Spanking As An Instrument of God's Love

[Garth]

Making spanking an instrument of God's love is not always so easy when it comes to correcting your child. Since God is love and fear can not exist in His presence, than love or God can not be realized in the presence of fear, it can be a bit tricky to teach children not to be afraid of being spanked. The fact is they do not have to fear either you or God when they misbehave. It is not their fault they make mistakes! This is all part of their journey and yours as a parent. As God's creation every mistake has a Devinne purpose. All that is really expected of them is they take responsibility for their behavior and reconnect with God's love when they go astray. A spanking may facilitate this if it is done without anger, fear or resentment. Spanking than is an opportunity for renewal and atonement. There is really nothing to fear but fear itself as the saying goes! If your child is fearful of being spanked they need to let that go before they are truly ready to benefit from the experience.

[Michael]

Nice post, Garth. I think a key component of taking the "fear" out of spanking is actually talking about it with your kids - including sometimes that they are NOT in trouble. Letting them know that making mistakes is "normal" for a kid and just a part of growing up can help them know that when they are spanked, it isn't because they are "bad" - they are just being regular kids. Remaining calm and giving yourself a time out if needed before spanking is important too. Presenting yourself as a loving and caring parent goes a long way toward your child trusting you without fear, even as they are being guided over your lap. Apprehensive, sure. Truly afraid, no.