Happy Valentine’s Day weekend! This is the Hallmark holiday that celebrates LOVE. At Fearless Mom we love all holidays. Really, we just love any reason to celebrate, especially when those celebrations usually involve chocolate! So, since we are celebrating love this weekend, I wanted to talk a little bit about discipline. Yep, you read that right. We’re talking about discipline as we celebrate love because we think the two go together. Think about it with me for a second.

What do you think when you hear the word “discipline”? Odds are, your thoughts aren’t positive. As a matter of fact, you might even have strong negative feelings when you think about the word discipline. But I think that’s because most of us misunderstand the true meaning of the word. I believe when we truly understand the meaning of the word discipline, we embrace it. We embrace the responsibility we’ve been given as parents to implement discipline in our homes.

The root word of discipline is disciple, which as a verb means to train and instruct. So, while discipline includes punishment and negative consequences, it also includes reward and positive consequences. To discipline means to teach and train, to direct and correct, all with the goal of preparing our children to become resilient, competent, independent adults. Proverbs 22:6 articulates a parent’s responsibility like this:

“Train up a child in the way he should go;

Even when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

Train up a child in the way he should go. Train up a child in the way she should go. We teach and train, direct and correct to equip and prepare them to go. To leave the nest. To be adults. So why do we discipline? We discipline because we love our children.

All discipline must be built on a foundation of trust and relationship. And sometimes we give negative consequences that aren’t fun and don’t feel loving. But love is always the motivator. We teach and train, direct and correct because we love our children and we want to do our best to set them up for their best.

We talk a lot more about this in the most recent Fearless Mom podcast, Episode 88 “Discipline Says I Love You,” as well as in the “STRENGTH & DIGNITY” eCourse. 

Happy Valentines Day, Mom. We love you, you’re doing great!