Contributing to Your Child’s Understanding of Sex
Sex tends to get relegated to its own category in life. We understand that kids learn about math, for example, from all sorts of life experiences and learning opportunities. Science is all around us, and social skills can be developed while doing just about anything. But sex? That’s for a…
“In the Moment” Discipleship
As parents, our most important— most basic— job is to disciple our children to Jesus. With three (soon-to-be four!) teenagers at home and 17 years of parenting behind me, I’ve grown in my understanding of what it means to disciple my kids. I came into parenthood with some very specific…
Forgotten Identity: How to Remember Who You Are and Why It Matters
Have you ever seen a movie or read a story about someone who can’t remember their identity? Forgetting your identity makes life feel upside-down— nothing feels right, even though you might be physically comfortable and cared for. Because you don’t know who you are, your purpose is fuzzy. You live…
Your Child is More Than Their Accomplishments (or Lack Thereof)
One of my sons is known for his academic prowess. He’s a good student and test-taker and works very hard at his studies. Even at a young age we could tell he was a sharp cookie. One day, while sitting at the lunch table with a few friends, some boys started mocking him and calling him “nerd”…
3 Ways My Kids Help Me Delight
It’s funny how the things that have the potential to frustrate me the most about my kids are also the things that remind me what really matters. Here are three ways my children help me delight in the simple things: 1. Literally stop and smell the roses. Many years ago, when my oldest daughter…
No Greater Joy
Confession: Anyone close to me knows how much I disliked “Dad Life” in the baby, toddler, and early elementary school days. Our sons cried too much. They drained our bank account. And they frustratingly wouldn’t comply with my every wish and command. Date nights went by the wayside. Fun vacations…
When We Lose Our Joy
I dare say that almost every Christian parent in the world has found it a little harder to keep a joyful spirit at home over the past year. I don’t think joy-losing is a problem unique to a worldwide pandemic. It’s a struggle that every believer has to face because we live as redeemed children of…
“Not Everyone Can Be a Foster Parent…”
“Not everyone can be a foster parent, but everyone can help foster kids…” It was our first night as foster parents. That well-known radio ad was playing overhead at midnight as I desperately wandered the baby section at WalMart. Picking up and putting down baby supplies like a zombie— I was trying…
What are Your Priorities— Really?
Imagine with me that someone asks you to write down your priorities, starting with the most important first. Would your list look something like this? God Family Church Work Social life/extracurriculars That’s kind of the universally accepted “biblical priorities pattern.” Here’s the question…