Repentance

There is nothing better in life than having a clear conscience.  We all sin, we all make mistkes either intentionally or unintentionally.  We can not take back the sin or mistakes, but God does provide a way out and that is confession and repentance. 

One thing I have noticed is kids tend to lie when they get caught or about to get caught doing something wrong.  I can't say it is just kids who lie, adults are just as guilty of it.  Just read the Bible, there are plenty of examples of Bible hero's who have sinned and lied to try to protect themselves.  With all of that in mind, I think it is very important to teach your child at a young age confession, repentance and forgiveness. 

God does not make you wonder what the rules are, He has made them very clear; as a parent you need to make sure your child knows the rules and the consequences of the rules.  If my kids did something wrong, and the rules were not clear I explained the rules to them.  Sometimes my kids would pull the "but you never told me", if that happened I gave them the benefit of the doubt then I would look them in the eyes and tell them the rules and make them repeat the rules (they did not like it when I did that).

After the rules are established and your child messes up it is your duty to confront your child.  You need to enforce the consequences.  Don't let your child argue, they need to do what you say.  After the consequences have been enforced talk to your child about what happened.  Ask your child why they got "consequences", if they try to argue or say "I don't know" make them sit and not play etc. until they can tell you why.  After they tell you what they did you need to talk to them about their behavior and give them alternatives; example if your child pushed their sibling, talk to them about what they could of done instead of pushing their sibling.  After you talk to your child give them a hug and tell them you love them and send them on their way.

Don't fall into the trap of the blame game.  God wants us to be responsible and do the right thing even if others are doing wrong.  If your child tries to blame someone else you need to stop it right away.  Your child is responsible for their behavior no matter what someone else did, and they need to learn it at a young age.

There were some days when our children got many spankings.  Often times after I spanked them they were up and running around happy as can be.  They did not have anger, guilt or low self esteem they had a clear conscience because they confessed, repented and were forgiven.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.