HopeForYourFamily

You may have noticed I have recently added a feature at the bottom right column of my website, listing the books I am reading and have read this year.  One of the reasons I have added this visual information is to encourage you to devote some of your time to reading good books.  Reading good books is such a great way to learn, grow, and improve your life and relationships!  Whether you prefer biographies, “self-help,” Scripture, literary classics, Christian classics, inspiring novels, histories, Christian fiction, or others, there are so many good books available through the public library, our local bookstores, and numerous websites.  (www.addall.com is my favorite, because it searches for your book on all the top book websites, then lists them in order of total purchase price.)  There is so much wisdom, knowledge, adventure, and inspiration just waiting to improve our lives, if only we will take the time to pick up a good book. 

The two primary reasons people tell me they don’t read much are: “I don’t have time,” and “I get bored with reading.”  I think there is one major factor that contributes to both of these “excuses” for most people - (more…)

Would you like to have the very best life possible?  Of course!  Every one of us would love to have a great life, full of rich pleasures, satisfying relationships, simple delights, meaningful purpose, and a secure future.  We want our lives to matter, and we want to enjoy life as much as possible.  In fact, everyone who comes to me for counseling and guidance is coming to me because they want a better life for themselves - better relationships, better patterns of thought and behavior, better mental health, etc.  Through my professional training and years of experience, I have learned many insights and tools into improving these various areas of life.  It is my joy to share these with my clients, and watch their lives and relationships become healthier and more satisfying along the way.  And there is one insight that stands about all the others, when it comes to helping people live the great life. (more…)

For centuries, the Ten Commandments have stood as pillars of life for many, many people - Jew and Christian alike.  There is something very fundamental about these guidelines, for anyone desiring to lead a moral life under the guidance of God.  In fact, I frequently use this analogy when it comes to how we can live the best life possible: Let’s say you have just purchased a new electronic appliance - maybe a new multi-disk DVD/CD player.  If you want to get the most out of it - proper functioning, full use of available features, etc - you really should read and follow the instruction manual provided by the manufacturer.  Sure, you could get the thing to turn on and operate if you skip the manual and get right to it.  However, you will most likely miss some key features, and may well run into some frustrating problems.  Reading the manual just makes sense.  Follow the guidelines of the one who created the equipment, and you will get the best possible functioning.  The same is true for our lives.  Our Creator (God) has provided us with an instruction manual (the Bible) to teach us how to get the most out of our lives.  In fact, Jesus repeatedly says he came to give us life to the full, or the abundant life.

“Okay,” you may be saying to yourself, “that’s all fine and good, but what does it have to do with the title of this post - ‘Rhythm’?”  Here is my point.  I’m not writing this post to convince you to read the Bible as your guideline for living, although I wholeheartedly believe we all should do so for the best life possible.  Instead, I want to raise a question and a concern.  For those of us who still hold up the Ten Commandments as basic guidelines for life, why do we completely ignore one of them?!?  (more…)

Parents of young children, take note: NBC has added two programs to their new Saturday morning lineup that are expressly Christian in their message!  Tune in to your NBC affiliate at 9:00 am on Saturday to catch the very popular “Veggie Tales.”  The storytelling, silly songs, moral message, and good times are very engaging to children as they help teach them the right things to believe and do in real-life situations - based on the Word of God.  Then at 10:00, be sure to check out either “3-2-1 Penguins!” or “Larry Boy,” which are set to share the half hour time slot.  These programs are a bit more dramatic and adventurous than “Veggie Tales,” but also serve to teach healthy Christian morals to children.  I would strongly encourage you and your family to make the most of this entertainment/educational opportunity.  Watch the shows with your kids.  Talk with them during and after the programs about what they have seen.  How do they relate to the characters and situations, and what have they learned?  Have a Bible handy, and look up the relevant stories and verses after the show.  It will offer a direct blessing to your family as they grow in their knowledge of God.  If you will help spread the word to other families, and the programming really catches on, we can send a powerful message to “Hollywood” about the kind of shows we want for our children and families.  Be sure and pass on the word to others with young children, and maybe even pass along a word of thanks to the NBC execs.  By the way, don’t be surprised if you find yourself looking forward to Saturdays mornings - Veggie Tales are really a lot of fun!

Click here to read the full news release.

Click here or pick up the September issue of Baton Rouge Parents Magazine to read my article on the growing epidemic of “cutting” (self-injury).  For the record, the magazine took some editorial liberty with my article - most notably changing most of the pronouns to “she” and “her.”  I assume they did so because of the common misperception that self-injury is primarily a female problem.  While there does seem to be a higher percentage of females with this problem, the percentage appears higher due to the much higher rate of females seeking professional treatment.  Unfortunately, we males continue to be socialized with the idea that we aren’t allowed to have problems beyond our control - that this is a sign of weakness, the ultimate shame for a male.  (For more on this topic, read “Wild at Heart” by John Eldredge.)

Some of you have healthy, vibrant, joy-filled marriages that are a great source of security and love in your life.  It’s not perfect, but it sure is good!  If so, please consider finding another couple or two to mentor.  Believe me, some couple out there could really use your encouraging example.  Others reading this post are not so content.  Your marriage has sadly become a source of discouragement and pain, and you aren’t sure what to do, or even how you got here.  If you find yourself in this group, or even just need a boost to a good marriage - read on (then pass it on to someone else). 

Most of us did a great job being a loving, supportive, encourager to our spouse back in the days of dating, courtship, and engagement.  Everything was so fresh and new, and your sweetheart just seemed so perfect and easy to serve wholeheartedly.  You felt compelled to do kind, loving, encouraging things for this wonderful person who could make you feel good with simply a word or a smile.  Then you got married, saw the real-life unedited version of one another, disappointed each other and hurt each other a few times, and suddenly it wasn’t so easy to focus on blessing them.  You started putting more and more energy into protecting and defending yourself.  Before you knew what happened, you had become an adversary of your imperfect spouse, rather than an advocate of your beloved sweetheart.  Following is a very simple explanation of what leads to being either an adversary or an advocate to your mate: (more…)