September 28

I Know You're the Tooth Fairy

My youngest son Matthew burst into the house after a long day in first grade and announced, “Hey, I know you’re the Tooth Fairy!” Assuming that “That Kid” had spilled the beans to all the naïve first graders, I asked, “Who told you that?”

He proceeded to explain to me that he figured out that I was the tooth fairy because some kids in his class got $5 when they lost a tooth and he only got $1. I was busted.

I told Matthew that for him, $1 was enough. Yet we do find ourselves parenting our children today in a culture that says bigger is better and having a lot of stuff makes you really happy. The culture says that thirty-two Webkinz certainly makes you much happier than two of them and $125 boots brings joy to your life like a $20 pair just can’t.

But that’s not what God says. He says, “Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income...” Ecclesiastes 5: 10-12

Don’t we want our kids to have enough? If we do, then God says that they can’t “love the stuff.” If we want them to be grateful for every good and perfect gift, they can’t be looking to find their joy in their stuff.

One thing that makes this lesson difficult to teach is that as moms, we love to give our kids abundance–more than just enough. Christmas morning is certainly exciting and a special birthday party can often be cherished for years, but a child will not even recognize these as abundance if they never have had a grasp of enough.

As you take a more critical look at the culture and the lies it pours out, how do you define “enough” for your family? What limits do you put in place so that your child will recognize abundance? How do you keep from feeling guilty because you opt out of activities or purchases that everyone else seems to be making? Let’s generate some conversation on this topic today, so we can learn from each other!

Yes, Matthew, $1 is enough for a tooth. And with the loss of 80 baby teeth in our home after the last 15 years, the tooth fairy has saved $320 that was used to feed the family rather than for super balls and some gum. And you, sweet boy, understand enough.

September 26

Loving & Cherishing Your Spouse

My parents didn’t model a healthy marriage. I think deep down they loved each other, but they sure didn’t seem to know how to treat each other. The one thing I learned from their marriage is you’re to be committed to staying married.

When I entered marriage, I thought marriage was just about staying together for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health for as long as we both live. After all, that’s what my parents did. I didn’t think about quality or “how to.” Marcus and I simply repeated the vows the pastor stated and became husband and wife. Read more...