Tozer on Failure and Success

Failure and Success: The Small and the Great - by A.W. Tozer

...Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with
humility, for "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble."
--1 Peter 5:5

Some time ago we heard a short address by a young preacher during
which he quoted the following, "If you are too big for a little
place, you are too little for a big place."

It is an odd rule of the kingdom of God that when we try to get big,
we always get smaller by the moment. God is jealous of His glory and
will not allow anyone to share it with Him. The effort to appear
great will bring the displeasure of God upon us and effectively
prevent us from achieving the greatness after which we pant.

Humility pleases God wherever it is found, and the humble person will
have God for his or her friend and helper always. Only the humble are
completely sane, for they are the only ones who see clearly their own
size and limitations. Egotists see things out of focus. To themselves
they are large and God is correspondingly small, and that is a kind
of moral insanity. This World: Playground or Battleground?, 34.

"Lord, help me never to be too big for a little place. In humility
let me serve and revel in You as my 'friend and helper always.'
Amen."

10 Traits the Top CCLI Songs Have in Common

I came across this great resource for songwriters recently as it was emailed to me from a friend at Brentwood-Benson.

10 Traits the Top CCLI Songs Have in Common
- Marty Nystrom

About Marty Nystrom:

Marty Nystrom is a songwriter, best known for As The Deer, which has been a mainstay for years in CCLI’s lists of Top 100 Worship Songs. In the CCLI Copy Report results from February 2008, As The Deer was listed at #41.

1. How Great Is Our God – Chris Tomlin, Jesse Reeves, Ed Cash
2. Blessed Be Your Name - Matt & Beth Redman
3. Here I Am To Worship - Tim Hughes
4. Open The Eyes Of My Heart - Paul Baloche
5. Shout To The Lord - Darlene Zschech
6. Holy Is The Lord - Chris Tomlin, Louie Giglio
7. You Are My King - Billy Foote
8. Forever - Chris Tomlin
9. Lord I Lift Your Name On High - Rick Founds
10. Come Now Is The Time To Worship - Brian Doerksen
(CCLI US February 2008 Survey)

Christian Copyright Licensing Inc. releases a biannual list of the top 25 worship songs used by churches in America. This list is an indicator of those songs that have crossed denominational and worship style lines. As a songwriter I have studied this list closely through the years. Not only have I watched it for worship trends but also for song elements that have remained consistent regardless of changing musical styles. Here are ten traits that are important to the success of these classic worship songs.

1. Universal Theme
A successful lyric will be an existing sentiment in the hearts of worshipers from a broad audience. A song on the top of the CCLI list is there because its theme remains true to worshipers regardless of age, denomination or cultural background. Lyric phrases such as “How great is our God” and “Forever God is faithful” are relevant and honest expressions for all believers. A lyric should not require an in-depth Bible study before it can be appreciated.

2. Lyric Consistency
A strong song will have a theme that remains consistent through all of its sections. The lyrics in the verse will support or build on the topic stated in the chorus. A strong song will not wander from idea to idea. The second section of “Open the Eyes of My Heart” begins with “To see you high and lifted up.” This is an effective transition tying the sections together. The verses of “Blessed Be Your Name” bring more understanding to the message and encourages us to sing the chorus with even greater passion. A good question to ask, can the theme be stated in a word or short phrase?

3. Prosody
Prosody in song writing refers to the perfect marriage of music and lyric. Not only should each compliment the other but will ideally bring out the best in its partner. When heard alone, does the music incite the same emotion or message that the lyric expresses? The pitch, rhythm, tension and energy in the melody married to the lyric “Shout to the Lord all the earth…” is an example of effective prosody.

4. Lyric Originality
The lyricist of a classic song finds a fresh way to express an old thought. Lyrics like “You stepped down into darkness” and “He wraps Himself in light” paint a picture in the mind’s eyes making the message memorable without being overly poetic. A lasting song will include words, phrases, and rhyme pairs that have not been overused and that cause a lyric to be predictable and trite. A good lyricist will seek out scriptural truths and make them accessible to the worshiper.

