As parents, we spend so much time managing behavior, juggling schedules, and trying to get through the day that it’s easy to forget the most important work: connecting at the heart level. In this two-part conversation, Michael and Dr. Ed West remind us that parenting God’s way is less about control and more about connection, the kind that shapes values and faith for life.

 

Why This Conversation Matters

Dr. West points to Proverbs 23:26: “Give me your heart, my son, and let your eyes delight in my ways.” Without that heart connection, there’s no path for values to transfer. Parents may work hard to teach right from wrong, but without relationship, the lessons won’t stick.

Connection is what keeps the door open, whether your child is two or twenty. It’s the difference between a prodigal returning home with hope and a child wandering further away. As Michael puts it, “Maintain the connection at all costs.”

 

Main Insights

 

1) Authority Flows from Relationship

In the Bible, authority is grounded in love. “If you love me, you’ll keep my commandments” isn’t a threat… it’s an invitation to stay close. Parents who lead from connection see obedience flow from trust, not fear.

 

“You can’t transfer values if there’s no connection.”

 

2) Training Starts Early, But It’s Never Too Late

From newborn bonding to teaching toddlers self-control, early training lays the groundwork for life. But even if you missed the early years, it’s never too late to start connecting at the heart. Step-parents, foster parents, and parents of prodigals all begin in the same place: relationship.

 

3) Forgiveness Fuels Return

The prodigal son knew he could come home because he knew his father’s heart. Children need the same assurance, that even after discipline or distance, restoration is possible. Forgiveness isn’t weakness; it’s a strength that draws them back.

 

Practical Ways To Put This Into Practice

 

Try This Today

 

• • Ask your child, “How do you know I love you?” and listen without correcting.
  • Spend time doing what they want to do, no agenda.
  • When emotions run high, focus first on reconnection before correction.

 

Conversation Starters With Your Kids

 

• • “What’s something I do that makes you feel cared for?”
  • “When you think about love, what comes to mind?”

 

Scripture To Sit With

Proverbs 23:26 — “Give me your heart, my son, and let your eyes delight in my ways.”
Luke 15:20 — “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him…”
Jeremiah 17:9 — “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

 

Final Encouragement

Parenting isn’t about perfection, it’s about presence. Whether your child is a toddler testing limits or a teen pulling away, your heart connection is the soil where faith and character grow. Keep showing up, keep forgiving, and keep delighting in your child. God works through that faithfulness in ways you may not see right away, but seeds planted in love will bear fruit in time.

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