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5 Ways to Encourage Dads This Father's Day

Dads provide their families with guidance, protection, and leadership. They are a role model for their kids. Dads set the standard for what a dad and husband look like in their future relationships. Men in the faith have the opportunity to teach their kids about proper fear of the Lord and how to repent when we sin. They model what godly, fatherly love looks like.

4 Things Dads Really Want on Father's Day

Fathers carry a lot of responsibility. From providing for their families to keeping things in working order, fathers tend to carry the world's weight on their shoulders. This Father's Day, let's be sensitive to the dads who just need a break.

10 Powerful Ways Dads Can Forge a Strong Relationship with Their Daughter

Without words, my dad faithfully repaired the doorframe every time my teenage angst slammed it off its alignment. No one ever asked him to check on me after an outburst that ended in tears behind that slammed door, but he always did. My dad loved me despite the massive cloud that took over from time to time during those hard, teen years. When I was wrong. When I overreacted. When my heart was broken by some boy. My dad always checked in to make sure I was OK. He reminded me who I was and that he loved me.I realize not everyone is blessed with the same story, but from the outpouring of mine, I share ways that fathers can forge lasting and real relationships with their daughters. It’s not rocket science. Rather, it’s simply putting the door back on the hinges, wiping the tears away, and lending hugs to let them know they are loved more than they could possibly understand.Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Jonathan Borba

When Should I Give My Child a Phone?

There are very few things in parenting where numerical benchmarks are useful. Instead, we should ask, “What characteristics does my child need to show in order to get a cell phone?” This gives our kids something to grow into rather than passively waiting for that magic number. We know we are responsible for their moral character and development, ultimately teaching and modeling the gospel.

How to Find Biblical Joy When You Think You’ve Failed As a Parent

As hard as we try, it is impossible to be a perfect parent. We are going to sin against our children in some way. We are continuing to grow and mature as we raise them, and they will see our weaknesses and our sin. We can rest in the fact that God has forgiven our sins, and we humbly ask for forgiveness from our children for the ways we have let them down.

5 Steps to Having a Simpler Summer

This summer, I am making it a point to say yes more often. Yes, to fun. Yes, to time together. Yes, to spontaneity. Yes, to crazy, out of the normal ideas. Yes, I know the sound of that may not sound fun if you are an initial "no" person like me. But, when we strive to bond with our children and cultivate simple joy, it starts by saying yes!

Crucial Steps to Building Biblical Literacy with Your Child

If I were to ask you to tell me all of the Bible verses and stories that you remember off of the top of your head, what would you say? Would the majority of these be from recent study or childhood? Although everyone’s stories are different, many of us grew up learning about Jesus and the Bible from our parents and our churches. Perhaps you were in a Christian school where there was an entire class dedicated to Scripture memory? As much as I dreaded those quizzes sometimes, I have God’s Word hidden in my heart because of them.Today, we are going to address why Biblical literacy is so important for children.Photo credit:©Getty Images/rudi_suardi

How Foster Care Practically Shows Us the Gospel

The gospel — the story of God living a human life, giving up that life to defeat death, and rising up again as a human with a whole new kind of life — makes perfect sense out of foster parenting.First off, in Christ, God’s love came alongside and inhabited our lives. He didn’t stand far off, at a safe distance, and attempt to fix the world’s problems with a zap of his miracle-working power. Rather, he choose tobecomehuman (John 1:14). Perhaps most surprising of all, when he picked out a human life for himself, he chose low social standing, poverty, and disdain (2 Corinthians 8:9; Isaiah 53:3).What can this say to us about foster parenting?Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Nastco

4 Ways to Help Calm Your Anxious Child

As an adult, I've struggled with anxiety, all the while hoping and praying my kids would be spared the same struggle. Unfortunately, it seems anxiety is something my kids have begun to experience. Thankfully, my personal battle has given me eyes to see the difficulty they are facing. When I think back to my childhood, I had similar struggles that I observe in my own children, but no one was able to identify this as anxiety. Research has shown that children of a parent with an anxiety disorder have a 33 percent higher chance of having it themselves.Anxiety can feel like a beast that is daunting to defeat, but the good news is it is possible to overcome the sensations that flood our minds and bodies when anxiety hits. We can help our children by teaching them strategies that lead to a more peaceful mind and body. It's our job to walk alongside them as they learn to understand how their minds and bodies work.Here are a few tips to help you calm your anxious child:
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/PeopleImages

15 Unique Ways to Celebrate Dad This Father’s Day

What if your dad is leaving you a little bewildered, and you want to do something truly different this year, but you can't seem to conjure up any new or unique ideas? Well, not to fret; I've gotcha covered! First, tap into what makes your dad tick. What does he enjoy or like to do in his spare time? Is he a golfer? Does he love boats? Maybe he likes to explore and step out in nature.

Things Every Middle Schooler Needs to Hear

Nobody feels cool in middle school - not even the self-proclaimed orassumedcool kid crowd. It's one of the times in our lives when everything changes at once. The time we need to be reminded of what doesn't change.

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