Fathers, Egos, and Youth Sports

by Mark Brandenburg at Christian Fathers.com

It is incredible to experience the hope and fear that occurs when your child steps up to the plate. While we say we’re satisfied with whatever happens when our child performs, we don’t always tell the truth. We like to see our kids excel. And when they don’t, it reflects on us. But we must be careful in our reactions to our child’s performance, because they intuitively know how we feel about them. And in a country in which 70% of all kids quit their sport by age 13, and never play it again (National Alliance for Youth Sports), we must take great precaution when leading them into the world of organized sports. Here are some guidelines for parents:

Click here to read the guidelines.

10 Ideas on How to Be Your Little Man's Dad

by Dan Bolin at Family Life.com

Boys need real dads, not just fathers to put food on the table, set curfews, and make sons clean the garage. Real dads play catch, lead hikes in the woods, tell stories at bedtime, wrestle on the living room carpet.

Real dads shoot their sons like arrows to impact the next generation. It is tough to be a real dad. The price to become one must be paid in time and commitment. Our world is short of both; there are demands and distractions that call us away from the things that matter most.

Life is a never-ending series of changes and dads must listen to the call of opportunity. They must test their skills against greater challenges, but they must test their hearts against the worth of their sons.

Click here to read the whole article.

Dad...I'm watching you

HT - All Pro Dad.com

Intentional Parenting

from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine

When it comes to parenting, do you just deal with things as they come your way or are you planning and creating opportunities to teach your child what's important to you?

I found a neat chart on the Intentional Parents website that demonstrates the difference. While sometimes it's easy to slip into survival mode or get caught up in what everyone else is doing, an intentional parent recognizes the importance of planning and creating teachable moments.

Want your child to learn about serving others? Don't wait for your support group or church to schedule an event. Find ways to serve others together.

Want them to exercise more and take better care of themselves? Don't wait for them to "feel like it." Talk about why it's important to take care of our bodies and find fun ways to exercise together.

Want them to be responsible with their money? Don't just hope they'll figure it out when they're older. Start teaching them biblical financial principles at a young age and encourage them as they begin to have some of their own money.

Whatever God is laying on your heart that you need to work on with your kids, be intentional about it.

Enjoy every minute!

THM Editor

A Very Dedicated Dad

ht - All Pro Dad.com

Great Bible Story Book Series for Your Kids

Trying to find a Bible story book that you can read to your young children is often a challenge. Some aren't much more than "Jesus loves you" messages - page after page - with a few baby cherub pictures thrown in. I guess such Bibles have their place. Then there's a variety of other versions that add value in different ways. And, of course, there's no beating reading a regular version of the Bible to your child. But my experience is that a good children's Bible story book supplements a straight reading of the Bible in very helpful ways.

A few years ago I came across a set of Bible stories that I have read to my children ever since. These stories come in a Ten Volume set, entitled, The Bible Story by Arthur Maxwell. You can learn more about the book and the author by clicking here.

The series covers the entire Bible. No story, (at least that I have yet observed) has been left out. Because the purpose of God's Word is not always to give us every detail of a person's life (example: Jesus' childhood), the author respectfully (and I think fairly faithfully) "speculates" about such things. He never makes up things that a Bible character said or did. And if he's just exercising a little imaginative wonder, he clearly communicates that.

The pictures are fantastic. Very colorful. My kids love the pictures as well as the stories. We bounce back and forth between an Old Testament volume and then a New Testament volume.

One of the things I like most about the series is that it was written in the 1950s. I know that there is no golden era of the Christian faith (though the Puritans come in at the top for me). However, I really like the fact that this is not yet another children's book trying more to be "relevant" to the child than faithful to the text. Who needs that? The author gives a faithful rendering of the story (with bits and pieces of the actual biblical text interspersed throughout the story) in a winsome way that gives my children a real love for the stories and a deep desire to hear them again and again. You just can't beat that.

Here's the link again to the website that sells this series. I wasn't able to find it at Christian Book.com. I didn't check Amazon.

The Bible Story
More than four hundred stories in ten volumes covering the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation
by Arthur S. Maxwell

I would encourage you to buy this series at once and begin reading the stories to your children as soon as they arrive. You won't regret it. It's an impacting and fun way to shepherd your children. And as I said earlier, you just can't beat that.

Blessings,
Dale

A Father's Written Legacy

by Ken Canfield at All Pro Dad

One question that gnaws at the gut of all fathers is this, "How can I leave a legacy for my kids?"