5. Form
Right-brained creative types love to break the mold and free themselves from the restraints of musical structure. Before abandoning traditional song forms writers should remember that their audience is made up mostly of “left-brainers.” Their minds will be seeking a clear picture of how a song is ordered. They will not be satisfied if it leaves them feeling unsettled or disjointed. All of the CCLI examples contain solid song forms and are built with sections that are so distinctive that there is no question where the verse ends and the chorus begins.

6. Musical Interest
Songs included on the top of CCLI’s list are often included on instrumental recordings based on the merit of their musical interest. A great song will have a melody that is easily recognizable apart from its harmonic and rhythmic accompaniment. It will have musical integrity enough to be appreciated by musicians of all levels and will introduce new musical ideas with each section.

7. Usability
Perhaps the greatest challenge for the writer of praise and worship music is to find the balance between originality and usability. How do we introduce new musical ideas while keeping the song playable and singable for the local church? “Lord I Lift Your Name on High” has been high on CCLI’s list for many years. Apart from being an inherently strong song, it has lasted because its chordal simplicity makes it approachable for any church band.

8. A Well Placed Title
Ideally a song should never leave a listener wondering what the title is. The title should be unique, repeated appropriately and set in strong places within the song. “Here I Am to Worship” and “Come Now is the Time to Worship” place the title as the opening line of the chorus. “How Great is Our God,” “Blessed Be Your Name” and You Are My King make use of repetition. “Forever” and “Lord I Lift Your Name on High” end the chorus with their titles.

9. Balance of Repetition and New Ideas
Life is made up of the familiar and the new. Human beings love both as long as they are kept in balance. The same is true in song writing. Too much of a good thing can make a song boring. An overabundance of new ideas can cause a song to ramble. Songwriters repeat words, phrases, melodic motifs, and chord progressions to bring a sense of coherence to their song ideas. It’s not hard to find examples of these techniques in all of these top CCLI songs.

10. Effectiveness in Worship
I’ve saved the most important for last. The primary reason these songs are so beloved by Christians world-wide is simply because they are effective in helping worshipers exalt Jesus. Rather than drawing attention to themselves as musical works, these songs have been proven to incite worship in the hearts of people around the globe. This above all is what determines which songs will span generations.

Can You Hear Me Knockin'?

Here's an article I came across this week related to hearing loss among musicians. It might help someone out there in the blogosphere.

Did you know that as little as 15 minutes of exposure to very loud music may permanently damage your hearing? Or that 30% of rock musicians and more than 52% of classical musicians have some level of measurable hearing loss due to exposure to high volume levels of music? If you or someone you know is involved in music-making, it’s time to learn a little bit about the risks of hearing loss and the simple things you can do to insure that you retain your hearing well into the future.

(Read the rest of the article)

Guest Blogger: Andrew Litke

(This is a post by my brother-in-law, Andrew Litke, a student at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida.  He's much smarter than I am, and when he posted this on our family blog last week, I knew I wanted to share it here.  Be blessed.  There' s a lot to chew on.) 

A LENTEN PRAYER

On this first day of Lent I thought I would share the prayer that the Orthodox Church prays every weekday (Saturday and Sunday are different) during this season of repentance that leads to Easter. It is by the 4th c. Church Father, St. Ephrem the Syrian:

O Lord and Master of my life!
Take from me the spirit of sloth,
faint-heartedness, lust of power, and idle talk.
But give rather the spirit of chastity,
humility, patience, and love to Thy servent.
Yea, O Lord and King!
Grant me to see my own errors
and not to judge my brother;
For Thou art blessed unto ages of ages. Amen.

Some comments by Alexander Schmemann (Thanks Vias for the X-mas present):
Sloth: A strange laziness and passivity of our entire being which always pushes us "down" rather than "up." It is in fact a deeply rooted cynicism which to every spiritual challenge responds "what for?" and makes our life one tremendous spiritual waste.

Faint-heartedness: being in the state of despondency, the greatest danger of the soul. Despondency is the impossibility for man to see anything good or positive; it is the reduction of everything to negativism and pessimism. It is the suicide of the soul because when man is possessed by it he is absolutely unable to see the light.

