I was invited to see Courageous as a preview.  I was looking forward to seeing a movie, because I love going to the theatre.  The showing was scheduled for 10:30 a.m.  At 9:00 we got a phone call that the house we were planning to moving into in less than a week fell through.  We were really excited about that house!  We thought God had miraculously...

We put a lot of time and energy in our work – extra hours, extra effort to get the contract or meet deadlines.  Hobbies can help give balance to the stress of our jobs, a needed outlet for creativity, or just release some pressure.  These are both good things. But why don’t we put the same effort into our families?  As Adam Mitchell says...

This fall my 18 year-old son, my first-born, my newly minted young adult, will be leaving home to start university.  I have never been an overly protective mother.  Over the years, he has often left home, even for extended times.  At 8 years old, he spent a week with members of our extended family whom he barely knew. After that there were...

When my children were first born, I did something radical. I didn't really decorate their room. Part of it was a money issue; we had so little cash, and we were trying to save for a down payment for a house. I thought putting our money into an apartment sized washing machine would be a far better use of our funds than buying cute little Noah's Ark...

I can still remember where I was standing and the way my daughter Aubri looked at me that fateful December day.  She came to me and said, “Dad, Dan really wants to talk to you to ask if he can be allowed to date me.”  I knew this day would come. I answered honestly, “Do you know how difficult this is for your father?” To which Aubri...

Teach your kids to cook so you don't have to! Here's my philosophy in a nutshell: Each year after age 10, they learn to make one meal per year. So at 11 they can make 1. At 12 they can make 2. At 13 they can make 3. And so on, and so on, and so on. That way, when they move out at 18, the goal is that they can make seven different meals well,...

This past week I have been, quite literally, voiceless. A bad case of tonsillitis left me with little more than a whisper.  It’s been a very quiet week.  Today I still don’t have my voice back but I’m feeling just a bit better and I started to notice the changes in my behavior.  I realized  I’ve been stepping back. I did not attempt...