Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Raising your children in a Godly way

I’ve posted this entry to my Friendster blog and I opt to paste it here because I really like to share some of the Bible verses which I find very helpful in raising children in our time today. Hope it can help you. Here it goes:

Lately, I’ve been deliberating for an interesting topic to discuss, which, moms like me could relate (after all, this weblog is all about being a wife and mom). And the first thing that came into my mind is rearing the children. Is there a method to do it? Is there a right or wrong way of nurturing your children?

If you would ask me, I would simply say that parenthood is a natural act of human. Why I tell so? Because no one went into school to acquire knowledge on how to be a good parent. Parenthood is not even a part of any curriculum in any school and no school offers such course yet. And I believe that it would not be because parenthood is not something that you could learn theoretically. Certainly, I’m speaking to myself base on what I have lived through. Because when I was single and was still fantasizing, I always tell to myself that I would be like this and would not be like that to my children. However, those ‘I would be’ does not happen when I become a mother. I suppose, you will never know unless you get there.

Thus, concerning to the method on raising children, I think different folks have different way of dealing with it. It surely depends on how the parents were raised and on the environment in which they lived. And of course, education would be an important factor also to be considered. Why? Just look around and compare how the educated, not so educated and totally not educated parents nurture their children. I assume you know what I mean and observe the difference by yourself.

Moving on, is there right or wrong way of nurturing your children. I think, it’s just a matter of capabilities and readiness of both parents to have children. The more prepared the parents are, the greater chances that they do the right way. I’m speaking for the situations wherein the child has been beaten, has been molested, has been traded and the like as the wrong way of nurturing children.

These are utterly my views on upbringing the children. The factors which I believe thwart the proper nourishment of the young one base on my observation and perception. Before I end this topic, may I share with you some verse in the bible that might help us in raising our children in a right and Godly way. Here goes the bible principle;

Prov. 19:18 (KJV)“Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.”

Prov. 22:6 (KJV)“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

2 Sam 7:14 (KJV)“I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men:”

I searched for the meaning of iniquity and chasten in the Merriam Webster dictionary and the meaning of iniquity is “wickedness or sin” and the word chasten is “to correct by punishment or suffering”. From the Latin word ‘Castigare’ which comes from the root word castus and –igare (from agere to drive).

But, below is my favorite verse among others and one of our (me and my husband) guiding principle in bringing up our children:

Prov. 13:24 (KJV)
“He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.”

Let me provide additional details on some of the words from the latter verse for easy understanding. I also used the Merriam Webster dictionary as a reference.

Rod – a stick or bundle of twigs used to punish
Betimes – early or soon

Although the bible instructs parents to discipline their children by way of chastening, of course, unreasonable punishment is not right because it will provoke the children to hate their parents. So this is the verse for the parents as a piece of advice or warning from God.

Eph 6:4 (KJV)“And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”

I hope that this would enlighten all parents (whoever read this) whether the parents should spank their children or not.

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