Lust of Power: By vitiating the entire attitude toward life and making it meaningless and empty, sloth and despondency forces us to seek compensation in a radically wrong attitude toward other persons. It becomes pure self-satisfaction. It is indeed sloth and despondency directed this time at others; it completes spiritual suicide with spiritual murder.

Idle Talk: The word saves and the word kills; the word inspires and the word poisons. The word is the means of Truth and it is the means of demonic Lie. When deviated from its divine origin and purpose, the word becomes idle. It "enforces" sloth, despondency, and lust of power, and transforms life into hell. It becomes the very power of sin.

Chastity: It is the positive counterpart to sloth. Sloth is, first of all, dissipation, the brokenness of our vision and energy, the inability to see the whole. Its opposite then is precisely wholeness. If we usually mean by chastity the virtue opposed to sexual depravity, it is because the broken character of our existence is nowhere better manifested than in sexual lust – the alienation of the body from the life and control of the spirit. Christ restores wholeness.

Humility: This is the first fruit of wholeness. Humility alone is capable of truth, of seeing and accepting things as they are and therefore of seeing God's majesty and goodness and love in everything. This is why we are told that God gives grace to the humble and resists the proud.

Patience: The "natural" or "fallen" man is impatient. Having but a broken, incomplete, and distorted knowledge of everything, he measures all things by his tastes and his ideas. Being indifferent to everyone except himself, he wants life to be successful right here and now. Patience, however, is truly a divine virtue. God is patient not because He is "indulgent," but because He sees the depth of all that exists, because the inner reality of things, which in our blindness we do not see, is open to Him. The closer we come to God, the more patient we grow and the more we reflect that infinite respect for all beings which is the proper quality of God.

Love: Given by God alone, it is the goal of all spiritual preparation and practice.
To see my own errors and not to judge my brother: Ultimately there is one danger: PRIDE: But when we "see our own errors" and "do not judge our brothers," when, in other terms, chastity, humility, patience, and love are but one in us, then and only then the ultimate enemy – pride – will be destroyed in us.

The body is glorious, the body is holy, so holy that God Himself "became flesh." Salvation and repentance then are not contempt for the body or neglect of it, but restoration of the body to its real function as the expression and the life of spirit, as the temple of the priceless human soul.

Guest Blogger: Tasha Via - Why I Love This Man

Okay, so I'm not technically a guest blogger today, I sort of confiscated his blog without him knowing it but I just couldn't help myself! I just wanted to share with the world about this man, my husband, my best friend...

Just A Few Reasons Why I Love This Man

*He truly loves the Lord with all his heart, soul, strength and mind
*Because he somehow ends up with all the covers by the end of the night
*He lives out what he believes
*The way he gets the kids wound up for bed=)
*He knows he is NOT above any temptation, therefore he lives a cautious life in constant communion with the Lord
*He isn't afraid to say "I'm Sorry"
*He is slow to anger

*His laugh when he really gets going!
*The way he taught Areyna to give me a "courtesy flush" when she's in the bathroom because smells are killing me this pregnancy=)

*His knowledge of the Word

*His sensitivity to me

*The way he always seems to find a quick little project to do right before we walk out the door. Example: replacing a doorknob while we're supposed to be packing up the car for a winter conference...

*This guy can go through some jeans because he constantly wrestles, crawls and plays in forts with the kids. He's just an awesome dad!

*The way I always have to get his attention by going right up to his face, making eye contact and stating his name before saying something very important. (otherwise he may respond without even knowing what I just said=))

*The way he makes me want to know our Lord more personally myself

*The way he leaves just one more bite in the box or a tiny little sip in the OJ container=) Well, maybe I don't love this one so much, but it reminds me of the man I married and I fall in love with him all over again.

Thank you God for blessing me with this man.

Josh, I love you baby. You are my favorite=)

A Funeral, A Testimony

I just got an e-mail this morning from my friend Alex Anders from Journey Church in Raleigh, NC where my brother, Smooth, is on staff. Alex's brother, Adam, is a songwriter and producer and knows Steven Curtis Chapman's family really well. He sent out this e-mail after attending the funeral the other day, and wow, what a testimony it was to the power of the Gospel and the sustaining grace of Christ! Read it for yourself.

