For both our children and us, the heart, with its passions and
desires, sets the course of life. Every drive for meaning and
significance originates in the heart. You and your kids are heart
driven. The things you give your heart to set the course of life for
you. We must connect the hearts of God’s people to the power and grace of the gospel. The
temptation when things have gone wrong is to correct behavior. We
instinctively see behavior as the problem. That’s because we see behavior. We hear behavior. Behavior requires a response. Once we have made behavior the focus in correction and
discipline, we open ourselves up to all the tricks and tools parents use
to manage behavior. But when we head down the behavior management road, two things
happen. We miss the heart and we miss the gospel. We forget that the
heart is the wellspring of behavior. We miss the gospel because
behaviorism by-passes the heart. Behaviorism focuses on behavior rather
than the desires, fears, idols or passions of the heart. If we remember
that behavior mirrors the heart, then the route to lasting change for
both our children and ourselves is the grace and power of the gospel.
*Recordings are not available for Shepherding a Child's Heart Sessions