I’m lying propped up in a dimly lit room, curtained off from the other occupant. Lifting heavy eyelids, I see there’s a man seated beside me. Oh, right, it’s my husband. He’s been here the whole time they worked on me. I went under the knife around 10 a.m., so I think it’s maybe eleven-thirty. I ask what time it is. “Two o’clock,” Scott says. Wait, what? I have no recollection of the recovery room. At all. This whole experience has been bizarre. First, the dawning realization that I’d need to get my hip joint replaced. Then the steps of preparation and planning. Get ahead at Continue Reading
How to teach your child the difference between “smart” and “wise”
“He’s so smart,” the young mom often boasted. “One day he’ll be his own boss. He’s too smart to work for someone else.” Her little boy got the message. I won’t have to work for someone else because others aren't as smart as I am. I’ll tell you how that situation turned out in a moment. Parents face lots of pressure when it comes to their kids doing well in school. If a child isn’t excelling academically, Mom or Dad risks being branded as a failure. The pressure begins in grade school with mountains of homework. By the time kids are in high school, they face high levels of Continue Reading
Why you need to understand the real meaning of freedom
After serving a nearly three-year prison sentence, a pastor in Tajikistan was finally released last year. His crime? Singing “extremist” songs based on Bible passages like Ephesians 6:12. I don’t know what it’s like to go to prison for any reason, let alone for my faith—but I suspect this brother may have been freer during his time in prison than other folks who’ve never been behind bars. Freedom. What comes to mind when you see that word? As Americans, we’re blessed with the ability to worship as we choose, speak freely even when we disagree with the government, and publish our Continue Reading
How you can leverage a “parent shaming” moment for your good
When one of our church’s leaders sought us out to address some concerns, I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be a fun conversation. Sure enough, the topic was our oldest boy’s disobedience toward the couple in whose home our house church met. They’d established ground rules for all the kids, including our three boys, but Danny consistently ignored them. I’d already attended a few parent/teacher meetings centered on his behavior. Danny is funny, but distracts the other students…he doesn’t listen to instructions… As young parents, Scott and I had an invisible report card in our Continue Reading