Marijuana Changes Brains: I Told You So! It is time once again for my semi-regular harangue on the subject of pot. I have several blogs in which I have risked the wrath of those who believe it is their libertarian free born American right to smoke dope, I mean pot.J I have also been chastised by those who believe that it should be their right as a Christian to smoke marijuana if it is not against the law. Somehow they think whacky tobacchy (as a friend of mine once called it) fits well in the Paul’s Romans 14 construct of Christian Liberty. I have consistently warned anyone who will listen that there is little to nothing good about humans smoking marijuana. I’ve spent […]
Parenting
597 posts
Do your kids think that God or you will only be pleased with them if they obey him and obey you? Do your kids think that the gospel means that they must be good so God will love them? Do your kids think that they must be good for you to like them, for you to love and delight in them? Listen to your children talk about their understanding of the gospel. You may be thinking that children seldom, if ever, sit around and talk about the gospel. Actually, they do. Listen to your children talk. Listen to what makes them happy or sad. Listen to what they say about how you love them. “Mommy, I’m sorry I […]
Biblically, self-control is not a behavior issue, as in “get control of yourself.” Rather, it is an issue of the gospel. Self-control is actively following what God wants via the instruction of the Spirit in his word. This makes self-control an issue of walking by the Spirit. (Galatians 5:13-23) Therefore, self-control is not about changing behavior. Self-control is the good yield of the Holy Spirit’s work producing his fruit. It is helpful to describe self-control this way: Self-control is the ability to say no to my wrong desires and yes to what God wants me to do. Prayer for Self-Control: Father, please help me to say no to sin and yes to obedience and pleasing you. I really want to […]
Age thirteen is an important milestone in the life of your child. Your teenager is beginning to emerge into adulthood. These years are difficult; the process of maturing from child to adult is challenging. Think of all that has to happen in a few short years. The parent-child relationship must change from total dependence, obedience and submission to relative independence; respect and honor instead of immediate obedience; and unmediated accountability to God and church, apart from parents. This is a drastic change. Sometime it seems that within mere moments your child has left home and been replaced with this teenager person. This person is the same one that was born some thirteen years earlier. But he is also quite […]
Some practical, hands-on counsel from Tedd Tripp! Proverbs 9 will help our children evaluate themselves, “Whoever corrects a mocker invites insult; whoever rebukes a wicked man incurs abuse. Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you. Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning” (Prov. 9:7–9). We used this passage to help our children evaluate their responses to parental authority. I would draw a stick figure of myself. I would ask, “What four words in this passage describe the communication of the parent?” They would search the passage and discover these four words, “Correct, rebuke, instruct, […]
In the 21st Century the home functions as a stage. Children are displayed, not protected. Children are exploited, not trained. Sinful behavior is accepted and defended. Parents live for their children and children live for themselves. Today, children are to be accommodated. Too often, they become the center of family life. So instead of training children, our modern world tends to idolize them. Parents live for their children instead of for God. Children must be free to choose what they want to be. Self-expression is the creed of the day, no matter how perverse that expression may be. It does not take long for children raised this way to become anything but enjoyable. Thus child abuse rises, broken homes […]
It is a challenge to patiently, lovingly, firmly confront a child who chooses to go his own way. For some fathers, it is easier to just ignore their children’s need for care and discipline. Other fathers also take an easy path by becoming angry and threaten severe consequences or engage in physical intimidation. These approaches do not honor God. They do not bless the child. These two damaging responses, indifference and anger, stem front the same root cause – fear. Fathers, are you listening? God created men to be confident, compassionate, caring leaders. But then, there was the fall. While Eve chose to verbally engage the serpent, Adam, who was with her, chose not to protect his wife. Instead, in fearful […]
Parents, when your children sin and they are not respectful to you, how do you feel? Do you focus on how painful it is to be disrespected? The most natural, ordinary response is to consider the disrespect an offense against yourself. You might well respond in anger and frustration. This is what ordinary parents do. You might get angry at them. You might just let your children know how painful this is for you. You might yell. You might walk around in silent pain. You might tell your kids they have gone too far this time. All these responses would be ordinary and totally understandable. But, if respond as an ordinary parent would, you associate God with the ordinary actions […]
Men these are things to ask your wife and children to pray for you. Have the courage to ask your family to help hold you accountable for these things. •Love Christ first. •By your sacrificial example encourage your wife to love Christ first. •Love your wife so that she is confident you understand her deepest thoughts & moods. •Love your wife by honoring her in the presence of your children. •Love your wife by joyful sacrifice to enable her spiritual growth. Also love your wife by being sacrificially involved in the daily household needs. •Love your wife by seeing her sins as opportunities to show the grace of God to her. •By your sacrificial example encourage your children to love […]
Is this what your children think is the reason for obedience: to stay out of trouble? If this is true then your children will not know the power of hope. You see, children are just like every other human, they require hope to thrive. Perhaps the greatest enemy of hope is trusting in performance. Trust in your own ability to perform is the great enemy of the gospel. But aren’t we supposed to perform well? Aren’t we supposed to do our best? If children are to obey their parents, how can we not talk about performance? These are exactly the right questions! However, the answer may surprise you. To be distinctly biblical, obedience must be connected to hope, not to performance. […]