by Frank King

There is no substitute for parents being proactive in disciplining their children. I'll be the first to admit that it is much more difficult to discipline children these days. We live in an extremely mobile society. Because of mobile devices such as laptop computers, tablet computers, and smart phones, it is hard for us to control the objectionable content that our children can be exposed to through these mediums.

Many parents today allow these mobile devices, along with widescreen TVs and social networks like Facebook and Twitter, to virtually raise their children. Of course, our children have no objections. If we allow them to, they will indulge themselves in these activities 24/7.

As Christian parents, we should not allow this non-parenting approach to parenting. It will never yield positive results in the area of disciplining our children. It will come back to haunt those who practice it. "The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame," the Bible warns (Proverbs 29:15).

This verse reveals that in order for us to instill wisdom in our children, two things are required: the rod and reproof. For us today, the rod can be punishment, spanking or beating, temporarily taking away privileges, etc. Reproof refers to verbal correction. We can't be passive toward the things we hear our children say that we know they should not because their words reveal what's in their heart.

I don't want to oversimplify what the aforementioned verse is saying. Disciplining children is not a job for the passive. To realize success, we must be diligent. It's not a one-time deal. We must be persistent. And we should never become discouraged. We know the Word of God works. If we are persistent, we will realize the results that God promises.

So what is the alternative if we are not up to the job to discipline our children? We can allow the high-tech gadgets and social networks to take our place. This is the same as leaving our children to themselves. And remember what the Bible says about that: "a child left to himself brings his mother to shame."

Copyright 2012 by Frank King. All rights reserved.

Frank King is a former church pastor. He is currently an evangelist and an author. Frank holds a Master of Theology degree. Through the grace of God, Frank has been blessed to cross cultural lines in his preaching. Website: http://www.efrankking.com
Blog: http://wwwefrankking.blogspot.com/

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