“If you could eat dinner with anyone, who would you pick?” Before you keep reading, take a moment and answer the question. Where did your mind go? Someone famous? Someone from the Bible? A hero or a friend? I recently saw a commercial from Australia where this…
Pack shoebox gifts as a family and double your impact. Teach your children about caring for others as your family extends God’s love to a boy or girl in need. By Operation Christmas Child, a project of Samaritan’s Purse We often talk about the importance of parents…
When we adopted our son Luca from Russia in 2008, we had to take two separate trips in the fall of that year. The destination each time? A small orphanage, Konakova Children’s Home, located outside of the small town of Tver, about two hours north of Moscow. The first…
“This is the Worst. Day. EVER!” If you have children, I imagine you’ve heard them say this once or twice when things didn’t quite go their way. Like maybe when they have to clean their room or eat all their dinner. We smile, because we’ve all been there, but at…
If you are a parent of a young child, you probably have a plethora of plastic plates in your cupboards, with little compartments for each part of the meal, because if you are a parent, you KNOW that the food can’t touch! My 4 yr. old son is very clear that not only…
There are very few ways to serve others in this world that are more fun and impactful than working with children in your local church. Whether you’re a “professional” receiving a paycheck for your leadership in the children’s ministry, or a volunteer that is paid in…
Some people dread the cold snowy weather. The thought of being stuck in the house all day does not always seem fun. Even though the kids are excited that school is out, they will soon be asking, “What can we do?” Here’s a list of 20 fun and simple things that you can…
I’m sure I could have many more teenage followers from my daughter’s school had I entitled this article “How to Date MY Daughter,” but alas I have her convinced that at this age dating boys is not in her best interest right now. But that is another blog post for…
Being a grandparent may be one of the best roles God has given any adult. When grandchildren are born, something very special takes place inside the grandparent. At least, this was our experience. Grandchildren are very special. Interestingly, in our experience…
And with the stroke of midnight and the turning back of the clocks…it happened. Somehow we magically moved into the mysterious time we call the “holiday season.” In just three days my Facebook feed has lit up with posts about Christmas, posts against…
If Jesus were the guest preacher at your church, what would you do with your kids? Let that question sink in for a moment. This question was posed by Rob Rienow to a group of ministers and parents yesterday and I literally watched the reactions go from “Bring them of…
Planning Center loves churches. In fact, two thirds of our team have worked on staff at churches. We know what it’s like to be in the trenches, struggling with the complex problems a church faces. Sometimes, adding a complicated management system on top of the mess…