Shattered. Your dreams of your children growing up to be godly Christians now lay like splinters of glass on the marble floor. “Mom, I’m gay,” your son announces. Your daughter reveals, “Dad, I’ve moved in with my boyfriend.” These words take your breath away. Your adult child is running not only from God, but from […]
Read MoreCategory Archives: Parenting
What Is a Christian Family?
The traditional family is under assault these days. Watch a primetime television program about the family and you’ll soon discover that fathers are presented as idiotic, mothers as overbearing, and children as wise beyond their years. That’s assuming you can find a program portraying a “traditional” family with a husband and a wife. To say […]
Read MoreUse Your Imagination!
When you read the Bible, do you use your imagination? I strongly suggest you do. Does that sound surprising, even dangerous? I used to feel the same way. For some reason, we Christians tend to like propositional truth, facts, and well-crafted arguments. Imagination is so . . . so made up. I don’t suggest we […]
Read MoreTips for Teaching Kids Truth
1. Tap into Transparency. Modeling Christian truth for your kids doesn’t just mean going to church, reading your Bible, and letting them see all your spiritual bright spots. Allow them to see the dimmer points in your past and present. Without disturbing them with unnecessary detail, be honest about the struggles you’ve endured. Relate to […]
Read MoreThree Ways to Help Your Children Keep Their Faith
A curious phenomenon has plagued families for as long as there have been families. Go back as far as time will take you, and there it is in all its mystery and misery. What is it? It’s that age-old problem of second-generation fallout. Happily, there are wonderful exceptions. But more often than not, it occurs. […]
Read MoreThe Way
All children are unique. However, there are universal truths that apply to all people. We as parents always desire to be sensitive to the unique needs and personalities of our children, but we also want to ensure that they understand the particular, narrow road that all who claim belief in Christ should follow. This road, […]
Read MoreTo the Fatherless
A lady approached me one day and told me point-blank about the pain she feels every time the church celebrates Mothers’ Day. She would even find ways to avoid attending on that particular Sunday because she was childless, and even though every attempt was made to include all the women of the church on those […]
Read MoreTime for Parenting
“Can you read me a book?” “Will you play Legos with me?” “Can you color with me?” “Could we go to the park now?” My wife and I get requests like this from our kids all day long. If you’re a parent, you know what I mean. The barrage of demands seems unending. In the […]
Read MoreThree Tips for Your Family
The longer I live, the more convinced I become of how easy it is to allow irretrievable moments to slip away. I thought I learned this when Cynthia and I reared our four children. I’m finding it just as true now with our ten grandchildren. Regardless of our demanding schedules and in spite of our […]
Read MoreThe Plan in a Child’s Heart
A plan in the heart of a man is like deep water, but a man of understanding draws it out. (Proverbs 20:5) To make this verse even more practical, let’s think of this “plan” in these terms: “A plan in the heart of a child is like deep water, but a parent of understanding draws […]
Read More