Molding Hearts

I know this is going to sound a little repetitive, but I really want to share a brief reminder of what our goal should be as moms (and dads) when we are correcting and training our little ones... Our goal should be more than just stopping frustrating or bad behaviour - our goal should be molding their hearts! I have observed that many children, both in secular and Christian homes, do not have a place within them to even access whether what they are doing is right or wrong.

In the parenting course, Growing Kids Gods Way, the Ezzos refer to the heart of a child as having two halves - one half that God has written on and the other half that God allows us to write on. I love this illustration because it speaks to the importance of our role in our chilren's lives and the opportunity God has given us. I believe that the sooner we start to "write" on those hearts, the easier it is for our children to retain God's values and disciplines for his or her life.

The Ezzos also refer to all of us having a "Conscience Warehouse" where each of us mentally refers to every time we are faced with a situation that requires us to make a moral choice. As parents, we are filling that "warehouse" with important reference points that our children will use and refer to for the rest of their lives.

When we mold our children's hearts and fill their "warehouses" with God's Word, we are equipping them for many more scenarios in life than we could possibly teach now.
II Tim.3:16 says, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man (or child) of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

Let us not grow weary in this incredibly important job that God has given us in these early years with our children - we are molding hearts that God wants to use in great ways!