Preparing for Adulthood is a category of post on my blog– as our children grow older, we are regularly examining how we are preparing them for independent thought, actions, and life. If we micromanage too much during this stage, we don’t help them when we they no longer live with us. In fact, we handicap […]
Hospitality in the Youth Group
When I was a teenager, I was odd and awkward. The kids at my church were very different from me, and although we were friendly, we weren’t friends. I was lonely. Sometimes when our church would host missionaries or other visitors who had teenagers, I wanted to say hello, but I always chickened out and […]
Transitory Friendship
Here in Hawaii, we live near several military bases. Each summer, there’s a transition when hundreds of families leave, and hundreds of families come. Our church feels this shift acutely. One summer we lost almost our entire children’s ministry team. That was a challenge! In addition to the constant military churn, we also see visitors […]
Let’s Discard Introvert/Extrovert Boxes
A lot of people who have questioned me about whether I really am as shy and afraid of talking with people as I say. They say I look like an extrovert. When I object, I am informed that I belong in the box that energizes me. Pick one: “being alone energizes me,” or “being with […]
