16 January 2008
How to Respond to Whiny Children
Posted by Michelle under: Emotions; Getting Along; Wisdom; .
Around our house, we’ve seen a glut of complaining recently, and not just in my children. I’ve noticed my own self complain more than once, and I’ve heard the same whiny tone in my own voice that I dislike in my children’s. So I determined this Wisdom Wednesday to work on something that we can remember.
While the children were eating breakfast, I read them passages from Exodus and told them the story of the children of Israel whom God protected and provided for. I asked them whether they thought the children of Israel would be thankful for what God did, or complain about what they didn’t have. Both Bethel and David thought they would be happy, so they were surprised when I read how they complained (in my best whiny voice). We all decided they should have trusted God, and been thankful (They should have been thankful, and should not have complained, should they? Nooooooooo, they should not have complained.)
Then we turned to I Thessalonians 5:18:
In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
We could also have looked at Philippians 2:14, but I wanted a verse that gave what they should be doing. Maybe we’ll do that one next.
Then we talked about times where we should give thanks instead of complaining. Right now, washing dishes is a very popular chore (!), so we talked about how we could be thankful that someone else gets a turn. We talked about trusting God and being thankful when someone else gets the swings first at the church playground. And we talked about being thankful when someone else gets a cheese stick and there are none left for the others. These are huge challenges.
Now I must be thankful when the baby wakes up before I’m ready, or when a huge box of cereal is spilled, or when I lose my purse and have to go through hoops to get new ID. I’ve told God thank you for these things, and I’m praying that he’ll help me remember to be thankful when the next crisis hits.
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4 Comments so far...
Addy Says:
16 January 2008 at 4:31 pm.
Thanks, Michelle. I’ve been focusing on this issue lately too. I guess I focused on the “don’t” a bit more than you, because I did share Phil 2:14 (Do all things without grumbling or questioning) with my kids. We also used Proverbs 17:22–a joyful heart is good medicine, so cheer up!
I like your emphasis on talking about all the different “everythings” God wants us to be thankful for.
Michelle Says:
16 January 2008 at 11:36 pm.
Addy– Your children are the same ages as mine, so I guess they follow similar developmental patterns. That’s somewhat encouraging! I’m certain we’ll be using the Philippians passage in the near future; I don’t think it’s a bad approach. I’m also finding the personal challenge of replacing complaining thoughts with thankful ones greater than I thought it would be.
Tammy Says:
26 January 2008 at 11:27 pm.
Hi Michelle…..don’t know if you remember me from Vacaville! I, too was having a “Whiny” week. I also had a devotional w/ my girls in Deuteronomy 1:2 and asked them why it took the Israelites 40 yrs instead of 11 days to get to the Promised Land. For forty years, they grumbled. They had no water, and them God provided it for them. They grumbled about food. Manna was all right, but they wanted meat of some kind. Like your mom puts it, Thankfulness on our part always precedes God’s Blessings and answered prayer!
Michelle Says:
28 January 2008 at 12:20 am.
Yep, I remember you all! That’s a good question to think about. I know that I can work on being more thankful. Thanks for visiting and commenting; send me an email and fill me in with what’s been going on in your life, lately. 
Michelle
