Have you ever been faced with a rule that you didn’t want to obey? Or a situation with someone in authority that frustrated you? Have you ever had a boss, teacher or authority figure for whom you had no respect or trust? What made it difficult to obey the rule or follow the direction of that person in authority? While in seminary, I worked at the UPS warehouse (Hub) in Portland, OR. I had some good supervisors there, but there was one that I remember who would scream and yell and belittle his workers. I noticed that it didn’t really work to improve the efficiency of the operation and only…

When a 1 year old reaches for an electrical outlet, a slap on the hand and a stern “no” is how we teach her that this outlet is off limits. With consistency she develops an association between what is off limits and the pain of discipline. This is fine for very young ages, but as the child gets older, we hope for something better. Aim at the heart. The goal of parenting is to instill a desire and ability to love God and obey him. Our primary job is to motivate our children to obey God out of a love for Him and a love for what is right. Our…

Can you imagine a teacher yelling as he teaches the times tables to his fourth grade class? Or getting red-faced and frustrated as he diagrams a sentence on the board? That’s absurd! And the students, although not particularly excited about multiplication and nouns and adjectives know that these things are really just part of school and school is part of life. A good teacher tries to keep a good attitude as she hands out assignments. The effective instructor sees himself as an ally to his student, using creativity and effort to do all he can to reach his apprentice with the knowledge he seeks to impart. When we begin to…

Do you ever feel like you are in a battle with your kids? From toddler to teenager there are many times when you may feel like your house is an all out war zone. If we can consistently apply today’s principle, we can change this trend! The principle sounds simple: “Put the tension where it belongs,” but it is extremely powerful. Here is a recent example from our house. A coat is left in the living room that belongs hung up in the entryway. Our kids get $2 per week for allowance and if they leave a coat out, they are charged 25 cents. We see the coat, we mark…