Yesterday, I gave each child a third of some glorified silly putty I bought for Lee awhile back. They played with it and I talked. Maybe they liked playing with the silly putty (I told them they could only play with it when we were talking about the Bible), or maybe they just wanted to [...]
Filed under: Family Devotions, Salvation, Using Questions
On the way home from church the other night, on a whim, I asked the children, “What verse would you think about if you were having a hard time being kind to your sister or brother?” The children were all stymied. “Children obey your parents”? We talked about some better possibilities. Then I asked, “Can [...]
Filed under: In the Car and on the Go, Scripture Memory, Using Questions
Do you have clean underwear on? [pause] Do you have any underwear on? Why are there grapes in your bed? For what purpose did you take cherries upstairs? Are these raisins in this cup? How did they get here? Is this a pile of powder on the bathroom sink? How did it get here? When [...]
Filed under: Using Questions
I’m realizing that there are many times my desire for communication doesn’t coincide with my children’s desire. I interpret their reluctance to talk as an absolute, but I’m realizing it’s not always a desire to close the subject completely. Sometimes (they don’t even realize this) they’re uncomfortable with the intensity of personal communication, even as [...]
Filed under: Using Questions
Sometimes we communicate a great deal by the questions we ask. Here are some that I’ve been asking lately, and thinking about: After eating, “Are you satisfied?” [as opposed to, "Are you full?" I want our children to know that being satisfied is better than being full. I am wondering whether filling them up is [...]
Filed under: Using Questions
As I drove to take the children on an outing, I realized I haven’t been talking about God throughout the day for awhile. That worried me a little, and then the introspective part of me took over. Why not, self? Are you dry spiritually? Is God not teaching you anything? Are you praying for nothing? [...]
Filed under: Chores, Using Questions
The last few weeks, we have talked quite a bit about giving and receiving presents. We’ve talked about the motivation for giving gifts (love) and how the only way we can truly love others is by God’s grace in our lives. We have talked about receiving gifts with a thankful heart (although I haven’t yet [...]
Tags: Christmas
Filed under: Using Questions
I’ve been working on being a better listener lately. Here are some more things I’ve been working on and found useful. Make eye contact. Yes, stop looking at dishes, that book, or the computer screen. Ban “uh huh” as a response. It’s pretty obvious that this response is a half-hearted, uninterested gesture. Ask a followup [...]
Filed under: Using Questions
We’ve told our children that if anyone tells them to keep a secret, they should come talk to mom and dad about it. We do this for their protection, primarily, and we’ve said it several times, but we’ve never had a response. The other day, while the girls were still sleeping, David stood on one [...]
Filed under: Using Questions
Jay Younts has been talking about questions and answers, and I’ve been thinking quite a bit about about what he’s saying. I know I need to be a better listener. One way I can is to ask followup questions to their statements, instead of assuming I understand what they’re saying. Asking for clarification or elaboration [...]
Filed under: Using Questions
