We’ve been talking about the rare but essential quality of tact. I mentioned that the classic example of tactless humanity is the abrasive Christian who feels it is his or her calling to fight for the truth with little or no regard for the other fella’s feelings. For all his rapid-fire Scripture quotations, you will rarely find Proverbs 18:19 on the lips of this armored crusader:
Read MoreCategory Archives: Parenting
Beyond Today
“If you can look into the seeds of time, and say which grain will grow, and which will not, Speak then to me . . . ” Macbeth, act I, scene 1, line 58. Who wouldn’t want to hear from someone like that? Who hasn’t felt himself standing on tiptoe, straining to see what lies ahead? Even the writers of a weekly news magazine tried to look beyond today. They didn’t try many predictions but they did ask some tough, sweeping questions.
Read MoreThe Family: No Substitute Will Do, Part Two
It’s true: there’s no substitute for the family! Yesterday I related a rather amusing story about mine. I’m sure you can recall times in your own family that make you chuckle. Other times those family memories are deeply profound and stabilizing. Who can ever forget the impact of a father’s strong arms around the shoulders of his kids following the loss of someone they all loved? Or the comfort communicated by a mother’s embrace?
Read MoreThe Family: No Substitute Will Do, Part One
Try all you like, you simply cannot find a substitute for the family. God planned it that way. In spite of all we’re reading and seeing these days designed to make us think we’ve entered the family-phase-out era, don’t you believe it! There is nothing on earth that comes close to the benefits derived from relationships revolving around our roots. Nothing.
Read MoreSomeday
SOMEDAY WHEN THE KIDS ARE GROWN, things are going to be a lot different. The garage won’t be full of bikes, electric train tracks on plywood, sawhorses surrounded by chunks of two-by-fours, nails, a hammer and saw, unfinished “experimental projects,” and the rabbit cage. I’ll be able to park both cars neatly in just the right places, and never again stumble over skateboards,
Read MoreWho’s Delinquent?
Teenagers get a bum rap. Always have. For some reason, if you’re between twelve and twenty, you’re suspect. Cops stare and senior citizens glare. Why? Well . . . You drive too fast, you think too slow, you aren’t responsible, and you can’t be trusted. The music you listen to is wild-n-wicked, the stuff you read is shallow or sleazy, the places you go are loud and low class.
Read MoreMy Dad
I’ll never forget the night my dad died. He left like he had lived. Quietly. Graciously. With dignity. Without demands or harsh words or even a frown, he surrendered himself—a tired, frail, humble gentleman—into the waiting arms of his Savior. Death, selfish and cursed enemy of man, won another battle. As I stroked the hair from his forehead and kissed him goodbye, a hundred boyhood memories played around in my head.
Read MoreComparison
If I may select a well-known phrase from the cobwebs of the fourteenth century and wipe away the dust to garner your attention, it is: COMPARISONS ARE ODIOUS. Odious . . . disgusting, detestable. If you want to be a miserable mortal, then compare. You compare when you place someone beside someone else for the purpose of emphasizing the differences or showing the likenesses. This applies to places and things as well as people.
Read MoreDialogues of the Deaf
It is impossible to overemphasize the immense need humans have to be really listened to, to be taken seriously, to be understood. No one can develop freely in this world and find a full life without feeling understood by at least one other person . . . . Listen to the conversations of our world, between nations as well as those between couples.
Read MoreAll Those Idols
IDOLS TAKE MANY FORMS. A church building can become an idol to us, when all the while it is simply a place to meet and worship our Lord—nothing more. Your child can become your idol. In subtle ways you can so adore that little one that your whole life revolves around that precious gem. Your mate or date can be given first place in your life and literally idolized.
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