Often after we get together with friends, I ask my children about their time spent. Since we’ve been discussing wisdom, I often ask, “Is so-and-so a wise friend?” That’s because we are told in Scripture that a wise person looks for wise friends. Since we’ve been talking about wisdom, they know what that looks like. [...]

Filed under: Friends, Getting Along, Humility

When my children are unkind, I want to help them put off the old man of unkindness and put on the new man of kindness. What will that look like? First, I require asking forgiveness, not just making a statement of apology (etymology: a defense). They must name a sin and ask for a response. [...]

Filed under: Getting Along

Yesterday we went out to the welcoming ceremony for the new F-22s on our base, and I got a little too much desert sun. I’m feeling better today, but yesterday afternoon I didn’t do anything that required a lot of brain power, including finishing my post. I’ll post it tomorrow. In the meantime, read this [...]

Filed under: Getting Along, Uncategorized

My son yesterday called someone stupid. As far as I can tell, it wasn’t something like “I think playing princess is stupid,” which might be understandable. Rather it was something like “You’re stupid.” I was shocked. My child? We have no television. We screen all DVDs. We keep track of all their friends, and we [...]

Filed under: Getting Along

We’ve found a few mourning cloak caterpillars a few weeks ago that quickly pupated upon capture. We’ve been waiting and this morning one came out dramatically. Such a memorable event might very well stay with them for a long time; thus, it is a good opportunity to teach them an important spiritual truth along with [...]

Filed under: Getting Along, Salvation, Wisdom

This morning, baby (18 months) cried because Bethel picked up the book she had put down. She wanted the book back. I was faced immediately with the thought that I had to choose what lesson I wanted to teach. I could have dealt with screaming to get what she wants. I could have dealt with [...]

Filed under: Communication and Meaning, Getting Along

This morning all three children were jumping onto our big beanbag from the stepstool. Laurel has recently learned how to jump, and happily falls into the bag while mom looks away and pretends not to be afraid. Her new skill has caused some tension, though. She’s slow, and it’s hard for the older children to [...]

Filed under: Getting Along

Last week my brother brought his two older boys (ages 9 and 12) to visit for a few days, and David in particular was ecstatic. I was pleased to see their gentleness and patience with all three of my children, especially when their parents were nowhere to enforce or reward such behavior. I noticed last [...]

Filed under: Getting Along

Last night, we were talking about our company that was coming, and Bethel asked out of the blue “Are you going to share your beautiful dishes?” I was pleased, because we had a conversation about sharing mommy’s precious dishes months ago. That’s one way we can please God, by sharing what He has blessed us [...]

Filed under: Getting Along

I want my children to come to me when they’re having difficulty resolving a problem. If I’m like my esteemed and more experienced sister-in-law Martha, I’ll give my children strategies for solving their problems, and send them back to try again, only intervening when all resources have been exhausted. I like this approach, and I [...]

Filed under: Getting Along