August 11 – Mom's aside

I told you if my comments were from me, I’d let you know. Indulge me while I take a day or two… or four!…to just say my own thing, ok?! The first thing is that, in determining your response to a child’s misbehavior, know whether what you’re facing is rebellion, foolishness, or just immaturity. Accidentally spilling his milk is immaturity, standing... Read More

The Farrier's Visit

Monday evening a farrier came to our house. (Update: I found out on his next visit that he is not, in fact, a farrier. A farrier trims hooves for the purpose of affixing shoes. This guy is a barefoot hoof trimmer. It’s a different style, intended to make the hoof flat against the ground and to help the hoof become calloused, similar to wild horse hooves. I’ve changed... Read More

August 10 – I Samuel 2:29

I Samuel 2:29 There are a few words in I Samuel that are scary to me. God is talking to the priest Eli and told him that you “honor your sons above Me.” For their own sakes, children need to know their place. “God is first in my life, and my relationship to your daddy is next. What they say is important to me. When they say no, I say no. When they say yes,... Read More

August 9 – Proverbs 22:6 (Amp)

Proverbs 22:6 (Amp) Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent], and when he is old he will not depart from it. Each child is an individual, with his own giftings and bents hard-wired into him from the Lord. Keep your heart tuned to looking for them. Ask God to open your eyes. As in — is he a reason-oriented or feelings-oriented... Read More

August 8 – Ephesians 6:4 (Amp)

Ephesians 6:4 (Amp) Fathers, so not irritate and provoke your children to anger — do not exasperate them to resentment — but rear them [tenderly] in the training and discipline and the counsel and admonition of the Lord. What might provoke a child to anger? Making him do something that he isn’t trained to do. Requiring something of him that you fail to require... Read More

August 7 – Hebrews 12:12-13

Hebrews 12:12-13 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed. This is the point of all that has gone before in the last several verses in this chapter. And I think it’s a point we need to teach our children: how to respond to discipline. I’ve seen over-reaction... Read More

August 6 – Hebrews 12:11 Proverbs 29:17

Hebrews 12:11 Proverbs 29:17 Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Discipline your son, and he well give you peace; he will bring delight to your soul. Here is discipline bringing peace to both giver and receiver. I’ve always wondered about the phrase “to those who have been trained by it.”... Read More

Infertility Posts: Index of Posts

This summer and into fall I am writing a series of blog posts telling the story of our infertility journey. (Click here to read more or leave a comment on Infertility Posts: Index of...)  Read More

Infertility Post Two: In the Beginning There Was Silence

Way back when my husband and I started to talk about marriage, we dreamily looked in each other’s eyes and said: “We’re going to have as many children as God gives us!” A few things got changed along the way. (Click here to read more or leave a comment on Infertility Post Two: In the Beginning There...)  Read More

August 5 – Hebrews 12:11 Proverbs 13:24; 22:15; 23:13-14; 29:15

Hebrews 12:11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Pretty good jumping-off place to bring in all that the writers of the proverbs say about the rod, which is a “rod, staff, a stick used to assist in walking, discipline, and guidance.” So…a few…with only a little comment. Proverbs 13:24 He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves... Read More