I love Christmas. When it gets to be about that time of year, I’m quick to switch the family over to my carefully-curated playlist that features all of my favorites. I love the memories, the time with family, the movies, all of it. But as much as I love Christmas, I’ve come to realize that Easter is more important. Although we needed Christmas to happen to get to Easter 33 years later, without Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection, His birth doesn’t mean as much. Making Easter a bigger deal Last year my husband and I decided we wanted to make Easter
Parenting Goals What are your goals as an effective parent ? I’d like my kids to pursue careers they’re interested in, have healthy relationships with friends and maybe a spouse someday, and eventually (in a long while) bless us with some grandchildren. But ultimately, no matter what they do, my husband and I hope they choose to follow God and the plans He has for their lives. I want them to obey their Creator. Why Obedience? In his Effective Parenting in a Defective World series, Chip Ingram says, “You must recognize your child’s primary responsibility is to learn obedience.” The
Where do you place your hope? Back in my first post about Revelation , I shared that it’s a book of hope . In Chip Ingram’s last sermon in his series , he finishes up the book and explains how important it is that we place our hope in Jesus. I think we all tend to place our hope in things that could be gone in a second: health, relationships, career, achievements, etc. When our view is limited to the world around us, it’s easy to feel hopeless. Instead, we should place our hope in what Revelation shows us: Jesus
This might seem odd for you to hear from me, especially since I’m known for my annoyingly optimistic nature sometimes. But over the years I’ve heard our culture say over and over again: Do what makes you happy. Don’t worry, be happy. If it doesn’t make you happy, it’s not worth it. You deserve to be happy. God Doesn’t Want You to Be Happy There was a time of my life where I bought into this cultural message. I thought God wanted me to be happy. But the more I’ve learned, the more I’ve realized happiness shouldn’t be my goal