Famously Anxious
Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman’s father said jokingly to his daughter, “I’m more famous than you are.” His comment was based on the media’s coverage of him and his wife Lynn’s nervous reactions as they observed Aly’s Olympic routines. Their emotions on display became an engaging sideshow. The couple swayed and rocked as they anticipated Aly’s complex flips and twists. Lynn reached over and clenched Rick’s arm and fearfully peered out from between her fingers. There’s nothing quite like the anxiety of a loving parent!
Setting the Pace
Our oldest child has recently started driving. Though my husband and I understood that this day would come, I keep asking myself, Have we prepared her well?
Are You Proud of Me?
Recently, while I was out jogging, I listened to a recorded conversation between a 9-year-old son and his father. Rain poured down on me, but my eyes were even wetter from tears. The father told his son of the immense joy he felt on the day of the boy’s birth when the doctor had handed him his son for the first time. He also shared the concern he harbored that day: “You know, [I felt] fear . . . I gotta bring up a black boy in Mississippi, which is a tough place to bring up kids . . . there are statistics that say black boys born after the year 2002 have a 1-in-3 chance of going to prison.” Then he added these sobering words: “All three of my sons were born after the year 2002.”
no lazy river
One of our favorite family vacation sites is a beautiful beach community located in an adjoining state. We like to go there during the “off season” when few tourists are around. Though the ocean water is a little chilly, we enjoy swimming in an indoor pool. Also, there’s a lazy river that surrounds the pool and holds a special appeal for our kids. They’ve tried to swim against its current over the years, only to be carried in the opposite direction.
out of sight . . .
Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3:14-21 has been a blessing to me, but it’s also slightly confusing. How are we supposed to grasp the full measure of God’s love for us when it’s beyond our ability to understand? An experience with my son can help answer that question.
one mission
My husband and I often must act as referees while moderating the differences between our two offspring. They focus on what makes them different instead of what unites them. We frequently remind the two that they need each other—something that’s hard for them to see.
silencing the barren womb
Dear Sheridan,
the vital balance
Her voice shook as she told me about the problem she was having with her daughter. The concerned mother was worried that her teenager was mixing in with bad company, so she confiscated her daughter’s mobile phone and now chaperones her everywhere. But their relationship has now gone from bad to worse. So what should this mother do?
hope deferred
As any couple trying to have a child knows, every 28 days you’re looking for signs of success. For many couples, this expectation is met with disappointment for a few months until conception occurs. But for others, this monthly cycle of raised and dashed hopes can last for years. Proverbs 13:12 describes such an experience well: “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.”
what a name!
Hi, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Chia Poh Fang. This is my dialect name, and I’m a Hakka. So, in Chinese, my name reads Xie Bao Fang. “Xie” is my family name and it connotes gratitude. “Bao” means protection. And “Fang” means fragrance. So my name means “thank you for protecting the fragrance.”
demanding answers
Remember that thing Charlotte used to say when she didn’t get her way?”
legacy
The book of Genesis is structured around the phrase, “This is the account of.” Its main divisions begin with, “This is the account of the creation of the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 2:4), “of the descendants of Adam” (Genesis 5:1), “of Noah and his family” (Genesis 6:9), “of Terah’s family” (Genesis 11:27), “of the family of Isaac” (Genesis 25:19), and “of Jacob and his family” (Genesis 37:2). These sections focus on the children that each person produced. The account of Terah is the story of Abraham; the account of Jacob is the story of Joseph.
January 21, 2013
Recent research reveals that divorce has had a profound effect on children and their lack of interest in attending church and seeking God. Why do you feel this is the case?
spin
As anyone who has ever been a parent can attest, children can be masters of the literal—especially when it comes to rules. One day, after admonishing my son to keep his hands off his sister, I looked back only to find him placing his elbows, his feet, his knees—anything but his hands—in her personal space. From his interpretation of what I had said, he was well within the boundaries I had set.
tangible creativity
A friend named Erik Lokkesmoe, a successful audience mobilization agency founder and principal, recently shared on Facebook: “Here’s something I am trying with my kids: collecting unfinished artwork that shows the creative process, not the finished product. The handwritten notes that led to a new song. The pencil sketch of a painting. And, recently, a personalized drawing of Scar from…