Hey Everyone,

I just got back to LA from the funeral of Steven Curtis Chapman's 5 year old daughter in Nashville. The service was unbelievable! More a worship service and celebration than funeral. It really shows the power of the cross, and what it means to have put your faith in Christ. I saw it lived out yesterday morning in a most powerful way. God was there.... it was a life changing moment for me.

Please keep praying for them. Here is a note from a friend of mine that was there with me:



Hi Everyone,

Thanks for all your prayers for the Chapman family. They certainly have felt the love of God over the past few days from all those who have lifted them up in prayer during this unimaginably difficult time.

Kari and I are flying back to LA as I write after an amazing two days in Nashville. This was life changing. The name of the Lord was exalted in ways that we could never retell. We are in awe at His grace, compassion and mercy. Little Maria's life, although short, has already moved mightily in peoples lives to bring Him glory.

Last night the entire family stood in the church as a long line of friends and acquaintances greeted them, hugged them, cried with them and loved on them. The Chapman family and Steven's ministry has obviously impacted so many. They stood there for more than 4 hours before one of the pastors finally stopped it and had hundreds still remaining in line just sit down and then Steven apologetically, but so graciously addressed the entire group.

At the funeral, both Michael W. Smith and Matt Redman helped lead everyone in worship. Matt led us in a song we often sing that he wrote, "Blessed Be the Name of the Lord." It was amazing to watch the Chapman family sing with loud voices as they hugged one another, "He gives and takes away. He gives and takes away. My heart will choose to say, 'Lord, blessed be your name.'" This song will never be the same to me personally.

We worshipped and sang for 30-minutes. And then the Chapman's celebrated Maria by sharing stories and talking about her for almost an hour and a half, praising God for her life and acknowledging that she was safe in the arms of Jesus. All the while pictures of Maria flashed on two big screens behind the stage - her little white casket at the foot of the stage. She was buried in the "flower girl" dress she was going to wear in Emily's upcoming wedding.

Jeff Moore sang Steven's song "With Hope" which Steven wrote for a family years ago, going through the same type of tragedy. All of Maria's little friends came forward and placed a flower at the foot of the casket while Jeff sang.

The Chapmans are unwaivering in their love for Christ and doing well. Their entire family was a display of faith in practice at the most difficult time of their lives. No one in the family wore shoes, because the veil had been lifted for Maria. They were on "Holy Ground" and God's presence was felt.

Caleb (19) said in his prayer, "while we've always been excited about Heaven, it seems so much more real now...and gets us that much more excited to be there ourselves someday. So we'll live life on Earth as if each day counts until we get there.". He also said that although they are "confused" they've never been so sure about Christ and His saving grace. Caleb likened this to one of those abstract pictures that when you're up close, you can't see what it is, but as you step back, you start to see what the artist wants you to see. He said, "And this is a big picture, so we may have to stand waaayyy back."... but we will see what the Artist has designed and what the picture is.
He has his dad's wisdom - well beyond his years.

Emily Chapman (22) just got engaged and said that after the proposal, Maria was the only one who asked, "What did you say?". Maria asked it multiple times. (Of course Emily said "yes" to her future husband). But Emily addressed the 3000+ crowd and turned Maria's question back to everyone listening in regards to their answer to Christ's proposal to each of us,. "What did you say?". Powerful under these circumstances. The good news of the Gospel was presented four times throughout the ceremony by the family.

Steven was a rock and just gave all the glory to God. The model of a humble, Godly man. I'm so proud to call him a friend. His humility and appreciation for everyone there, which was a testament to his character and his sincere faith and love for his God and His son, Jesus Christ. As he hugged and cried with Kari and I, he just kept reminding us that "Heaven is real."

Steven shared that after the accident, in the hospital, he held Maria's lifeless body and cried out to God. He cried out, asking to somehow see some kind of sign that she was going to be okay...to see that she was going to be safe. When they got home that night, they found the last picture Maria drew on that Wednesday afternoon on her little art table (she loved to draw!). It was a flower and a butterfly and folded in half like a card. When Steven opened the card up, she had written one word on the inside - a word he didn't even know she knew how to spell. It was "See." A simple answer to his cry to 'see' that she was safe.

