HopeForYourFamily

Although I’ve never been to medical school, people come to my office every day for cardiology exams. Most of the time, they don’t even know they have a heart condition, but the symptoms have finally compelled them to seek help. And their complaints sound something like this:

He just doesn’t listen to me!

She really doesn’t care about me anymore!

I’m sick of all the fighting.

etc…etc…etc

The list of specific complaints, issues, frustrations, and problems is a long one. However, I have learned that there is frequently a common source of the marital “sickness.” Someone in this marriage (often both spouses) has a heart condition. Jesus wisely explains to us that out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. The way we speak and act in any relationship, certainly including marriage, is going to be a reflection of our inner life. Our attitudes and character, frequently referred to in scripture as our “heart,” is what drives the actions of our lives and who we are in our relationships. (more…)

I’ll be posting some more of my own thoughts later this weekend, but for now, I’ve just got to pass this along.

My good friend, Troy, just told me about this book.  It’s called “The Dangerous Book for Boys” by Conn & Hal Iggulden, two brothers from the UK.  It has become a runaway best seller over there, and is set to be released in the US on May 1.  Following are some excerpts from an interview Amazon did with Conn Iggulden:  (more…)

Click here to access my list of recommended reading for self-injury. Also, there are several links to helpful websites under the section of “self-injury links” on the right side column of my website.

Check out my Parenting 101 page to see my latest interview and read the Q & A regarding children/adolescents and self-injury.

Well, I knew Earth Day 2007 was coming this week, but I didn’t realize it was yesterday. When it dawned on me today, I felt a bit disappointed I had done nothing to officially mark the day - although I continue to work at being mindful of caring for our planet, people, and resources on a daily basis. But then, I realized my family actually celebrated the day about as effectively as anyone could. On Saturday and Sunday, my wife and son and I were gathered with a group of other families from our church, having our annual family retreat at Camp Smiling Acres. And if you ask anyone who attended, they will tell you where my son was the whole time - on the big pile of dirt. So, I guess we really did have a great Earth Day awareness activity. With no television in sight, out in the natural beauty of camp, we celebrated with him as he conquered the “mountain.” And it gave me a deep sense of hope and contentment, knowing my son is more enthralled by a big mound of earth than by the latest toy and gaming gadgetry. All it cost us was a couple pairs of socks! (Trust me, anyone who could have brought those socks back to whiteness deserves their own infomercial.)

This week, my family and I will be fasting.  Not just any old fast, either.  This one will really hit where it hurts - it’s National TV Turnoff Week!  See last year’s post to appreciate the implications of this.  The good news is, my son has developed a much greater love of the outdoors - exploring, swimming, climbing, etc.  Here’s hoping our family has grown less hooked on TV since last year.  We’ll see.

For many couples and families, turning off the TV can be one of the most powerful, life changing, life giving, relationship renewing, physically healthy, spiritually healthy moves we can make.  You don’t realize how much of your life you give to TV until you pull the plug for a week.  Will you join me?  Check out the Center for Screentime Awareness for testimonies, insipiration, statistics, and suggestions for how to fill in the TV gaps this week.  And please, send me your stories at the end of the week.

Be strong!

Roger