Rev. Brian M. Abshire
One of the most subtle and therefore insidious errors that sincere Christians can fall into when trying to be godly parents is to think that they can create Christian character in their children. There is an entire home-school curriculum (very popular in some circles) that promises to do just that. And while I deeply appreciate much of the actual teaching of such approaches, I believe there is a fundamental flaw in their objective because of a lack of clarity in how certain terms are defined.
First, we need to make some distinctions between various terms often used interchangeably that are in fact quite different; personality, temperament and character. The term “temperament” refers to an emotional predisposition, probably influenced by both a child’s inherent genetic makeup (e.g. the degree by which a child’s brain is inherently capable of receiving and acting on data may well have much to do with brain chemicals such as seretonin and dopamine) and then by early learning experiences. All humans experience all human emotions, but some emotions are more characteristic of some people than others. Some people are more outwardly oriented, some more reserved, some people tend to be more boisterous, others more serious, etc. There is nothing intrinsically good or bad about such an emotional predisposition, only whether the actions and attitudes that flow from it are according to God’s Word.
Read More >>>
