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Holding the Reins of Government, September 17
Children, obey your parents in the Lord; for this is right.
Ephesians 6:1
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The will of God is the law of heaven. As long as that law was the rule
of life, all the family of God were holy and happy. But when the divine
law was disobeyed, then envy, jealousy, and strife were introduced, and
a part of the inhabitants of heaven fell. As long as God’s law is revered
in our earthly homes, the family will be happy.
One of the first lessons a child needs to learn is the lesson of obedi-
ence. Before he is old enough to reason, he may be taught to obey.
The mother is the queen of the home, and the children are her
subjects. She is to rule her household wisely, in the dignity of her
motherhood. Her influence in the home is to be paramount.
Self-will should never be permitted to go unrebuked. The future
well-being of the child requires kindly, loving, but firm discipline.... It
is impossible to depict the evil that results from leaving a child to its
own will.
A fitful government—at one time holding the lines firmly, and at
another allowing that which has been condemned—is ruination to a
child.
Uniform firmness and unimpassioned control are necessary to the
discipline of every family. Say what you mean calmly, move with
consideration, and carry out what you say without deviation.
The requirements of the parents should always be reasonable; kind-
ness should be expressed, not by foolish indulgence, but by wise di-
rection. Parents are to teach their children pleasantly, without scolding
or faultfinding, seeking to bind the hearts of the little ones to them by
silken cords of love.
The combined influence of authority and love will make it possible
to hold firmly and kindly the reins of family government. An eye single
to the glory of God and to what our children owe Him will keep us from
looseness and from sanctioning evil.
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