There is no such thing as a perfect parent. That being the case, a goal to shoot for, men, is to avoid the extremes of parenting styles. Scripture gives us clear information on these two extremes in Ephesians 6:4 and the book of Proverbs.
Every area of life has its extremes. Religion has its liberals and conservatives, politics, as well. In sports you find the fair-weather follower and the fanatic. Parenting is no different. In between the harsh parenting style and the permissive style, you will find the balance, a noble if not somewhat elusive goal.
After the Israelites left Egypt and were on their way to the Promised Land, every time they encountered an obstacle or challenge, they wanted to go back to Egypt. They sang the same song when they had no water, when they had no food, when they got tired of the food God provided and other instances…
I was sitting on my sister’s couch one evening severely depressed. I had been this way for months, and as I stared at nothing in particular, I suddenly noticed my 3-year-old niece, Katie…
Grumbling is serious business in God’s sight. I Corinthians 10:10 says “and do not grumble, as some of them did – and were killed by the destroying angel.” It is time to deal with our grumbling, don’t you think?
Are you weary from the guilt and shame? Do you long to be free from the demands of sin? Or, as someone once said, “Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired?”
Old sayings can be so conflicting. For instance, on the one hand, “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, yet on the other hand, “you’re never too old to learn”. Thank God we have something more solid to base our life choices on than that!
What are you wearing today? I don’t mean jeans or slacks, a pullover sweater or sweatshirt, I mean what kind of character clothes are you wearing? I’m talking about things like a short temper, dishonesty, lust, unfaithfulness etc.
“Are you going to wear THAT?” My wife, Olive, asked me as I headed out the door for a meeting with a pastor on Paraclete business.
