Not a Best Friend You might become the best friend of your offspring once he or she is grown, but you can’t be your child’s best friend. That’s because you’re the parent. A coach can’t be the best friend of one of his players. And, just like a teacher can’t be a student’s best friend, so a parent cannot be his child’s best friend. It’s that simple – and that hard. That’s hard to imagine … Read more
Caterpillar Lessons on Struggle As kids, we watched caterpillars develop their own cocoon. When I was in first grade, our teacher placed a caterpillar in a jar and screwed the lid on tight. She punched holes into the lid so the caterpillar was able to breathe. In less than two weeks, the caterpillar developed legs. It began shedding its skin – many different times. Each time it shed its skin, a new skin was there, … Read more
The Drawing Salve – It Works This drawing salve is homemade, easy to make, and works powerfully. The jar I have is many years old, and the salve still works well. A few days ago I cleaned up broken glass in my kitchen. Apparently I missed a small sliver, for it found its way onto the bottom of my heel. That wouldn’t happen, I know, if I didn’t go barefoot. 😉 I hobbled around on … Read more
The Music of Marriage A marriage can survive long-distance physical separation that is inevitable because of jobs and responsibilities. To do so requires the couple to make a concerted effort to stay in tune with each other, even when continents and oceans separate them. What about the “at home” marriages, where we see each other daily? What type of rhythm do we play? For a married couple, it’s important to stay tuned to each other. … Read more
The Beginning of Altars The Old Testament stories are full of kings and priests. There were two differences: the ones who tore down altars and the ones who allowed them to stay. Several kings did what was right, but most of them didn’t. They were either influenced by their pagan wives, by previous kings, by politics, or by the people. Hezekiah was one king who destroyed the high places, shattered sacred pillars, cut down poles, … Read more