We live in a fast-paced, exciting and, at times, dangerous world. Often, we are naive in our own self-protection. There comes a time in our lives when we must make decisions that will keep us safe all the way around. This needs to start in the early teens. So, let’s look at some of them….
Who is in your home? You won’t see them!
A mother was having a great deal of difficulty with a daughter in college. The daughter was failing in school and decided to come home for the weekend just to spend some time away. The family was relieved and planned all kinds of activities to make her feel welcome and yet be reminded of the…
Go Home
I was talking to a mother and father in St. George area about their 14-year-old daughter. As we talked, I could feel the parents’ discouragement. One said, “Our kids are never home. If they are home, they bring friends, and if they are alone they are on the computer or their phones texting.” We talked…
How can I ever get to thee when I can’t get past me!
As I was counseling with a gentleman, we were talking about having faith in our ability to change. He shared the above words with me. He told me that he had been on his knees in prayer, something that he didn’t often do, and suddenly those words were blurted out: “How can I ever get…
Let it Be!
Sometimes we run into a situation that we aren’t happy about, but we aren’t quite sure what to do about it. With all the situations that happen to us, there are many ways to handle them and it is important to find the one that works with the situation that is at hand. With that…
“Look past them!” What?
Hard Decisions A number of years ago, I was in a position of responsibility as a management consultant. I was in a large city and I was called into different businesses to help improve their bottom line. This involved decisions that would create approval or disapproval depending on where what you were doing within the…
It is not how good you are when you are good, but how bad are you when you are bad
Many years ago, I was standing in front of a school waiting for a program, when I watched a mom tear into the teacher in charge of the program. She was shouting, waving her finger in the teacher’s face and, in no uncertain terms, telling that teacher what a poor, unorganized, inept and wretched person…
One Step Forward, 10 Steps Back: When to Help
When our children are little, we are to be hovering. We are to protect, guide, train, and prepare them for adulthood. Slowly, as they begin to grow, we need to hover less and less, and begin to prepare them more and more to be capable of making their own decisions with our guidance. When they…
Our Deceptions, Our Fears and Our Hope: Part I
Fear is a terrible thing. It rules much of our lives, and it delights the adversary, who is the father of fear as well as lies. He is the constant source of whispers that sound like this: “You’ve gone too far; you’ve done too much; you’re not loved anymore and there is no hope.” Those…
The Power of Thank You!
When we are little we are always taught to say “please” and “thank you” for politeness sake. It is a good thing to learn, and I think we should take it a step further. Quite a long time ago, I was standing in a very long line, and there was a great deal of rudeness…