I might sound redundant...but why bring religion into your child's behavior problem?
I have a certain view on raising children and certain ideas, and if you'll allow a few moments to deviate from the religion reference, I will gladly share my pompous views LOL
A new born human child or toddler shares similar learning habits with the rest of the animal kingdom. Just like a puppy or a kitten, if you do not train a baby during their formative years, then you are going to have a very hard time playing catch up when they are older. You know the saying "you can't teach an old dog new tricks?"...well it makes sense even for us humans. If you do not stimulate a child when they are still young (under 2 let's say for argument's sake) then you are going to have an even steeper mountain to climb the older they get. When we are babies, before learning to speak or think on our own, our brain is like a big sponge. We also mimic everything around us. The type of daily stimulation will predispose us in our futur behavior. When it comes to disciplining a child with behavior problems, there is no right or wrong way to do it. Some parents choose the consequence way, others choose the positive reinforcement way. Every child is different in their personalities so it's pretty much trial and error. There's nothing wrong with punishing a child. And in punishment, I am not refering to locking them up in their room or beating them black and blue. I am referring to general-ish type of punishment in your daily routine. If your child has scheduled activites and its something they look forward to on a weekly or daily basis, what's wrong with witholding that priviledge of they misbehave? What's wrong with sending your child to sleep earlier because they failed to do such and such thing? One major "punishment" that worked very well in my family had to do with how we ate at the table. After a certain age, if we didn't eat properly at the table, if we interupted too much, or chewed with our mouth opened or left our elbows on the table, guess what it meant for us? We had to leave the table and come back AFTER everyone was finished and eat alone. How many times did you think that happened? For me, it happened twice...my brother once. Also, at a restaurant, same rules applied. My cousin got sent to the car because he was misbehaving at the table. He never, with us, did it again. Yes, your child might hate you AT THAT MOMENT, but before doing it again, he/she will think long and hard at the memory of how bad they felt. Did my parents/grandparents/unlces/aunts raise a hand to us? NO. Did we need therapy for the rest of our lives because we had a flaw pointed out to us and rectified? NO. If a child misbehaves, again, depending on their personalities, well, adjust your punishment styles. Children, like puppies and kittens, might go into a corner and whine for a while, but if you only start teaching them that it's wrong when they are already an active member in your community...that's wrong.