My church operates a daycare center, inside which our church office is located. As an office assistant, even though I’m tucked out of sight, I’m literally surrounded by children all day long. There’s extra excitement in the air among the little ones these days. Every so often, we hear comments like, “When is it finally going to be Christmas?” I don’t hear things like this from the parents, though—because guess who’s responsible for making Christmas so awesome? (It sure ain’t Santa Claus!) As a parent, you’ve got things on your plate that your children have no ability to appreciate Continue Reading
4 ways to parent your kids the way God parents you
When my kids were little, I had plenty of rough days as a mom. (Parenting is hard work, amIright?) One particular day, the behavior of my then nine-year-old son drove me to the brink. I went into the house, away from him. “God, what does this child need from me?” I wept. Immediately, my attention was drawn to a painting on the wall—three carousel ponies symbolizing my three sons, painted by an artist friend. As I looked at that picture, I heard the answer to my question. “Tight reins and lots of sugar cubes.” I’m no horsewoman, but I got the point. Danny needed rules Continue Reading
Where Do You Find your Sense of Security as a Parent?
(Guest post by Jameson Maynes) “Can we go to ours new house, momma!? I like my new house!” Two-year-old Lainey shouted triumphantly at me as we were leaving the grocery store. My husband and I recently bought our first home—a nerve-wracking, exciting whirlwind. While the entire process was a lot smoother than either of us ever imagined it could be, there was much sacrifice and prayer that came before we moved into our new home. The moment Lain shouted as we left the grocery store, the Holy Spirit gently whispered a question that I haven’t been able to get out of my head. “What Continue Reading
To “Boo” or not to “Boo” (What’s a Parent to Do?)
A brief stroll around my neighborhood reveals something ironic: we’ve all just finished sweeping the nasty cobwebs off our shrubs just in time to replace them with much larger, fake ones! Over the years, I’ve been all over the map on Halloween. When our kids were very young, we allowed them to go trick-or-treating. Then, due to information circulating about the pagan roots of Halloween and dark practices associated with it, we opted out and took our boys to church harvest parties, where they could dress up, play games and get a sack full of candy. (Turns out, Halloween is not the Continue Reading