Childhood memories leave a lasting impression on our lives. In walking down memory lane, here are some of my own childhood memories regarding Christmas (in no particular order):

• a Christmas tree in the living room
• special decorations, lights, and candles
• singing Christmas carols
• a Nativity set in which baby Jesus was placed in the center
• presents!
• family gatherings
• yummy meals and treats
• sitting by the fireplace with hot cocoa
• the Christmas Eve service at church
• celebrating the birth of Jesus

All beautiful and wonderful memories to instill in a child. But there is something very important missing from this list…something not impressed upon me as a child. Something we all need in our Christmas. What could this possibly be? Consider the following thoughts: (more…)

As a child, I remember the excitement I experienced as I watched the growing number of presents being placed under the Christmas tree. How many had my name on them? What was in that huge one? Would I receive the gift that I had been dreaming of? And yet, years later, I don’t really remember any of those gifts. All those tangible, child-delighting things have faded from memory. I am sure they were readily enjoyed for a time, but they didn’t have any life-long impact.

Along with some fun gifts, have you ever considered giving your children something that will provide a means of greater and longer lasting joy? Then consider giving your children…a catechism! Yes, a catechism. Not at the top of their “wish list”? Probably not even on the list. But consider the following words from Sally Michael:

Perhaps the reason many people have a negative opinion regarding catechisms and doctrinal teaching is that there is a prevalent misunderstanding of catechesis. What so often comes to mind are thoughts like: “rote memorization,” “boring,” “dry,” “lifeless,” and “mechanical.”

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Are you still looking for a meaningful and unique gift for a special child in your life? A gift that is relatively inexpensive, yet points children to riches beyond measure? A gift that can foster wonderful conversations between parents and children? Then consider choosing a book from the Making Him Known series.

Every book in the series consists of 26 chapters, written in child-friendly language, with full-color illustrations. Each book is designed to focus on particular aspects of the greatness and worth of God and our response to Him. Every chapter concludes with “Learning to Trust God” application questions to further spiritual discussion between child and parent and a suggested activity. They seek to address our children’s deepest need—to know, love, trust, and treasure God through Christ!
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The Lord knows that we need help to pray. That is why He taught His disciples how to pray and gave all believers His Spirit, so we would be able to pray even when we don’t feel able. Prayer does not change God; it changes us by revealing our sinful hearts, and it allows us to know God’s will, purposes and, most importantly, Himself. By prayer we get to know our Heavenly Father and learn to trust Him more with the cares of this life. (more…)

I often struggled with the impact of our Sunday church routine when our children were young. Their regular routines—food, naps, playtime, etc.—were disrupted, often resulting in tired crabby children and parents…and we only had two children. My daughter and her husband have four little ones. Multiply the potential struggles!

Parents, here is some encouragement provided by Megan Hill this week in her article, “Sundays Are for Babies.” I highly recommend that you read the entire, short article. Here is an excerpt:

Sundays are given to us as a day of rest—a reminder of God’s rest at creation and a foretaste of the saints’ everlasting rest in heaven. But the Lord’s Day rest is not simply an extended afternoon nap. True rest is found in pausing from our ordinary work and, as the Westminster Confession explains it, engaging in “the public and private exercises of His worship, and in the duties of necessity and mercy.” In those activities, we recharge our souls. On Sundays, God gives us a rest even better than sleep. (more…)

As parents, we want many things to be true of our children as they grow and mature. For example, we want our children to be loving, respectful, caring, productive, motivated, resilient, happy, and more. All are good things and worthwhile goals. All require some measure of our time and attention as we instruct and train our children toward these goals. But consider these words from 3 John 4:

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

This simple statement can serve to orient all of our parenting. It directs us to what is most important: More than anything else, our children need to know, embrace, and walk in the truth—the truth of God. The truth revealed in His Word has the power to make them wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ—the truth that all-satisfying and everlasting joy is found in Him alone, the truth that saving faith will be evidenced by a life that submits to the Savior and walks in His ways, the truth that we are to live all of life for the glory of God! (more…)

There are a variety of wonderfully exciting and visually appealing resources designed for the Sunday school classroom these days—high-tech digital media being just one example. There is no denying that these types of teaching tools have a special draw for children. But we must be extremely careful. As more than one pastor has cautioned the church: “What you win them with, is what you win them to.”

Recently we received an encouraging note from a teacher, Yvonne, who is using the Jesus, What a Savior curriculum in her classroom. Here is what she said: (more…)

Imagine your children 20 years from now. What do you want them to “stand upon” and have full confidence in? What will provide the only unshakable bedrock for them in the midst of the world’s changing norms and values? What will they hold fast to as they are bombarded with more and more information in our digital age? How will they be able to discern truth from error in a world of competing ideas and beliefs?

In the past few weeks, the 500^th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation has been highlighted and celebrated. We would do well to pass on to our children and students the importance of this historic event. The very essence of the Gospel was at stake as Luther and the other reformers reaffirmed the eternal truths of Scripture. One of these truths was the importance of the authority of Scripture alone. For Luther, it was truly a matter of life or death. Here is an excerpt from an article titled, “Here We Stand” by Albert Mohler:

Martin Luther’s great moment of theological clarification came at the climax of a command performance. Facing the threat of martyrdom and execution, Luther appeared on trial at the Diet of Worms before the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. Asked on what authority he dared to defy the Pope and the magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church, Luther famously replied: (more…)

We live in an increasingly postmodern world in which truth is no longer valued to the degree it once was. More often than not, people understand “truth” to be relative and self-defined, meaning that each person defines truth in a way that seems best to him or her. Furthermore, the acceptance of “absolute truth” has become a thing of the past—an old notion that is considered to be the source of intolerance and arrogance. Every day we are bombarded by a secular worldview, which is militant to absolute truth. Standing against this tide of postmodernism is the Truth of God—objective, absolute, universal, unchanging, and made knowable through God’s Word, the Bible. And that truth is not only necessary for salvation; it is also relevant for every aspect of life.

In her book Total Truth, Nancy Pearcey recalls the following quote from the late Francis Schaeffer:

Christianity is not a series of truths in the plural, but rather truth spelled with a capital “T.” Truth about total reality, not just about religious things. Biblical Christianity is Truth concerning total reality—the intellectual holding of total Truth and then living in the light of that Truth.

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One of my favorite sermons by Pastor David Michael is titled, “Spiritual Parenting: Pursuing the Greater Joy.” I whole-heartedly believe that it will be a blessing and encouragement to every Christian parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, mentor, teacher, small group leader, children’s and youth minister—every believer.