The written word is powerful. Certainly, it's important to speak words of blessing and encouragement to our sons and daughters, but writing has the potential to last much longer since words can be saved and read over and over again. The written word has power to shape and encourage our children and build a lasting family legacy. Short notes, journal entries, letters and even e-mails can be great tools to keep in touch and affirm our children.

Click here to read the whole article.

Engaging Your Children's Hearts: Campfire Joys

by Timothy Palla at Crosswalk.com

Ever since the time my children were quite young we have found pleasure in our autumn, family campfires. We have a rock fire ring in a quaint setting of the back yard where we can observe the dancing flames in privacy and comfort. We’ll sit on logs, chairs, wool blankets, or even the grass. Sometimes the children make S’mores or roast marshmallows or sometimes they just sit back and indulge in the ambience. It is relaxing just to sit and watch the sparks soar upward into the vast dark space and listen to the crackling flames.

The soft glow of firelight in each other’s faces has a way of making everyone appear softer, gentler. Regardless of how chaotic the day has been, there is something predictable about the way it will end up when we sit around those burning logs and glowing embers. Times like this God begins to stir the soul and open up doors of conversation that may have warped shut during the hectic course of the day.

Click here to read the whole article.

Effective Discipleship in the Home

by Timothy Palla at CrossWalk.com

Effective discipleship comes down to a few simple principles that can be copied by anyone:

1. Those that are with you are your best students. That's why God gave your children to you and not another set of parents.

2. Use plenty of real-life situations to learn about your students and teach them godly principles.

3. Disciple with God's ultimate calling in mind -- whether your students know it or not.

4. Remember that complete training involves seeing, hearing, and experiencing -- in love. Jesus said in Luke 6:40 "A pupil... after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher."

Click here to read the whole article.

The Adventure of Raising Boys

(I think this woman has been following around our family.)

by Paula Moldenhauer at Home Educator's Family Times newsletter

I have three boys. Active boys. They’re smart enough and I’m glimpsing some musical talent, but they aren’t the studious, musical type. They’re the rambunctious, ball throwing, body banging, wrestling type.

I blame their father. After all, before the boys even crawled he would pretend they could knock him down. He’d take their little hands, form a fist, and help them hit him. Then he’d crash to the floor, making all kinds of male grunting sounds, and our babies would belly laugh. As soon as they were mobile the wrestling began—with Jerry letting our kids win, of course. It wasn’t long until my husband had four children climbing all over him. (Yes, even my daughter was tricked into thinking this was fun, though at least she outgrew it.) I’d watch their antics, thinking how great it was that my children had such wonderful experiences with their dad.

Click here to read the whole article.

Let's End Adolescence

I have weighed in on the following subject before, but it's interesting to hear a politician comment on the need to move children into adulthood more quickly. (You can click here and here to read those previous posts.)

Newt Gingrich reveals that our culture of extended adolescence (or adolescence at all) has been a social experiment that has failed miserably. He believes, therefore, that it's time to put an end to it.

An excerpt...

It's time to declare the end of adolescence. As a social institution, it's been a failure. The proof is all around us: 19% of eighth graders, 36% of tenth graders, and 47% of twelfth graders say they have used illegal drugs, according to a study by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the University of Michigan. One of every four girls has a sexually transmitted disease, suggests a recent study for the Centers for Disease Control. A methamphetamine epidemic among the young is destroying lives, families, and communities. And American students are learning at a frighteningly slower rate than Chinese and Indian students.

The solution is dramatic and unavoidable: We have to end adolescence as a social experiment. We tried it. It failed. It's time to move on. Returning to an earlier, more successful model of children rapidly assuming the roles and responsibilities of adults would yield enormous benefit to society.

Click here to read the whole article and watch a video with Gingrich.

ht - Bill Johnson

How are you doing as a dad?

Find out how you're doing by having your kids fill out the quiz linked below. Here's some info about the quiz (from All Pro Dad)...

Below is a free interactive quiz for your children to take to assess your current fatherhood game plan. We recommend each of your kids ages 8 and up take this survey alone with you in a nearby room should they have any questions. Tell your kids to be honest and assure them that you won’t get upset should they not answer the questions the way you think they should. When your kids have submitted their quiz, it will be scored and suggestions will be given on some possible areas you might be able to improve on. Have your kids print out the score page. Use your score page to talk to each of your children about areas you may not be as strong in and how you can change that.

Click here to go to the quiz.