Please keep praying for them. They are worn out, sad and yet rejoicing in the Lord. Please pray for Will Franklin Chapman. He seems to be the one that is having the hardest time and struggling with the guilt of the accident. It truly was an accident. Will pulled the car into the driveway and because the family was throwing a party that night for Caleb's graduation, he decided to back the car up onto the grass just as Maria ran out behind the car to welcome him home. There was no way for him to know that Maria was behind that car. The Lord was ready to take Maria home. He knew the number of her days. Will stood with Maria's favorite pink blanket draped over his shoulders both days.

All in all God was glorified. Praise Him for His sovereign ways.

Rick (and Kari)

I Don't Like to ... But I Don't Want to ...

Guest Blogger: Smooth

So tonight on the way home from church, Cana and I had a conversation that actually turned out to be pretty profound for a two-year-old. We were about a mile from our house, so I started trying to mentally prepare Cana for bedtime. I told her that when we got home it was time to go "night night." The rest of the conversation went like this.

Cana: But... I don't like to go night night.
Me: Well, I'm sorry Cana, but we have to go night night.
Cana: But... I do de-otions first
Me: Yeah, we'll do your devotions first. Won't that be fun?
Cana: No
Me: NO?! Cana, I thought you liked your devotions!
Cana: Yeah, but... going night night... not fun.
Me: I know it's not fun, baby. But we have to go night night. Cana, when we get home, are you going to be a good girl and obey?
Cana: Yeah
Me: Cana, were you a bad girl for mommy today?
Cana: Yeah
Me: Does that make Jesus happy or sad?
Cana: Sad... and mommy sad too.
Me: Yeah, it makes Mommy sad too.
Cana: But... I don't... LIKE to obey... but.. I don't... WANT to... disobey.

So already at two years old Cana is struggling with and reasoning through (in her two-year-old way) the very same thing that the apostle Paul was struggling with and reasoning through nearly 2000 years ago:

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do... For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do–this I keep on doing... So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God–through Jesus Christ our Lord!

As I sit here writing this, I'm getting teary-eyed. Not because this particular conversation with Cana was emotionally moving. No, I'm thinking of the day when the struggle will really begin for her. Who will deliver her from this body of death? Certainly not me. If I'm a good dad, I can give her tools to make wise decisions in life. But try as I might, I will never be able to empower her to live a godly life. I'm looking forward to the day when the Almighty God of this universe comes to dwell inside my little girl to rescue her in the way that only he can do. And my heart will rejoice. No, my heart rejoices now: "Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

Guest Blogger: Jacob Via: Review of The Golden Compass

As the holiday season comes into full swing, statistics are showing that The Golden Compass is sure to be the biggest film of the season, if not the year. It's sad really when I realize how easily this movie has slipped through the cracks within the believing community. Why on earth did we rant and rave over the Da Vinci Code but allow The Golden Compass to sneak into the main stream media without a single fight?

The Golden Compass, as many of you know, is a movie about an evil dictator trying to rule the world, and a little girl destined to stop him. Let's let these quotes from Phillip Pullman, the author of this trilogy, to speak for himself.

"If there is a God and he is as the Christians describe him, then he deserves to be put to death and rebelled against," Pullman told the Telegraph newspaper in 2002. "As you look back over the history of the Christian church, it's a record of terrible infamy and cruelty and persecution and tyranny. How they have the bloody nerve to go on 'Thought for the Day' and tell us all to be good when, given the slightest chance, they'd be hanging the rest of us and flogging the homosexuals and persecuting the witches."

Pullman calls C.S. Lewis' Narnia Books "propaganda in the service of a life-hating ideology."

As a matter of fact, Phillip Pullman, when asked why he wrote "His Dark Materials" (the trilogy of which The Golden Compass is the first), he answers "I'm trying to undermine the very basis of Christian belief.”

Some have said that the attacks against Christianity in the books are so subtle that you can’t even tell. Well let’s see if that is true:

- In the second book in the trilogy, "The Subtle Knife," one of the main characters, Will, is told he possesses "the one weapon in all the universes" -- a magical knife -- that can "defeat the tyrant." That tyrant, he is told, is "The Authority. God."

