Here are some quotes from the book Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp. This book has been a real encouragement in my journey this week towards more Biblical parenting.

  The situation is not hopeless. You can raise children in Godly ways at the end of the 20^th century. You need not – indeed, you dare not – cave in, concluding that the task is impossible. Experience may tell you that failure is inevitable, but experience is an unsafe guide. The only safe guide is the Bible. It is the revelation of a God who has infinite knowledge and can therefore give you absolute truth…

You do not come to your child demanding, for your purposes, that he knuckle up to you and obey.  No! You come with the corrections of discipline that are the way to life (Proverbs 6:23). You engage your son on the behalf of God because God has first engaged you.

The purpose for you authority in the lives of your children is not to hold them under your power, but empower them to be self-controlled people living freely under the authority of God.

It is very easy for me to get too authoritarian with my kids, requiring that they meet my demands, rather than meeting the demands that God has set for them. Authority is good. In fact, too many little children are running around wild because their parents don't realize that they have the God-given authority to make those hooligans obey. But, when you mix a black-and-white-personality with a little authority, you often get legalism in parenting.

I praise God for showing me that I'm not here to make little roboticly-obedient kids who never disobey because they are afraid of punishment, but rather children that desire obedience and understand the rewards of obedience. You can thank my husband for that last bit...he sent to me via an encouraging email when I was frustrated with our progress earlier this week :)