Regarding Children who kill...

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> IMHO....you take a generation or two of "hands off" Dr. Spock parenting,
> and child mass murderers is a natural result.
>
> Just random thoughts, ignore at will :)
> Anneliese (Dear Jesus, help me to parent my kids with Godly wisdom when the
> time comes, and not give in to popular culture.)
>
As a parent of a 7 year old, and one on the way (due July 1!) I can
certainly understand your cry to the Lord for wisdom.  Correction is not
easy, but it is profitable.  Children know when you love them, and they
love structure, and they do correlate the two.  There is nothing more
miserable than a child who has no boundaries.  My son is a 'high energy'
kid, but he thrives on having rules and having them enforced.  He butts
against the rules sometimes, but we always see the positive effect
later, and how he internalizes them.  Interestingly enough, after he
absorbs the what, I can often see him thinking about the why, or he
asks.  Once he has the obedience part down, and after he has a small
sulk (sometimes), he can usually appreciate the wisdom.

The attitude of the parent is key.  I see so many parents who tell, or
yell, at their children to do something, but then don't expect their
word to be followed.  It's almost as if they figure they've done their
job by just reciting words.  The bible says to "train the child."
Training is saying and doing.  It takes time and incredible amounts of
energy to make a stubborn child move and do what you ask him, or her to
do.  At times, it's not convenient to wait for the child to do what
you've asked, and to wait for it to be done correctly (like when
everyone is running out the door to church or something).  The reward,
however, is great when you see your child develop the patience to do
things correctly, and begin to evaluate decisions through the prism of
God's word and your training.

Bro. Steven