Don't Make Me Count to Three

I had really hit a low point in the parenting department. And I was um.... ahem....raising my voice a lot, trying to get my children to behave.

Needing some encouragement, I ordered this short little book (Don't Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Plowman). I just finished it, and I have found it to be just the pep talk I needed. The advice is biblical and practical.

Two things stood out to me and have really helped me over the past couple weeks.

One, is that discipline is not about just controlling their behavior, but motivating them to obedience from the heart, out of love for others and respect for authority. We have to teach them to do this! But how? The author shares several scriptures, examples, and scenarios of how to discipline. What to do in different situations.

Two, not only are we to point out what our children do wrong, we must teach the the right way to do things. She even goes so far as to suggest reenacting what the child should have done in a situation. I have tried this with my kids over the past few weeks, and I'm amazed at how well we have taken to this. My kids seem almost relieved when they are taught that a polite and kind word go farther than rudely yanking a toy out of the other one's hand.

We (I) still have so much to learn (many many miles to go before I sleep), but I found so much wisdom in this book and I highly recommend it!