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Ch. 13 – Shepherding the Heart Summarized – Shepherding A Child’s Heart (A Synopsis)

May 21, 2009 in Shepherding A Child's Heart with 0 Comments

Shepherding A Child's HeartIn this installment of our synopsis of Tedd Tripp’s book “Shepherding A Child’s Heart,” we will look at Chapter 13 – Shepherding the Heart Summarized.”  This chapter is a short summary of the first 12 chapters, and it makes sense in our synopsis to do the same thing.

The foundations of raising kids covered so far are as follows:

  1. Our kids are the product of two things – their shaping influences and their Godward orientation.
  2. Behavior comes from the heart.
  3. Parents have authority because they act as agents of God.
  4. “Since the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever, you must set such a worldview before your children.”
  5. Biblical methods are as important as biblical goals.
  6. God has two methods for raising kids – communication and the rod.

Continue Reading…

Ch. 12 – Embracing Biblical Methods: Appeal to Conscience – Shepherding A Child’s Heart (A Synopsis)

May 17, 2009 in Shepherding A Child's Heart with 2 Comments

Shepherding A Child's HeartIn this installment of our synopsis of Tedd Tripp’s book “Shepherding A Child’s Heart,” we will look at Chapter 12 – Embracing Biblical Methods: Appeal to Conscience.”

The issues of communication and the rod dealt with in the last several chapters imply two additional issues which are addressed in this chapter – appeal to the conscience and focusing on the redemptive work of God.

Appeal to the Conscience

As parents, in order for correction and discipline to be effective, they must be directed at our kids’ conscience.  Kids will either excuse themselves or accuse themselves because of their conscience.  As Tripp explains, “This God-given conscience is your ally in discipline and correction.  Your most powerful appeals will be those that smite the conscience.”  Tripp points to Proverbs 23 and  numerous examples of verses in that chapter (17, 19, 22, 23, and 26) which model appeal to the conscience.  Tripp explains, “the rod gets the attention, but the conscience must be plowed up and planted with the truth of God’s way.”

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Ch. 11 – Embracing Biblical Methods: The Rod – Shepherding A Child’s Heart (A Synopsis)

May 14, 2009 in Shepherding A Child's Heart with 9 Comments

Shepherding A Child's HeartIn this installment of our synopsis of Tedd Tripp’s book “Shepherding A Child’s Heart,” we will look at Chapter 11 – “Embracing Biblical Methods: The Rod.”

Before Tripp ever gets into the meat of this chapter, he shares an observation that I found very profound, “All earthly punishment presupposes the great day when destinies are eternally fixed.”  I had never really thought about parenting in that light before.

Tripp begins the discussion of “The Rod” with a look at the current societal view of it.  Of course, he touches on the fact that the rod, as discipline, is no longer a fashionable idea, and many people in today’s society view this biblical form of punishment as child abuse.  Tripp observes, “I fear the majority reaction against spanking is a matter of fashion or style.  The world of ideas is continually in flux.  Ideas have their periods of popularity and unpopularity.”

Tripp looks first at the “Rationale Behind the Rod.”  As he explains, if children were born morally neutral, there would be no need for the rod.  They would not need correction, only direction.  They would need instruction rather than discipline.  The fact of the matter though is that kids are not born morally neutral.  In Tripp’s words, “The child’s problem is not an information deficit.  His problem in that he is a sinner.”

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Ch. 10 – Embracing Biblical Methods: A Life of Communication – Shepherding A Child’s Heart (A Synopsis)

May 10, 2009 in Shepherding A Child's Heart with 0 Comments

Shepherding A Child's HeartIn this installment of our synopsis of Tedd Tripp’s book “Shepherding A Child’s Heart,” we will look at Chapter 10 – “Embracing Biblical Methods: A Life of Communication.”

Tripp begins this chapter with the following observation, “Communication not only disciplines, it also disciples.”  Tripp reminds us of the call Deuteronomy 6 to talk to our kids at all time – lying down, walking, rising, sitting.  Making communication with our children a habit during normal times makes it easier to talk to them under the strain of difficult situations.

Tripp observes that having biblical conversations with our kids is not a short process.  It is a time-consuming, all-consuming pursuit.  It requires patience, insight and flexibility.  Any parent will understand that there are times when kids want to talk and times when they don’t.  In those times when their hearts are open to talking to us, we must be prepared to drop everything to seize the moment.  We must train our kids to communicate.  This also involves training them how to listen.  The most effective way to do this is to be an active listener ourselves.  Tripp points to Proverbs 18:2 which says, “A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.”  We must listen as parents before we can be in a position to talk. Continue Reading…

Ch. 9 – Embracing Biblical Methods: Types of Communication – Shepherding A Child’s Heart (A Synopsis)

May 7, 2009 in Shepherding A Child's Heart with 2 Comments

Shepherding A Child's HeartIn this installment of our synopsis of Tedd Tripp’s book “Shepherding A Child’s Heart,” we will look at Chapter 9 – “Embracing Biblical Methods: Types of Communication.”

In the last chapter, Tedd Tripp addressed the need for rich, full communication with our kids.  In this chapter he looks at different types of communication.  He notes that as parents we often reduce our role to three things: rules, correction, and punishment and notes that most parents would admit that 80-90% of their communication falls into one of those three areas.  While he admits that rules, correction and punishment are necessary in every family, there are other types of communication, and we do our kids great harm when we can’t discern the appropriate type of communication for the moment.

He offers descriptions of the following eight types of communication (he does note that these are selected types of communication and there are more):

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Ch. 8 – Embracing Biblical Methods: Communication – Shepherding A Child’s Heart (A Synopsis)

May 3, 2009 in Shepherding A Child's Heart with 3 Comments

Shepherding A Child's HeartIn this installment of our synopsis of Tedd Tripp’s book “Shepherding A Child’s Heart,” we will look at Chapter 8 – “Embracing Biblical Methods: Communication.”

In the last chapter, Tripp addressed a number of unbiblical methods.  In this chapter, he starts into what constitutes biblical methods, but first he reminds us that methods and goals must be complimentary and that our goal as parents is to help our children realize that “a life worth living is life lived under the Lordship of Jesus Christ.”  Tripp also reminds us that as parents we must submit to the same Lord.

Tripp offers that a biblical approach to raising kids involves both 1) Rich, full communication; and 2) The rod.

He offers the following list of verses to support this contention:

  • Proverbs 23:13-19
  • Proverbs 23:22
  • Proverbs 23:26

Continue Reading…

Ch. 7 – Discarding Unbiblical Methods – Shepherding A Child’s Heart (A Synopsis)

April 30, 2009 in Shepherding A Child's Heart with 3 Comments

Shepherding A Child's HeartIn this installment of our synopsis of Tedd Tripp’s book “Shepherding A Child’s Heart,” we will look at Chapter 7 – “Discarding Unbiblical Methods.”

In this convicting chapter, Tripp moves from the goals of parenting to the methods.  He looks at several popular, but unbiblical, approaches to disciplining our kids.  He observes that as parents we cannot afford to be indifferent to methodology.  Our methods are as important to God as our goals, and biblical goals must employ biblical methods.  The following are some of the unbiblical methods prevalent in our society today.

1. I Didn’t Turn Out So Bad

In this method, a parent blindly employs those methods used by their own parents without any thought to whether or not those methods are biblical. Continue Reading…

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