A visiting pastor read this old poem about the Bible during his sermon on Sunday. It’s a good reminder. This Book is the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers. Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding; its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, practice it to […]
Read More →Good News!
You’ve seen it… Two children are playing. Child No. 1 sets down his toy to pick up a new one, and suddenly Child No. 2 is discontent. He no longer wants what he already has. He wants what the other child has. He reaches out for the toy and yells when he can’t have it. He fusses and cries, and seeks to get his way. He’s coveting. Next time you’re […]
Read More →Lesson in a Coffee Shop
He’s charming in his little black coat. He leans forward in his stroller and makes a desperate, I-want-some-now noise. His mama smiles, gently waves her finger, and almost sings her quiet “no” while she holds the spoon back in her other hand. He sits back and waits and the spoon travels to his mouth. He’s happy. Then the anxious sound again. Again the gentle counsel. Again the baby’s quiet response. […]
Read More →One Thousand Gifts (Review)
As I think back over the years, three books stand out to me as ones that have especially impacted my life. Mary Pride’s The Way Home confirmed my conviction that children were a blessing, and that we should welcome as many as God wanted to give us! Her creative, entrepreneurial spirit also sparked ideas and projects that eventually turned into our family business, Doorposts. Edith Schaeffer’s The Hidden Art of […]
Read More →Thank you, Mamas!
After a delightful but tiring thirty hours caring for two of my precious granddaughters (while their parents take a break at the beach before baby #3 makes his/her appearance very soon) , I want to thank my daughter and daughters-in-law for being the amazing ladies that you are! Thank you for welcoming the privilege of nurturing a new little one in the womb — even when it means morning sickness, […]
Read More →Sharing for Jesus’ Sake
When it comes to teaching our children to share, there is no simple “follow-these-five-easy-steps-and-you’ll-have-a-child-who-shares” formula. Children are born with old sin natures; they inherited them from us. We shouldn’t be surprised when they don’t want to share. Instead, we should thank God for the opportunity to help our children understand and appreciate what Jesus has done for them – and us. Scripture is full of commands that we and our […]
Read More →Jesus Has Accomplished What We Can’t
I’m reading Give Them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus, by Elyse Fitzpatrick. I love the quote from Martin Luther that she opens Chapter 3 with: The law says, “do this,” and it is never done. Grace says, “Believe in this,” and everything is already done. We will never be perfect parents. Our children will never be perfect children. We will become discouraged or angry or just […]
Read More →Honoring One Another
It’s Wednesday night and I just spent a couple hours working on a post, only to watch my computer eat up the entire document, letter by letter. It looked like a video game where some little animal was gobbling down a string of words as fast as he could. The the cursor sat there quivering, like it was giggling over its great trick. It was actually kind of funny. It […]
Read More →Naming God’s Gifts
We have a black cat that we have never named. That is a strange phenomena in a household that names strange things like knives and computers and blankets. I thought of that black cat today when I read a quote from C. S. Lewis: Now, in the Bible a name . . . reveals the very essence of a thing, or rather its essence as God’s gift. To name a […]
Read More →A Thankful Heart Is a Generous Heart
“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thess. 5:18). Sharing has two sides: 1. Lettings others enjoy the things we have 2. Being content with what we have Several weeks ago we started a series of posts about teaching children to share. So far we have addressed the following topics in previous posts: We as parents need to be willing […]
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