What to do about a "bad" child
My best friend (who is also a Christian) has a step-son who is almost 10. He comes over to the house and is physically abusive to her daughter, who is 5. He has no respect and his mother will flat out tell them (my friend and her husband) that they have no authority over him. He breaks out windows in neighbors houses purposefully, he breaks her daughters toys, he says he hates them and he brags about the fact that his name is Devon and is only two letters away from "devil" so he calls himself (and I'm sure he's learned this from an adult) Devil Devon.
She has prayed about this and tried to figure out how to handle the situation but she feels strongly that her daughter is not safe when he is around. She also finds conflict with this because she feels that keeping him away is not a Christian thing to do.
She knows that this child needs help and wants to help him but when she reaches out he lashes out at her. We have talked about it and she understands that this is sometimes typical for a step-child but he is very disrespectful even to his dad. I don't want to come off as saying this child is to blame because children learn as they live and it is our responsibilty as adults to teach them the right way. Again, they have tried but when they enforce their rules his mother calls and threatens them with never seeing him again. She is genuinely worried about the safety of her daughter, and honestly is worried that if he continues to hurt her daughter, that she will lash out in anger against him in protection of her own child. She doesn't want that - she's a very tender-hearted and patient person but that's why she is so stressed, he's really pushing her limits.
I'm coming to all of you because whenever we talk about any of our problems in life, we base our solutions on His Word. But we are very uncertain how to handle this, the way that would please GOD. Is there scripture on how to deal with a child that is proud to be like the devil and that is eager to hurt others and cause pain. Please don't take this wrong, she wants to help Devon but she need some guidance on how to go about doing it.
My best friend (who is also a Christian) has a step-son who is almost 10. He comes over to the house and is physically abusive to her daughter, who is 5. He has no respect and his mother will flat out tell them (my friend and her husband) that they have no authority over him. He breaks out windows in neighbors houses purposefully, he breaks her daughters toys, he says he hates them and he brags about the fact that his name is Devon and is only two letters away from "devil" so he calls himself (and I'm sure he's learned this from an adult) Devil Devon.
She has prayed about this and tried to figure out how to handle the situation but she feels strongly that her daughter is not safe when he is around. She also finds conflict with this because she feels that keeping him away is not a Christian thing to do.
She knows that this child needs help and wants to help him but when she reaches out he lashes out at her. We have talked about it and she understands that this is sometimes typical for a step-child but he is very disrespectful even to his dad. I don't want to come off as saying this child is to blame because children learn as they live and it is our responsibilty as adults to teach them the right way. Again, they have tried but when they enforce their rules his mother calls and threatens them with never seeing him again. She is genuinely worried about the safety of her daughter, and honestly is worried that if he continues to hurt her daughter, that she will lash out in anger against him in protection of her own child. She doesn't want that - she's a very tender-hearted and patient person but that's why she is so stressed, he's really pushing her limits.
I'm coming to all of you because whenever we talk about any of our problems in life, we base our solutions on His Word. But we are very uncertain how to handle this, the way that would please GOD. Is there scripture on how to deal with a child that is proud to be like the devil and that is eager to hurt others and cause pain. Please don't take this wrong, she wants to help Devon but she need some guidance on how to go about doing it.