-- In "The Amber Spyglass," the third and final book of the series, Will is told -- by two fallen, homosexual angels, no less -- that "The Authority" has many names, "God, the Creator, the Lord, Yahweh, El, Adonai, the King, the Father, the Almighty." These were names God "gave himself" even though "he was never the creator." Instead, Will is told, the Authority simply was the first angel formed out of "Dust" and thereafter God proceeded to tell "those who came after him that he had created them."

-- In another scene in The Amber Spyglass, one of the homosexual angels tells Will that churches "tell their believers that they'll live in Heaven, but that's a lie." Instead, believers go to a "prison camp."

-- In one of the final chapters of The Amber Spyglass, an ex-nun named Mary tells Will and Lyra, "The Christian religion is a very powerful and convincing mistake, that's all." Mary also tells them that after she learned there was no God, she soon discovered that "physics was more interesting anyway."

One of Pullman's apparent themes is that science and reason trump faith. He says that “it's impossible to have a life of joy, of pleasure, and be a member of the church."

Obviously Pullman’s intentions are to be as direct and adament against Christianity as he can be. It was his sole purpose for writing the books.

So what do we do then believers? I hardly believe that a boycott is of any use, as history shows us. But do we just sit back and let this heresy entertain us? Of course not!

This should be a challenge to us. This is a “Golden” Opportunity (pun intended) for us as believers to spark discussions with non-believers. Use this as an open door for the Gospel.

Don’t be ignorant of the issues. If you want to see the movie, go see it. If you want to read the books, read them. But don’t just sit back and let everything that you live for be attacked and ridiculed. Does God need our help? NO! But our lives are designed to bring him most glory. So give glory to the Lord by taking advantage of this opportunity to share the Gospel and defend your faith.

I’m reading The Golden Compass now. I went and saw the Da Vinci Code. I want to be informed so I can carry a conversation and know that facts.

Do you remember when the Da Vinci Code came out? There were books, magazine, pamphlets, TV shows, radio shows, all debunking Dan Brown and The Code. Did it help? I don’t know. But why have we not seen the same thing with The Golden Compass. Because it’s a children’s fairy tale? That should be even more reason to be cautious.

That’s all I have to say. Please take advantage of this opportunity. Don’t just stand on the sidelines. That’s not where you belong.

Guest Blogger: Charles Spurgeon

I really needed this today. God never fails to bring an appropriate word right when we need it - sometimes we just don't listen for it. Maybe you need this today as well.

"The thought of David's heart at this time was a false thought, because he certainly had no ground for thinking that God's anointing him by Samuel was intended to be left as an empty unmeaning act. On no one occasion had the Lord deserted His servant; he had been placed in perilous positions very often, but not one instance had occurred in which divine interposition had not delivered him. The trials to which he had been exposed had been varied; they had not assumed one form only, but many--yet in every case He who sent the trial had also graciously ordained a way of escape. David could not put his finger upon any entry in his diary, and say of it, "Here is evidence that the Lord will forsake me," for the entire tenor of his past life proved the very reverse. He should have argued from what God had done for him, that God would be his defender still. But is it not just in the same way that we doubt God's help? Is it not mistrust without a cause? Have we ever had the shadow of a reason to doubt our Father's goodness? Have not His lovingkindnesses been marvellous? Has He once failed to justify our trust? Ah, no! our God has not left us at any time. We have had dark nights, but the star of love has shone forth amid the blackness; we have been in stern conflicts, but over our head He has held aloft the shield of our defence. We have gone through many trials, but never to our detriment, always to our advantage; and the conclusion from our past experience is, that He who has been with us in six troubles, will not forsake us in the seventh. What we have known of our faithful God, proves that He will keep us to the end. Let us not, then, reason contrary to evidence. How can we ever be so ungenerous as to doubt our God? Lord, throw down the Jezebel of our unbelief, and let the dogs devour it."

—Morning and Evening, October 17, Charles Spurgeon

Guest Blogger: Smooth: A Theology of Discipline

[My younger brother, Smooth, recently found himself in some difficult and overwhelming circumstances where he was forced to work out his own “theology of discipline.” Below are some of his conclusions that I thought everyone out there in the blogosphere might benefit from, especially you parents. He gave me his permission.]

