God’s greatness extends to causing his people to see the wonder of his goodness. Realize where the truly good things in your life come from. Those who turn from God are as durable as grass before the mower. Do not be awed by what awes them. Worship God for who he says he is. May God richly bless you this Lord’s Day. For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord; I sing for joy at what your hands have done. How great are your works, Lord, how profound your thoughts! Senseless people do not know, fools do not understand, that though the wicked spring up like grass and all evildoers flourish, they will […]
Monthly Archives: November 2013
Giving to honor God is not necessarily the same as giving to make your child happy. In fact, the two goals may be in opposition to each other! The ultimate example of giving to glorify God is Jesus Christ. Christ’s gift was selfless, pure and holy. Let’s take a look at each of these three qualities. While we can never match these qualities in our own gift giving, nonetheless, they are the standard. Selfless From a human perspective there was nothing in what Christ did that was a benefit to him. His joy was in doing what the Father wanted. He did not give selfishly, to get something back. One trap in gift giving is the expectation of appreciation. You […]
The holiday season presents a challenge for parents. As the message that man needs a savior fades, the bustle of the season increases. Even when the holidays are kept in a biblical perspective, they can take a toll on families. One of the first casualties of the season is time. One event blurs into another. Shopping becomes an ordeal. The ones who are affected the most by this hectic schedule are the very ones the season is supposedly all about – the children. When things are busy, the questions and concerns of children often lose importance. They are admonished to be patient and quiet because there is a lot to do. So their questions blend into the background noise of […]
The middle years of 5 to 12 are years of transition. One aspect of this transition is preparing for war. Parent, you are the active combatant as you protect your 5 year old. But when he turns 12 he must be ready to fight spiritual battles without always having your oversight. We are often shocked at seeing young children carrying weapons and being in the middle of gun battles in other parts of the world. But this uncomfortable picture is much more fitting for our children than we care to admit. Developing character in your children is preparing them for a war that is real and even more deadly than the ones we cringe at seeing on the nightly news. […]
November 11th is day when our country officially acknowledges the commitment of those who have served in the military. Perhaps the singular point to remember in our appreciation is that all who have served or who are serving took an oath that could ultimately cost them their lives. This is what military service comes down to. By taking an oath there is a commitment to following an order that could lead to death. Anything less is not really a commitment. For making that commitment please accept my gratitude along with the gratitude of millions of other Americans. Many of those who read this blog are from military families. Thank you for the commitment you all have made and are […]
One of our most important roles as parents is to offer our children a consistent picture of God. When we become conflicted in what we value we offer a grossly inconsistent view of God to our children. On Sunday we sing “Holy, Holy, Holy” and on Tuesday our song may be more consistent with “I did it My Way.” One trap we easily fall into is thinking we have all the time we need to pursue our various interests and pleasures. It is a ploy of the enemy to encourage us to think there will be plenty of time to get back to being serious about God. We forget that our lives are in God’s hands. God looks at […]
Parents often ask how can they make God real to their toddlers. Living Deuteronomy 6:5-7 is a start. This passage provides a mandate to talk to all of your children about God all the time. The common emphasis given to this passage focuses on the beginning of verse seven: “Impress them on your children.” or “teach them diligently.” But verse seven is the outcome of the directions from verses five and six. These words urge that God is to be loved so passionately that his commands will be on the hearts of his people. Once this heart infusion of the love of God takes place the result will be that the love for God’s commands will overflow from the mouth […]
Tomorrow is a day of uncertainty. You don’t know what it will bring. You can’t even make a good prediction about tomorrow. You can plan for tomorrow, and that is a good thing. But tomorrow may not go according to your plan. Or you may find out that your plan was not really what was needed to make tomorrow go well. Sometimes you are certain that tomorrow will bring bad things and you have no idea how you will survive the day. One thing that you can be certain of is that your kids will see how tomorrow colors your outlook. I don’t have any special knowledge about tomorrow that can minimize the concerns that you face. But I […]
One of our readers asked the following question: “Any thoughts on what a mother can do when the son is trapped in porn and the father is reacting the exact same way as your “what not to do” example? I know my son needs a man to shepherd him through this, and I want so badly for his father to be that man. But my husband refuses to “see” the need to shepherd his son in this way, and I’m feeling helpless between trying to be respectful/honoring of my husband but proactive in helping my son.” Here is the excerpt from the post that the mom is referencing: “You just confirmed that your fifteen-year-old son, Justin, has […]
Patience is the fruit of the Spirit. Practically, patience means to live in the expectation of God’s care regardless of the what the circumstances of life appear to be. Our stability in this life depends upon the care of God, not in our ability to predict outcomes. Life is often hectic, full of the unplanned and unexpected. But nothing is unplanned and unexpected for God. He alone can deliver on what he has planned. Even though Jesus Christ has commanded us not to worry, there is always some circumstance, some event that causes us to doubt God’s faithfulness. So we act on our own anxious assessment instead of seeking God for the path that will honor him. This worry […]