Christmas is Dangerous

Usually, those two words don't go together, but the more I think about it, the more I believe it. There is no other time of the year where children are tempted to be more self-centered and selfish. I don't really know what it is. It could be the fact that everyone is asking them "what they want." It might be tons and tons of commercials that are purposefully directed at your children. It might be that for your kids, Christmas, despite all your efforts, is still all about them.

And so, because of that...it's my belief that Christmas is a dangerous time for the hearts of your children. Proverbs 4:23 instructs us to "guard our hearts, because they are the wellspring of life." What are you doing over the next few days to protect the hearts of your children from the greed-inducing, selfishness-producing, and materialism-enhancing holiday season.

Here are just a couple of thoughts off the top of my head...

• Reward and acknowledge generosity and selflessness in your home
• Ask the children about what they're giving for Christmas as much as you ask them about what they want for Christmas
• Give them change/money to give to the bell-ringers outside of stores and then explain where that money goes
• Clean out their rooms of "old" toys in preparation for the new ones and give it to worthy organization/charity

I'm sure there are more, but I'll let you be creative on the rest!

You're in a War...

Because you live in the United States, and because you live in the suburbs (if you live within 15 miles or so of Firewheel Church), your kids will battle consumerism, selfishness, and materialism all their lives.

What's even scarier is that it's Christmas time right now, and the danger is for kids to begin to think that this time of year is all about them. I'm not saying throw out the presents and don't do Christmas this year, but I am asking you to consider how you can "war against" this mindset in your home and your families.

One of the easiest ways to battle materialism and selfishness is to begin to develop children with a generous heart and promote generosity in your family. Do you have a plan for that? Here's a quick little message to give you some inspiration.

What have you done to teach your children the importance of giving?

Throughout the month of December in in the elementary area, we will be talking about this idea of "GENEROSITY." There may be lots of opportunities for you as a parent to have discussions with your kids about what they're learning and why it matters.

It's the most wonderful/ridiculous time of the year...

Black Friday has come and gone, and we're officially in the midst of the Christmas season. As I grow older, I've developed a little bit of a love/hate relationship with the Christmas season. Let me explain.

I love it because, it's a chance to celebrate that God intervened in the world by sending His Son to the earth. I still haven't gotten over that fact that God would love the world enough to do that. The idea that the "Word became flesh" is literally the event most worthy of celebration in the history of the world.

On the other hand, I live in a world that "celebrates" a much different Christmas. For the next solid month, I'll be surrounded by rampant consumerism, credit card debt, and some downright ridiculousness. It might be that I'm just getting older, but it seems to get more and more ridiculous every year.

So here's you're thought for the day as you wrestle with this tension about how to focus your family's life and thought for the next month or so...

There will be tons of people who are more more concerned with what they want from Santa rather than being concerned with what Jesus wants from them. How can you combat that in your family's life? What's your plan because you can't stumble into intentionality?

Christmas is Dangerous...

Usually, those two words don't go together, but the more I think about it, the more I believe it. There is no other time of the year where children are tempted to be more self-centered and selfish. I don't really know what it is. It could be the fact that everyone is asking them "what they want." It might be tons and tons of commercials that are purposefully directed at your children. It might be that for your kids, Christmas, despite all your efforts, is still all about them.

And so, because of that...it's my belief that Christmas is a dangerous time for the hearts of your children. Proverbs 4:23 instructs us to "guard our hearts, because they are the wellspring of life." What are you doing over the next few days to protect the hearts of your children from the greed-inducing, selfishness-producing, and materialism-enhancing holiday season.

Here are just a couple of thoughts off the top of my head...

• Reward and acknowledge generosity and selflessness in your home
• Ask the children about what they're giving for Christmas as much as you ask them about what they want for Christmas
• Give them change/money to give to the bell-ringers outside of stores and then explain where that money goes
• Clean out their rooms of "old" toys in preparation for the new ones and give it to worthy organization/charity

I'm sure there are more, but I'll let you be creative on the rest!

You're in a war...

Because you live in the United States, and because you live in the suburbs (if you live within 15 miles or so of Firewheel Church), your kids will battle consumerism, selfishness, and materialism all their lives.

What's even scarier is that it's Christmas time right now, and the danger is for kids to begin to think that this time of year is all about them. I'm not saying throw out the presents and don't do Christmas this year, but I am asking you to consider how you can "war against" this mindset in your home and your families.

One of the easiest ways to battle materialism and selfishness is to begin to develop children with a generous heart and promote generosity in your family. Do you have a plan for that. Here's a quick little message to give you some inspiration.

What have you done to teach your children the importance of giving?

It's the Most Wonderful/Ridiculous Time of the Year...

Black Friday has come and gone, and we're officially in the midst of the Christmas season. As I grow older, I've developed a little bit of a love/hate relationship with the Christmas season. Let me explain.

I love it because, it's a chance to celebrate that God intervened in the world by sending His Son to the earth. I still haven't gotten over that fact that God would love the world enough to do that. The idea that the "Word became flesh" is literally the event most worthy of celebration in the history of the world.

On the other hand, I live in a world that "celebrates" a much different Christmas. For the next solid month, I'll be surrounded by rampant consumerism, credit card debt, and some downright ridiculousness. It might be that I'm just getting older, but it seems to get more and more ridiculous every year.

