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Are we modeling kindness for our children? “Forming character in children combines parental instruction and modeling,” notes Kenneth Kremer in his book Embracing Godly Character. “When parents lead a moral life, God gives them many opportunities to be godly examples for their children. But the models we provide will never be perfect, because all parents are sinners. ...
Every year as Christmas rolls around, I can’t help but take stock of all the “stuff” my family has. This year that schedule sped up because we moved right before Thanksgiving. So our fall was spent taking stock of pretty much every item we own. We sold some items and donated many others. It was ...
How can we prepare children for summer camp? When I was going into eighth grade, I went to band camp for a week during the summer. I had a blast, and the experience really gave me confidence in my own independence. I want my children to have a similar camp experience. I’m excited because we ...
How can we help a family with a sick parent? When we find out that someone we care about is sick, we want to help. Often, though, we don’t know what to do. Writing from firsthand experience, Heart to heart author Kerry Ognenoff details what helped her and her family when she was sick. I ...
How can parents model healthy cell phone use? Do you ever feel like your smartphone use is out of control and you’re not sure how it happened? I am not an early adapter, so I didn’t jump right on the smartphone wagon. Gradually, though, it crept into my life. First I wanted the camera. Then I liked ...
Does anyone else feel the weight of all the serious issues we have been dealing with as a society over the past couple years? I mean, yes, COVID, but so many other issues too. That’s why I thought we could all do with a pause this month in “Parent conversations.” Let’s take a moment to ...
What’s a parent’s role as a child dates? It’s not often that I don’t chime in with my opinion on a topic, but this is going to be one of those rare moments. My oldest just turned 13, and although the prospect of dating is getting closer every day, this is not a topic with which I have ...
How do parents find contentment? As parents, we all know that we need to savor each moment. Those older and wiser remind us that the time passes so quickly. So, we squirm with guilt as we try to rush some of the days with our kids along. “I can’t wait until she can . . ...
I dread my daughter’s homework more than she does. From the time she was little, it’s always been a struggle. She seems to sail through school with a great attitude, but by the time she gets home, all her patience and concentration have been used up. And honestly, by that time of day, mine have too. I’d be ...
My kids and I have spent almost no time apart since mid-March. With school starting soon, I’m a little nervous about how my youngest, who is six, is going to handle the separation. Are you running into this issue with your kids? If so, you will find great tips from this month’s authors, including ideas ...
What’s the best parenting advice you’ve received or given? Years before I became a mother, I wrote a news article for Forward in Christ in which I interviewed a dad who described his nightly ritual of blessing his young daughter before she went to sleep. He noted, “Blessing your child is not hocus pocus. When I bless Kayla, I am ...
My kids are 15, 10, and 7, so I haven’t quite gotten to this stage of parenting yet . . . but I can feel it coming. The important moments are stacking up. Time is slipping away to impart all the lessons that feel so necessary. Eighteen years sounds like so many when your kids ...
Each phase of childhood comes with its own unique set of blessings and challenges, doesn’t it? Teenagers get a bad rap, but as my daughter enters high school, I have had many wise friends tell me to savor these days—that the teen years are some of the best. As a rookie mom of a teen, ...
As the editorial staff developed the May issue of Forward in Christ, the mandatory quarantines had just begun. We had no way of predicting what would be taking place when this issue is being read. Yet no matter what, the information that Sarah Reik shares here can be applied to so many situations as we ...
How should we handle it when people undermine our parenting decisions? I think that parenting is often like an ice cream sundae bar. No two people make exactly the same choices as they go through the line. That doesn’t mean that one person will criticize the choices of the other. One sundae is not right and the ...