Discipline may work after all!

Ug. Yesterday was a terrible day of punishment around here. I know! So hard to believe. My dear sweet, kind little girl.

The little girl who is almost brought to tears when someone calls her babies "dolls" because that infers that they are not real. And her babies are very much real to her. She spent some of her lemonade stand profits buying real diapers and real wipes for them so she could be a real mommy.

The little girl who thought to grab her cousin's blankie when we were running to safety during the tornado because she knew if there was serious damage he would need it for comfort.

But it was a tough day and Dad knew it had to be, in the wise words of Barney, nipped in the bud.

So the babies had to be taken away for a time.

You have never heard such pitiful crying. Heart wrenching.

As sure as I am that she has to be taught that her sin affects not only her, but others as well, and that sin has to be dealt with immediately, as sure as I am of that, I am also sure that we have dealt too harshly and she is sure to need therapy. I am sure that we have stunted her ability to reason and we have no doubt begun a vicious cycle that she will surely need to be medicated for.

Oh the perils of parenthood. The guilt! The torment!

Won't it be great when grandchildren come around and we won't have these torturous thoughts?

"Was that a proper disciplinary action?" Who knows? No one will say that about their grandkids- just give 'em a cookie. Aunt Mama Hen and I discussed this subject last weekend and I'm thinking I should go ahead and set up a paypal account so you all can begin donating to her therapy fund.


But, thankfully, God sent me some encouragement this morning. He is so Good.


We must labor to do good to our children even from their earliest years. If Satan begins so early to do them harm, we must not be behind him in diligence to lead them to God. How soon in life a child becomes responsible and accountable, is a difficult question to solve. Perhaps far sooner than many of us suppose. One thing, at all events, is very clear–it is never too soon to strive and pray for the salvation of the souls of children–never too soon to speak to them as moral beings, and tell them of God, Christ, right and wrong. The devil, we may be quite sure, loses no time in endeavoring to influence the minds of young people. He begins with them even from childhood. Let us work hard to counteract him.

-J.C.Ryle

Someone commented this - "...In the absence of God’s truth, the human soul will cling to Satan’s lies in its hunger for love, value and security."






Oh and by the way, today is my birthday. Yes I am telling you that so that you can all tell me how happy you are that I was born and all the other numerous wonderful things about me...looks like it may be a low comment day.