Both of my hands are gently gripped on the shoulders of my toddler. As I try to square up our eyes, she squirms and looks away. I say with a Spirit-granted firm tenderness, “Elizabeth, obey your daddy.”

She doesn’t get this yet, but I am really calling her to faith in Jesus.

It goes this way: I tell her to not grab cups and drink out of them because I want to protect her from pouring hot coffee over her face. When she grabs any cup then I discipline her. It is a necessity. My spanking her is protecting her from burning her face. I want to protect her because I love her. Moreover, I want to protect her because Jesus gave her to me as my daughter; and me to her as her Daddy.

Daddys are supposed to protect their children and when I protect her then I know I am doing what Jesus called me to do. I am not only expressing my love for her, I am expressing Jesus’ love for her, too. My command for her to obey rests on that. “Elizabeth, obey your daddy because Jesus loves you and gave me to you to protect you.”

The fundamental issue here is not her obedience, but her faith. If she would believe in Jesus then listening to her daddy would make more sense.