It is 3 a.m. You finally got your three-year-old to sleep at 2 a.m. Now you are awakened once again by the call of a wide-awake child. You can’t believe it! What do you say or do? This brings us to the second principle concerning children going to sleep—which is that all of your words are to acknowledge the commands of God that these instructions are to be deeply impressed on your heart so that you can speak about them to your children. Some of you are probably thinking I need a reality check. Just let the baby cry!!! But before we see how this command applies at 3 a.m., let’s take a few steps back in time to 9 […]
Yearly Archives: 2011
83 posts
First of all, thanks to all of you for your comments. Thanks, too, to Laney for raising her concern. As you can tell from the comments received here, and from the popularity of the book referred to in the original post, the topic of infants and children going to sleep is on peoples’ minds!
This is the title of a parenting book that is currently ranked number eight of all books sold on Amazon. Previously, it has been ranked at number one. The book is all of 32 pages long. Each page has a short, witty verse which overlays some creative and appealing artwork built on the book’s theme: frustrated attempts to get a toddler to sleep. This attractive little book is written from the perspective of a sleep-deprived parent, desperately longing for his young daughter to finally nod off.
After Memorial Day, summer inevitably arrives. From the rising thermometer to the seemingly endless end-of-school-year events, the heat is on. Schedules that have controlled the last nine months are now in flux. Perhaps the annual vacation is just around the corner and a thousand things still need to be done. Or perhaps the rising gas prices have forced some changes in the vacation schedule. The grass is growing once again. The mower is acting up once again. All of this and more makes summer a time that is both longed for and dreaded. Sometimes it seems the one constant theme of summer is problems and more problems.
Today is a day of national remembrance for the United States: Memorial Day. We pause collectively to remember that many have died for our benefit. On this day of remembered sacrifice, it is humbling to consider why so many have offered their lives so that we could live in freedom. We could think, as many do, that these sacrificial deaths are proof of an inherent goodness in man, and that despite all man’s negative traits, the spark of goodness remains. Surely, the willingness to die in battle shows that man is basically good in some way. But such thinking would miss the mark, eliminating the need for Christ to die for sin. But if man is totally depraved, then how […]
One complaint that is shared by many fathers is that they are not respected by their families. Some of us, as fathers, tend to think that family life would be much better if our wife and children just showed a little more respect. But respect does not happen in a vacuum, or on demand. On the one hand, God’s people are commanded to respect the people that God has placed in authority over us. Fathers meet that qualification—see Ephesians 6:1-3. But there is also another component of giving respect. Respect can be won by action. Hear what Hebrews says about respecting fathers:
The opening words of Proverbs state that the fear of God is where to begin to understand how life works. Then, just to strengthen the point, Solomon says the people who think they have no need of God despise the fear of God. If Proverbs 1:7 is one of the verses you have memorized, you might be thinking that you don’t remember the verse exactly this way. The verse actually reads this way: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. The verse is saying that the fear of the Lord is the foundation of knowledge. But fools, those who say there is no God, despise this foundation, i.e., the fear of […]
Today is May 21. The six p.m. deadline has passed, and at last report the rapture has not occurred. Some are embarrassed, some are elated, some are confused, some are amused; some mock and others are angry. For sure, it must be a difficult time for Harold Camping and his followers. But what about Christians who believe the Bible is true, who believe that Jesus Christ will return at the hour of God’s choosing? It is easy to feel frustration because our faith is being mocked by people around the globe and around the block. How does God want us to respond?
I had decided not to blog about the Harold Camping prediction—the prediction that the rapture will occur tomorrow, and the end of the world will happen next October. But after hearing Rush Limbaugh mention it on his show, I need to comment. Atheists have had a field day mocking this prediction. Fox News and other networks have run stories about Camping’s predictions.
Red Like Blood is being well received for its bold presentation of the power of grace in broken lives. Many have given up – believing that there is no hope in winning their battles with sin. Pornography, substance abuse and despair have robbed thousands of hope. But the message of the grace of Jesus Christ knows no boundaries. This is theme of Red Like Blood – the power of Grace! If you know someone enslaved by the things of this world, if you know someone who has lost hope – Red Like Blood offers hope. Here are some comments from some folks you can trust about Red Like Blood: Justin Taylor Bob and Joe shouldn’t be friends. They have different […]