rebelling against low expectations
You’ve probably heard the fifth of the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:12a, “Honor your father and your mother….” It’s repeated throughout scripture in both the Old and New Testaments—see Deut. 5:16, Leviticus 9:3, Matthew 19:19, and Mark 7:10. Obviously, honoring parents is something God is serious about. Yet, it’s something many people struggle with—young and old. I say this because no matter how...
It was a fine day in Georgia. The sun was hot, the air clear, and birds chirped in the trees. Typical. But in it all was a strange sense of foreboding. What had my mother said before she and my dad left? “When we get back, we’re going to tell you news that will change your life.” Now they were back. My sisters and I were all gathered around my dad in the living room. “Daddy, what is the news?”...
Pixar’s newest film, Turning Red, is clearly about puberty: as protagonist Meilin Lee enters her teenage years, she discovers that she is transformed into a giant red panda whenever she experiences strong emotions. What the film’s marketing has not made clear is who the intended audience is. Rated PG for thematic material, suggestive content, and language, this is decidedly not a children’s movie...
I am well aware that some parents feel they have “done everything right” and still their children are not turning out as they had hoped. After years of Christian schooling, or even home schooling, their kids are still struggling like the rest. A few kids have even renounced their faith and gone off into the world. Does this mean that it doesn’t matter what parents do? That...
“I hate you!” “What’s the big deal?” “Stop bossing me around.” “Get out of my face!” “If I could, I would report you to the Child Abuse Prevention Association.” “Why can’t you be like other parents?” “I don’t need you.” “Why don’t you just die?!” Have you ever harbored those thoughts before? (Maybe...
We see their pictures in the appeals for help on television and in the magazines. Starving children and sullen, miserable teenagers, living without families in slums and refugee camps around the world. Their suffering breaks our hearts and opens our wallets to offer help. They are the orphans of the world. They have no parents. It’s so very sad. They have no one to provide food and shelter...
Years ago I had the privilege of preaching at Covenant Life Church where my son, Joshua Harris, serves as senior pastor. The message was entitled Don’t Waste Your Kids, based on Psalm 127 (my wife and my “life verse”. Like everything I do now, it is intended to be listened to by teens and their parents at the same time. The reason for my insistence is simple. Kids are better kids when adults are...
Two questions we’ve been asked ever since Alex & Brett wrote Do Hard Things are, What role does the family play in doing hard things? and How do families do hard things together? As Alex & Brett’s father, I had opportunity to answer these questions in a message I presented to Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN where Dr. John Piper has served as pastor. The message is still...
At one of our Do Hard Things conferences in Dallas I made the following challenge to the parents in attendance. Alex & Brett thought is was good enough that they decided to share it with everyone here on the blog as well. Read it together as a family if you can and let us know what you think. It’s an encouragement from one parent to another. Parents, the first thing I want to tell you this...
rebelling against low expectations
