I never knew what an ‘out of the ordinary’ practice this was until I spoke at a breakaway session at a large ladies conference.   Most of the women in the audience were in shock and the other two moderators of the session kept me afterwards for an hour   to teach them this apparent ‘revelation’. One of them lamented that this was the missing element in raising her six daughters---now almost grown and all with a not-so-good attitude.

When my children were growing up I punished   their wrong attitude equal with their wrong actions.   Why?   Was the question of that day at the seminar.   My answer was a question:   How many stiff necked people have you seen God really use?   Deuteronomy 9:6   "Understand therefore this day, that the LORD thy God giveth thee not this good land   to possess it for thy righteousness; for thou art a stiffnecked people."   The Strong’s Concordance defines the word stiffnecked as obstinate.   Webster’s Dictionary defines obstinate:   1.) unreasonably determined to have one’s own way; stubborn. 2.)   not easily subdued.

My desire was for my children to be   teachable...that they would easily listen to their parent’s instruction that they may learn...and that ultimately they would listen easily to God’s instructions for their life.   I knew that if I allowed them to be stiffnecked/stubborn children they would not easily listen to anyone. I also wanted them to be able to possess all of the "good land" that God willed to give them...all of His blessings and all of the ministry that God would call them to. I also wanted them to easily surrender their lives to the LORD as Romans 12:1-2 teaches and for this to happen I knew God needed to be able to easily subdue them.   I did not want God to have to wrestle with them like He had to wrestle with me for 14 years to get me to surrender to freedom and peace in Christ.    So, I gave equal punishment for a wrong attitude and a wrong action.   Did it work?   Oh yes, in so many ways for their lives:   they easily took instruction from all who taught them and from God. Also adults loved to be around them because they were not obstinate.   When they were teens I never had a moments grief from a bad attitude.

Corporal punishment should say just one thing to our children.   It should never say , "I am angry, you have embarrassed me, you are a bad child."   Rather a spanking...inflicting some pain should   teach and say ONLY, "This is not acceptable behaviour."   God says, being stiffnecked, obstinate, stubborn, is NOT acceptable behavor for His children.  

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