Your kid may be challenging you and your rules, saying, "But it isn't fair!" That's a shift of guilt. Your child will never repent as long as he can succeed in shifting that guilt in some other direction.

Don't let your child always be saying, "Well, it's So-and-so's fault," or "It's the teacher's fault," or "It's the school's fault." Again, that's a shift of guilt.

By allowing this to happen, you will never see your child repent. A person will only repent when he truly feels remorse.

Shifting the Blame or Repenting
Your child may be saying, "I've done something wrong and I have to get it off my chest." The only way for him to do this would be either by shifting the blame to someone or something else or by repenting.

As long as he can shift the blame in another direction, he will never repent. Instead, he will say something like: "It wasn't my fault; it was Billy's fault. He's the one responsible."

If your child doesn't repent, he will never walk in God's favor and have the blessings of God. You have to get to the place where your child can understand this truth.

If you don't, he will never know how to repent and he will be living in bondage to that sin. The only way any of us can get sin out of our life is by repenting of it and confessing it with our mouth.

If seems today that self-esteem seminars are being presented everywhere, in churches as well as in the business world. You can find notices for these self-esteem seminars on street corners in every major city in this country.

Why?

Because people throughout our country are feeling bad about themselves. The devil is doing his job well.

One person may say, "I'm going to that self-esteem seminar." When asked why, he says; "Because I feel just rotten about myself. The problem must have stemmed from my mother or my father. It has to come from somebody."

I would say to that person, "No, you're the problem! Why don't you repent and get that sin out of your life? Then you can start living a good life by the power of God's Holy Spirit at work in you."

For the most part, people have never been confronted. Children have grown up in this society being told things like; "It's not your fault; it's your teacher's fault," or "It's your daddy's fault for going off and leaving us," or "It's your mamma's fault for doing wrong."

You know, one of the major methods of controlling children in the classroom today is called behavior modification. This involves getting the child to do something you want without letting him know what you are doing. That is nothing more than manipulation.

Jesus was a confronter. He didn't mess around when it came to sin. He was not out to condemn the world but to convict people of their sin and to lead them to repentance. It is the devil who condemns; it is the Lord Jesus Who convicts. There is a big difference in these two words.

No, parent, it's our fault! If we really love our children, we will repent, which means we will turn and go the other way. As Scripture says, "...the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance" (Rom. 2:4).

Our children are just looking for somebody with authority; they aren't looking for perfect parents. They are saying to themselves, Will somebody please show me the right way?

Source: God Knows How To Raise Your Kids, Even If You Don't by Joe McGee.
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers