When What You’re Doing Isn’t Working
I see a lot of similarities between parenting and sports. If you’ve played sports on any serious level, you know how much practice and strategy goes into preparing for a game. You have to have strategies that your coach gives you and plays that are at the ready just in case you need them. At every…
On Home Education: What If I Fail?
In my last post, I defined education as an extension of discipleship. The task of educating our children is not confined to merely math and literacy, but seeing those disciplines within the whole framework of life. Education ought to blur the lines that have been mistakenly drawn between “life” and…
On Home Education: Freedom from the Machine
As a graduate of home education, and a currently-home-educating mom, I get many questions about it. I’ve been approached by people who have an inkling— or maybe even a deep conviction— that they want to pursue it for their family; but it’s unfamiliar, scary, or they just don’t know where to begin.……
3 Things NOT to Say to Grieving Parents
I wish I didn’t have any advice to offer you about what NOT to say to grieving parents. I wish I could stay in my naïve, blissful bubble where death remains an idea, not a reality. But here we are. Our firstborn son, Daniel, passed away eight years ago. These are things that I wish I did not…
The Value of Sport for Young Disciples
“To sport or not to sport” is a question for many Christian families. I believe our response should be a hearty, resounding “Yes!” The Things of Earth Does sport fit into the Christian life, and in particular, the Christian family life? I propose that those questions are part of a broader…
3 Tips for Family Discipleship with Infants and Toddlers
When you first start telling people you’re going to have a baby, people start asking questions you’ll have to answer over and over again— “Do you know what you’re having?” and “Do you have a name picked out?” As for my wife and I, like many couples, we wanted to be “surprised” by the baby’s gender.…
Are You an Owner-Parent?
In this brief article I want to challenge you to consider two words that may not seem to go together at face value. The words are ‘parent’ and ‘steward’. When we hear the term ‘steward’ our minds tend to go to thoughts of money and possessions. When we hear the word ‘parent’, we think of kids.…
3 Things Your Adolescent Son Needs to Hear
I never heard the words I needed to hear most as a young man. As a result, I turned to the world to give me the value and “wisdom” I craved. I don’t blame my parents— they did the best they could with what was available to them. My dad passed away when I was 6 and my stepdad passed away a few years…
Headache Now or Heartache Later?
The idea of rebuke grates against our flesh. I know that Selena and I neither like receiving it nor giving it… especially as parents! Still, if we are to live wisely in how we disciple our children (and each other), we must learn to not only accept the idea of rebuke, we must *embrace it* and…
5 Steps for Reading the Bible with Your Children
A few weeks back I was up early reading through the book of Hebrews. Our oldest daughter, Dela (6), happened to get up early too. She’s a professional snuggler, so her typical M.O. is to climb into my lap regardless of what I’m doing and just sink in. Except this morning was different.…