Ten degrees, below zero. Bitter wind chills. Snow to shovel. Nasty head cold. Stuffy and sneezy. Coughing. But I choose to control my thinking. I choose not to ruminate on todays’ struggles, real and difficult though they are. Instead, I … Continue reading
If you are still following along, then you can answer in the affirmative. According to a recent CNN article, however, a surprising number of the college athletes we watch playing basketball or football can only answer in the negative (“Some … Continue reading
Our elderly church member and friend had been widowed, again. When we visited his home, we saw that he had written on his calendar, “Alone again.” He was a man of strong faith, and he was not questioning the presence … Continue reading
For many years, on January 1, I resolved to practice a more active and healthy lifestyle; instead, I experienced consistent failure. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends 20 to 60 minutes of continuous aerobic activity (biking, walking, jogging, dancing, … Continue reading
I wish you and your family a Merry Christmas, a White Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Season’s Greetings; but most of all, I wish you a Blessed Christmas. Being at our season of life, in those years between teenage children and … Continue reading
Historically, the field of psychology focused on mental illness and dysfunction. Positive psychology developed as a unique new subdiscipline as recently as 1998. Instead of investigating the question of what went wrong, positive psychology seeks to understand the fulfilling aspects … Continue reading
According to research published by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, our teens may have more wisdom than we give them credit for when it comes to sex education. Most teens (94 percent) think that adults should inform them … Continue reading
The American Humanist Association has renewed the efforts of some atheists to remove the words “under God” from our Pledge of Allegiance. The organization argued recently in the Massachusetts Supreme Court that the inclusion of these words is a violation … Continue reading
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) frequently airs public-service announcements suggesting that parents should be talking to their children about the dangers of drugs. This is based on evidence that kids who consistently learn about the risks of drugs … Continue reading
During Mother’s last few months, conversations were extremely difficult to follow because her mind seamlessly switched from one decade to another. Isaac Singer writes, “Sometimes she’d tangle one story with another and couldn’t find her way out” (In My Father’s … Continue reading
If you believe everything you read, then kids are doomed. If both of their parents work outside the home, then it’s hopeless. If one parent is a pastor, then forget about it. If one parent is missing, too bad. What … Continue reading
The great 20th century novelist Chaim Potok wrote, in his novel, My Name Is Asher Lev, “You have a gift, Asher Lev. You have a responsibility.” My Mom had a gift of 89 years, 89 years to live her life; … Continue reading
Recently, a self-proclaimed Christian instructor at Florida Atlantic University asked his students to write “Jesus” on a piece of paper and step on it. The exercise was from a textbook manual and was designed to teach that “even though symbols … Continue reading
One of the most famous opening lines in literature comes from Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina: “All happy families are like one another; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” Great literature causes us to think and ponder; it directs … Continue reading
Christ is quoted, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Therein is one of life’s toughest lessons. How do we teach our children the habit of giving? We know that social modeling is a powerful teacher. If we … Continue reading
As Christmas approaches, Americans are once again spending a lot of money. With that in mind, here are some thoughts on the importance of self-control in our lives. Experience, an excellent teacher, has taught me many critical lessons. I learned word processing … Continue reading
Both our media and our politicians tell us that it is a terrible time to rear children. As parents, we are tempted to sing, “Why can’t they be like we were, perfect in every way?” We understand totally when one … Continue reading
