Posts from 2022

Parents of all ages: I just finished reading Safe Guards by Julie Lowe, and the wisdom she shared from her 20+ years of counseling is too important for you to miss. It’s a Dangerous World for Kids and Teens We live in an era where children of all ages face unique dangers from so many directions. As parents, we struggle to keep up with the changing times and technologies. Our worst fear is that our child would be abused or…

Listen to their Hearts My oldest child is now 11 and in middle school. She will soon be a teenager. PANIC ATTACK!!!! I can already sense that parenting will look significantly different as we approach and enter the teenage years. Her mind is engaging at a new level of critical and independent thinking, and those skills will only deepen and progress with each passing month. I’m not really having a panic attack; in fact, I’m already enjoying watching her mind…

Kids and Communion At the Journey, we encourage kids to join us in the worship services. On the first Sunday of the month, we take communion together. What should kids do during communion? When are kids ready to take communion? Communion is a special moment in the life of the church. It is our covenant meal together, when we celebrate the body and blood of Jesus given for our sins. It expresses our unity in Christ, because it’s not our…

More Caught than Taught Many lessons are better caught than taught. We are called to “instruct” our kids in the things of the Lord. There are times that we need to sit down with kids, ranging from toddler age all the way up to teenagers, and TEACH them. We teach about life, money, relationships, work, the world, sex, and most of all, about God. Parents are the primary disciplers of kids, and teaching is a big part of that! But…

Why I Often Delay Baptism Baptism is a big deal. It is a public profession of faith in Jesus and an expression of a lifelong commitment to follow Jesus. It is a person saying to the church and the world, “I identify with Jesus” (Rom. 6:3-4). It is a church saying to a person, “we see that you believe.” And most importantly, it is commanded by Jesus (Matt. 28:19-20). Pretty serious, right? But let’s remember, baptism does not save someone.…

Are You Ready for WHEN Your Kids See Porn? I was first exposed to pornographic material when I was in 4th grade. It was at a friend’s birthday party, a sleepover, and late at night another boy put on one of the bad channels. And there it was. Thankfully, my parents and church had helped me to understand something was wrong with that movie, so I rolled over and closed my eyes. And yet, a few of the images I…

Parenting in the Margin I get it. Parenting is exhausting. There are simply not enough hours in the day or milligrams of caffeine to get everything done. So what are we to do? How do we balance our faith life, work, kids’ calendars, and sleep? How do we manage when something unexpected forces its way into our already packed-out Google calendar? Most of us are so overscheduled and so under-rested that when something unexpected happens in our life, something else…

Changing Your Family Legacy A question I often ask couples in pre-marital counseling is: “What did you see in your parents’ marriage that you want to do differently in your marriage?” This question generates intentional conversation about the topic of legacy. The same question can apply with parenting, grand-parenting, and being an aunt or uncle: “What did your parents (or grandparents, or aunts and uncles) do that you want to keep, and what did they do that you want to…

I think everyone gets songs stuck in their heads sometimes. If it’s a great song, it can motivate you through the day. If it’s a bad song, it can annoy you to no end. Music is powerful. It teaches us and influences us. This is why Justin and I are intentional with the songs we sing at church. We want church music to teach you truths about God and for those truths to get “stuck in our heads.” I think…

Discipline Through Connection Guest Authors:  Chris and Liz Leonard “I hate you!” “You don’t love me.” “No one cares about me.” About a year ago, it became apparent that we needed to change how we parent our children. We didn’t know what needed to change, but we knew that we couldn’t stay on the course we were on. Our pediatrician assured us that these big emotions were normal for the age, but we knew differently in our hearts. We didn’t…