ALL of them. Interestingly, there is comparatively little written in the Bible about child rearing. The principles Christian parents seek are found in passages that help us cope with the unknown. There is also abundant biblical teaching that shows us how God is our Father and how He parents us. Applying these principles is learning from the best Father ever! Check out our July 18, 2022 podcast, “Is Parental Discipline of Our Children a Thing of the Past?” for more. We not only handle the “what ifs” of life, we also delve into coping with being a very imperfect parent and appropriate disciplining tactics. Parenting is massively difficult. Join us as we examine its challenges under the bright light of biblical principle and teaching. Parenting will never be the same!