Last Saturday night, Jenn and I watched an amazing movie that I found so inspirational, “Old Fashioned.” I had already felt led to begin writing a post, and probably a series, called “Be To Do” that deals with our our spiritual walk with Christ. When this movie came along and really fit so perfectly with…
One day at work, I (Jerry) passed a co-worker and she asked absently, “How’s it going?” It was clear that she was in a bit of a hurry to get wherever it was she was going and wasn’t really looking for a detailed answer. She was just trying to be polite. But feeling a bit…
How are we to act toward those who hurt, offend, mistreat, or speak evil against us? The Bible tells believers to love their enemies and to even pray for them. (Matthew 5:24) It also tells us to live peaceably with all men and to not repay evil for evil but to repay, instead…
Summer . . . a time that kids pine for during the school year and often parents anticipate with anxiety. Fearing refrains of “I’m bored” or hours spent on the couch playing video games can make moms and dads nervous about the long, hot months stretching before their family. Focus on the Family’s Odyssey…
It’s all over the news and social media, so I know you know what I’m talking about. I have to admit, there is a part of me that is repulsed by what Bruce Jenner has done to himself but that is the self-righteous part of me that just loves to think that I am so…
Anyone who has more than one child realizes that God created every child to be a unique individual. It has always amazed me that children raised in the same family, by the same parents, in the same environment, can all be so different from each other. While family unity is vital for our children’s growth…
Mommy Guilt. Is there a mother on the planet who doesn’t have it?? Here is a very partial list of my Mommy Guilt: Starting a strict schedule with my particular baby who needed to be held and cuddled the most. Making a child finish his dinner when his tonsils were so swollen they were touching…
As of May 15 of this year, I have been raising children for twenty-three years, so while I feel somewhat qualified to share parenting advice, I am fairly new at this mother-in-law thing. 🙂 My oldest son, Joshua, and his wife Alissa, have only been married for two years. I am sure many of you…
You will notice that some of these posts overlap. This one is very similar to #5, but I’m coming from a different angle. Our children are a blessing, and we are thankful to have them. It is a really good thing to do special things for them, and allow them to do special things. It…
If we are going to have any kind of influence over our children, having a relationship with them is vital. This is true at any age. We need to invest in them. We need to spend time with them. We need to listen to them. We need have them work along side of us. We…
We need to prepare our children to stay strong in an ungodly world, and to possibly even face persecution. It saddens me to even have to put this among the list of parenting advice/suggestions. Five years ago, I never would have thought that there would be a need to write something like this. But sadly,…
This may seem disjointed and tangent-y (yes, I wrote that), but stay with me. Someone posted a status update about homosexuality and I thought about adding to the discussion but changed my mind. I just don’t know where to start. The comments were overwhelmingly unscriptural. There is just so much bad theology being tossed about…
Some (perhaps most) of these posts stem from various regrets, things I would tweak (or totally change) if I were just starting out as a parent, and things I wish I had learned earlier. However, this is one thing that I would do exactly the same way if I were to do it over again….
I have hesitated to post this one because I have several dear friends who are single moms, and one single dad that I know of, and not by their own choice. God has given them extra strength and grace to raise their children as a single parent, and they are each doing amazingly well under…
I have found this particular tip, by far, to be the hardest one to try to put into words, but I’ll do my best. I also know that this one may be rather controversial. As with everything I am posting, please make your parenting decisions in light of Scripture. What’s wrong with self-righteous attitudes? The…
This one is short (surprise!!) and simple. A lot of things can be really cute at age three, or even up to about age eight or ten, but they are downright annoying and disrespectful at age twelve, twenty, or forty. Just to be clear, I am NOT talking about normal childish behavior in areas where…
I am so blessed to be a part of this “Girl Group” – women who love their children so fiercely. No, I don’t have a daughter, but that didn’t stop my friend Kaylene from inviting me to join this exclusive group, and I’m so thankful that she did! Here’s a bit of my post you’ll…
We want to instill in our children a desire to be grateful for the many blessings that God has given them. Not only will they have a more joyful life, but contentment pleases God. God hates complaining. To know how much He hates it, all we have to do is observe how God responded to…
Pray for your children, and pray for them often. Not only do Jeff and I pray for our children during our personal devotion time, but also as the Lord brings them to mind, throughout the day. When I catch myself worrying about one of my children, I try (key word) to pray about the specific thing…
We rewrote Jerry’s Masterpiece post to enter a . Both of us would appreciate every vote! If the piece blesses you, we’d love for you to share it with friends as well. 🙂 Recently, we watched Ragamuffin, the movie about the late Christian singer, Rich Mullins. When you get down to it, the movie was…
It is important to help and encourage our children to become each other’s best friends. Next to their future spouse, ideally their siblings will always be their best friends. When your children get into an argument or fight, help them work through their disagreements. Ask them questions like: “How could you have responded in…
When I saw the title Never Say No: Raising Big Picture Kids, I thought, “Oh, great. A book about child-centered parenting, where the kids run the home.” But then I saw it was written by Mark and Jan Foreman, who are parents of Jon and Tim Foreman, of the Christian band Switchfoot. I don’t know…
Parenting Tip Number Three We need to really, truly listen to our children and teenagers. Obviously, they should speak respectfully, but our children, of any age, should feel free to come to us and share anything that is on their heart. They should be able to share any doubts, any fears, any worries, any joys…
I have my very first guest post in a series! I’m super excited! It’s on Sarah’s My Joy-filled Life. I’m thrilled that Sarah has graciously allowed me to post on her site for her third year of The ABCs of Homeschooling Series. I chose the letter “J” (imagine that?!) and came up with “Just do…
