We often use these two words interchangeably but they do not mean exactly the same thing. I want you to understand that discipline as we are discussing here is different from punishment. While you cannot instill discipline without punishment in some cases, it is possible to punish a child without Biblical Principles of Parenting instilling discipline in the child. It becomes important that we understand discipline and how to do it right.

If you pamper your children, you hamper their destiny.

i. Punishment is the act or method of causing to suffer for an offence. It is deciding the consequences of a child not following rules. Make it known to your children what they will suffer if they break rules and what they stand to gain if they comply. It is necessary you do this because it may bring immediate change in behavior or create feelings of hostility in the child towards you when he grows up, feeling that you should have known better to guide him from going astray.

When your children commit an offence let them know what they have done, so they could feel remorse for doing it.

ii. Discipline here means the practice of training people to obey rules and orders and punishing them if they do not. (Oxford Dictionary). The Bible says in Proverbs 29:15,

“The rod and reproof give wisdom but a child left to himself brings his mother to shame.”

When a child is disciplined, he or she will not go astray. The child you don’t discipline today will make you weep tomorrow. The cry of a child is normal, but the tears of an adult is aberrant. It is better to let your child suffer the constructive pain of correction today than for you to go through the destructive pain of regrets tomorrow.

“While you cannot instill discipline without punishment in some cases, it is possible to punish a child without instilling discipline in the child.”

Children are not born disciplined so you have to devise ways that will instill discipline in them.

Note that the rod is meant for the back of a fool or a person void of understanding. Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; it takes the rod of correction, not necessarily a physical rod to drive it far from him.

It is better to let your child suffer the constructive pain of correction today than for you to go through the destructive pain of regrets tomorrow.

Discipline must be guided by unconditional love. You do it as an act of love for your child. If your discipline is motivated by love, you’ll be careful how you administer the rod as well as where, when, why and in what manner and measure….

This text is an extract from the book “BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES OF PARENTING” written by Mary A. Abioye. 

We invite you to read the following article “GIVE INSTRUCTIONS AND CORRECTIONS“.