So here's you're thought for the day as you wrestle with this tension about how to focus your family's life and thought for the next month or so...

There will be tons of people who are more more concerned with what they want from Santa rather than being concerned with what Jesus wants from them. How can you combat that in your family's life? What's your plan because you can't stumble into intentionality?

Commercialization of Children

I ran across this video the other day about the world children live in and how commercialized it has become. Check it out!



What are the implications of this for raising children who live a different kind of life because their allegiance is to God (at least I'm assuming that's your goal)?

Food for Thought #8

I found this article the other day, and although I knew how much time kids, tween, and teenagers spent "plugged in" to entertainment, the numbers really shocked me. I found this article by Albert Mohler to be extrmely informative and food for thought.

The Online Life of Kids


So, the question for us today is that despite the growing trend of media and technology in all facets of life, do you have times in your kids life where there is encouraged/forced/mandated times of "disconnecting." It's definitely something to consider.

Christmas is Dangerous

Usually, those two words don't go together, but the more I think about it, the more I believe it. There is no other time of the year where children are tempted to be more self-centered and selfish. I don't really know what it is. It could be the fact that everyone is asking them "what they want." It might be tons and tons of commercials that are purposefully directed at your children. It might be that for your kids, Christmas, despite all your efforts, is still all about them.

And so, because of that...it's my belief that Christmas is a dangerous time for the hearts of your children. Proverbs 4:23 instructs us to "guard our hearts, because they are the wellspring of life." What are you doing over the next two weeks to protect the hearts of your children from the greed-inducing, selfishness-producing, and materialism-enhancing holiday season.

Here are just a couple of thoughts off the top of my head...

• Reward and acknowledge generosity and selflessness in your home
• Ask the children about what they're giving for Christmas as much as you ask them about what they want for Christmas
• Give them change/money to give to the bell-ringers outside of stores and then explain where that money goes
• Clean out their rooms of "old" toys in preparation for the new ones and give it to worthy organization/charity

I'm sure there are more, but I'll let you be creative on the rest!

You're in a war...

Because you live in the United States, and because you live in the suburbs (if you live within 15 miles or so of Firewheel Church), your kids will battle consumerism, selfishness, and materialism all their lives.

What's even scarier is that it's Christmas time right now, and the danger is for kids to begin to think that this time of year is all about them. I'm not saying throw out the presents and don't do Christmas this year, but I am asking you to consider how you can "war against" this mindset in your home and your families.

One of the easiest ways to battle materialism and selfishness is to begin to develop children with a generous heart and promote generosity in your family. Do you have a plan for that. Here's a quick little message to give you some inspiration.

What have you done to teach your children the importance of giving?

How many people would still show?

I have had a thought that has stayed with me since Friday night. On Friday night, our team in Colombia had a victory service to celebrate the week. Along with all the North Americans, hundreds and hundreds of Colombians "crammed" into a church that had no A/C and barely any fans. It was about 93 degrees that night and the humidity was around 90%. There was no air moving at all, and within 10 minutes of being in the building, my shirt was soaked through with sweat. And you know what the coolest thing was...I didn't care at all. I was as hot as I could possibly be, and I've never wanted to be anywhere else anymore than I did that night.

So, here's the question that has stuck with me...

If it were late July in Dallas, and it was supposed to be 100-something degrees on a Sunday morning. If everyone knew that the A/C was broken at the church and there was no hope of it being fixed before services, how many people would still show up?

My sneaking suspicion is that many of the people we see on Sunday mornings wouldn't show. They'd just frankly stay home! Would you be one of those people? Would you forego the beauty of gathering with the assembly of believers and offering your praises to God? Oh, how my heart hurts for the state of Christianity in America...where so often, it's more about us and our comforts, than about God.

I'm not pointing fingers at all...I'm just grieving over this thought that has stuck with me. My prayer is that it would stick with you as well.

Headed to Colombia...

Tomorrow, I will leave for 7 days and travel to the Baranquilla, Colombia. I'm a part of our church's mission team down there. Although a bit nervous, I'm looking forward to having my "American" lifestyle challenged. I know the kinds of things I will probably see, and I'm positive that my life will be altered in some way.

Here's the deal. I didn't grow up with a lot of money...at all. We always had food, but there were some months where my family barely scraped by...and I mean barely. But what I do know is that I was LUCKY to grow up with a lower-middle-class lifestyle. One parting thought for you to consider...

Do your children really understand how fortunate they are? They are all so blessed to live in the US and most have more than they will ever need. What can you do to help them gain a proper global perspective...that they have far more than 95% of the children who live on this earth?

Food for Thought - #5

I am not trying to be the bearer of bad news, but whether you are aware of it or not...

CHRISTMAS is coming!!!

• Are you prepared to battle the rampant "consumerism" that is about to attack your children in the next couple of months?
• Have you thought about how you could leverage the power of Christmas in order to teach lessons about God?
• What if...just for a moment...you could use this holiday season to help your children not give their hearts away to trinkets and toys that they will forget about in a few months?

Now, I'm not one of these "no gifts" or "Santa Clause is evil" kind of guys. But there's one thing I do know, is that Christmas is a time of year where selfishness and other "heart issues" can rear their ugly heads. What's your plan for redeeming the Christmas season and keeping your families attitudes and hearts focused on the reason for celebration of Christmas?