What Is Heart of The Anger Issue For Which you Are Dealing With

Have you ever wondered as a parent if you are getting to the heart of the behavior in your child? I have and I decided to examine my motives when I discipline my children and to look at their heart. If we merely deal with just the issue at hand in our children (example: disrespectful attitude toward parent, stealing, lying, ignoring a parents command), then we are not really addressing the root of the problem. It is easy to just make a Pharisee out of our children and see outward conformity. Scripture teaches us that the heart is deceitfully wicked and who can know. So then you may ask, "okay, I am convinced. How do I get from just the issue at hand to the heart of the issue?" First of all you must know your own heart and the sins for which you struggle. A study of Matthew 5 is also helpful in interrupting the law. We can be encouraged when we read Hebrews 4:12 "For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." We need to look to Christ and to the Word of God for answers! As I read, The Heart of Anger, Lou Priolo gives us some helpful insights on pages 94 and 95 of his book..

Christian parent, you must learn not only how to draw the thoughts and motives out of your child, but also how to diagnose those thoughts and motives; "not in words taught by human wisdom (i.e. defense mechanism, reaction formation, love hunger, codependency, etc.) but in those taught by the Spirit (i.e. pride, blame shifting, idolatry, bondage, etc.) combining (interpreting) spiritual thoughts with spiritual words." I Corinthians 2:13

The goal of all this training in righteousness is to develop within your child the ability and desire to bring captive every thought to the obedience of Christ (I Corinthians 10:5). As your child learns to speak the truth in his heart (Psalm 15:2) as a matter of habit, he will gain more control over his spirit (Proverbs 25:28; 16:32).