I appreciate the people behind Effective Parenting and their partnership with us parents, especially on giving these valuable insights. Sometimes as intentional as we are, we can still get too busy to look at the bigger picture.
To date, I still cannot say if our little guy will be more like Daniel or Samson. Regardless of whatever strengths and weaknesses he has or are still yet to manifest in the future, we hope to be able to continue doing the parenting skills that are shared in this article. Praying that we will be able to instill in him the things he will need to keep strong and press on towards glorifying God in his life.
Is Your Child a Daniel or a Samson?
Daniel was a good-looking young man and quite skilled and intelligent, qualified to serve in the king’s court. He also was a young man of conviction, determined to do what’s right yet creative and respectful with authority. God blessed him and he advanced to a high position in the kingdom.
Samson was also a good-looking young man and quite skilled and intelligent. But he was demanding, selfish, and lacked personal conviction. He was determined to do the wrong thing and had a particular weakness when it came to relationships with women.
All parents wish their children were like Daniel, but some kids are more like Samson and require strong-willed parents to guide them to adulthood. If your child seems bent on doing the wrong thing, here are some parenting strategies you’ll want to keep in mind.
• Pray diligently
• Work on building a strong relationship
• Enforce firm boundaries and talk about your convictions
• Have a good correction plan
• Help children see long-term consequences
• Use a crisis for good
• Be bold enough to say “no”
Raising a strong-willed child to be a Daniel isn’t easy, but your planning, strategizing, prayer, and hard work will bring results and bless your child for years to come. When you focus on the conscience, good things happen!
For more ideas about developing the conscience in your child, consider one of these new resources by Dr Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller, RN, BSN.