"Let me first preface all of this by saying that we (my wife Kelly and I) are not perfect. We do make mistakes, but I can honestly say that neither of us have ever practiced corporeal punishment while angry. If ever I am angry or overly frustrated with Cana (our 2-year old daughter) for something she has done, we use time out. In fact, time out is the primary form of punishment and discipline that we use. We do believe, however, that there are some situations that call for corporeal punishment. We are also not necessarily criticizing other views. But this is the one we have chosen as we have sought God on it.

"We have chosen this view not just because it works but also because we believe it is biblical. So our beliefs about child rearing are very much rooted in our theology – our beliefs about God, who He is, and what He requires. In the Old Testament, the concept of discipline is closely tied with correction and instruction. It is not just for mere punishment, but when you discipline someone the idea is to correct wrongdoing and instruct them in the way that is right. In the New Testament, the literal meaning of correction is to set upright. The idea is that correcting someone is actually the setting upright of something that has fallen. Furthermore, the word is used in the sense of making someone conform to a standard. You see, as human beings we bear the image of God (imago dei - Gen 1:26). Among other things, I believe this means that God has created human beings to reflect his image and his workings in everyday things. In other words, many of the things God requires us to do as his people act as analogies of a grander scheme. For instance, the New Testament tells us that the marriage relationship is a reflection of Christ’s relationship to the Church.

"Okay, so what does any of this have to do with corporeal punishment? God has held humankind to a standard. That standard is perfection. God is perfect and expects people to be perfect (Matt. 5:48). Obviously, no one can reach this standard, which is why Scripture says that 'all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glorious standard' (Rom. 3:23). That’s why Jesus came. He lived perfectly according to that standard and then died a death He didn’t deserve. Since He had no sin to pay for, He was paying the penalty for our sin (2 Cor. 5:21). Now those who accept the gift that Christ gave us become children of God and heirs of his inheritance: eternal life (Rom. 8:17,Gal. 3:26). As God’s children we now strive to live according to God’s standards not to gain favor with Him, but because we love Him. Likewise, God seeks to help us live according to those standards because it is what is just and it is what is best. He does so by correcting us, instructing us, disciplining us. You see, it’s not about punishment, or inflicting pain. It is about setting upright someone who has fallen, and helping us conform to his standard.

"Therefore, our purpose as parents when we discipline our children is not simply about punishment. In discipline, our job as parents is to properly reflect the image of a loving God who lovingly corrects his children. This idea is supported by Scripture. Deuteronomy 8:5 states that 'as a man disciplines his son, so God disciplines you.' So we have set up standards that we believe are biblical standards, and whenever our children fall short of these standards our job is to lovingly discipline them, correct them, and instruct them in the way that is right. That is why whenever we discipline Cana with corporeal punishment or timeout or whatever, we always have a discussion with her about why she is being disciplined and what she should do to avoid being punished in the future. We are not just punishing her; we are correcting her and instructing her. We are not disciplining her because we are the boss and she is not, but because this is the standard set up by God, and we properly reflect the divine work of God when we do. God disciplines us because he loves us (Prov. 3:12, Rev. 3:19), and we discipline our children because we love them.

"That being said, our next step was to look to Scripture in order to see how that discipline ought to be carried out. In the much quoted passage Proverbs 13:24, Scripture tells us that 'he who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him.' The word rod here is the rod of remedial punishment. It does not mean that one must punish his children with an actual rod, but does mean firm corporeal punishment. In fact, the parent who refrains from this type of discipline actually hates his child because verses 14-18 have already revealed that the end of this path is death, social ruin, public exposure, calamity, and shameful poverty. Therefore, if a parent turns his back on his child by not firmly disciplining him, he must really hate him because he is potentially sending his child down this path. Hebrews 12:7 tells us to 'endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you like sons.' So it would seem that hardship is God’s form of physical discipline. Prov. 22:15 reveals that 'folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him.' You might think that we are being irresponsible by practicing corporeal punishment, but according to Scripture we are irresponsible if we do not."