This Week in Faith 5-22-20

Come to Me All Who Have COVID Weariness, and I Will Give You Rest

This is a great reminder of the rest all of us need, and can find in Jesus. Especially for those of you who are really struggling during this time, I hope this is a good reminder for you. And a good admonition to not suffer in silence but to reach out to someone and let them know you are hurting. It also includes a song we are singing in worship this Sunday.

Click here to read the article by Benjamin Vrbicek.

Mothering in a Pandemic

This article is full of grace and encouragement for parenting during this time. There is a lot to think about and a lot of pressure we can put on ourselves to keep up with all the posts of what everyone else is doing and getting done. But our time with God is most important right now as we are desperate for something to anchor our souls. There’s an interesting connection to our study of Exodus and Exodus 12 in particular as well. Something I hadn’t really thought as the challenge for Israelite parents as they left Egypt for the Promised Land.

Click here to read Thea article by Anne Swindell.

Why the Coronavirus Crisis Hits Teenagers Particularly Hard: Developmental Scientists Explain

It’s helpful to understand how the effects of social distancing might be manifesting themselves in your kids. It’s easy for me to chalk up their frustrating behavior to being tired or not wanting to listen, but I need to remember that there are real effects to their mental and social health that might even make them act out of character. And, while the article credits our kids’ need for social interaction to being evolutionarily wired for it, we know that they need it because they are made in the image of God and our God is relational. And while this article is a little old now, so the school suggestions are not as helpful as we move into the summer, there’s a lot to take away about understanding what’s going on in our kids and how we can respond to it in a way that acknowledges it and helps them.

Click here to read the article by Leah Lessard and Hannah Schacter.

How an Evil Virus Points to the Crushing Weight of the Fall

This is a thoughtful piece on the difference between asking “Why is this happening to me?” and “Why is this happening to us?” in the midst of suffering. Suffering often feels arbitrary because, while there are plenty of times we suffer as a result of our bad choices, there are just as many times that suffering seems to come out of the blue. And while we can’t always answer why God allows us to experience suffering [he can, but he doesn’t always share that info with us], we can understand why suffering exists. And as we understand and experience the root of suffering in this world, it points us to a savior who gives us hope in the next world.

Click here to read the article by David French.

Redemptive Re-entry Inventory

This is a worksheet to help you think through returning to normal family life. It gives you questions to ask about the past few months and about what is most important for your family as you have the opportunity to create a new normal going forward. 

Click here to use the worksheet from Kristen Hatton.

A List of Great Christian Videos Free on Amazon Prime Video

I’ll be honest, I’ve watched very few things on this list. Especially the “Christian” movies which I’m not always a big fan of [but that’s a conversation for another day :)]. But I didn’t realize that these different types of things are available on Amazon Prime Video for free. The documentaries of people from church history, the Ligonier teaching series, and even the Christianity Explored class that Pastor Nathan will be teaching in the fall. So, there are some good things on the list to check out if you have a subscription to Amazon Prime Video, or if you are “borrowing” one from a friend!

Click here to see the list from Kevin Halloran.

This Week in Faith 5-17-20

We’ve had plenty of articles lately on Covid and how to take advantage of time with our kids so I wanted to take this week’s blog to focus on thinking about how we, as the church, can respond to racial violence. And how we can help our kids empathize, respond, and be a light of hope in the midst of the racial tensions that exist in our country right now. Wouldn’t it be beautiful if our church and our families were a catalyst for racial reconciliation and justice in our community. If you have not seen the video or read the accounts of this terrible event, it is haunting to watch men lie in wait for a man and kill him when he tries to get away. And then to remember this happened, along with the numerous injustices surrounding it, in our state, in a community not all that different from our own.

I know it is easy to respond to something like this by starting with our political viewpoint or a hot-take opinion we read or heard about it, but I would encourage you to use the links below to understand the fear and anger that this tragedy confirms for those who experience life in our country differently from you. And there are also a few articles on lament. Often, it feels like we don’t know what to do with the feelings that something like this starts within us. But the Bible gives us a guide to lament as a starting point. We’ve even seen examples of lament in our Bible reading over the last few weeks and these articles help us apply that practice.

For those of you who experience this fear and anger as people of color in our country, or as those who parent kids that are racial minorities, I hope reading and listening to these things will bring you comfort in the midst of your fears, and a way to express the emotions you feel in the moment. For those of you who don’t experience this reality on a regular basis, I hope this will help you love your neighbor by listening to and learning from your neighbor, from your brothers and sisters in Christ, who do experience it. You may not agree with everything that is written but the goal is not first to agree, but understand- and especially to understand those who we have been united to as God’s family, through the sacrifice of Jesus.

Besides the things below, I’ll remind you of two books that are great for helping you have these conversations with your kids.

God’s Very Good Idea: A True Story of God’s Delightfully Different Family by Trilia Newbell

God Made Me and You: Celebrating God’s Design for Ethnic Diversity by Shai Linne

How to Grieve Racial Violence through Lament

Click here to read the article by Mark Vroegop.

Lamenting the Death of Ahmaud Arbery

Click here to read the document from The Summit Church.

Ahmaud Arbery and the Trauma of Being a Black Runner

Click here to read the article by Dante Stewart.

‘Nickel Boys’ and the Double Victory of Love Over Racial Injustice

Click here to read the article by Rachel Gilson.

PODCAST: From Mother to Son on Race, Religion, and Relevance

Click here to listen to this interview from Gospelbound.

This Week in Faith 5-7-20

To Mother’s Day and Beyond

Moms- thank you for all you do to raise your kids to maturity and point them to Jesus. I hope you get everything you are hoping for this Sunday on Mother’s Day to celebrate this incredible role God has given you. But whether or not you do, your job as a mom will continue on Monday. Which makes this a good reminder of what’s most important about your calling as a mom, as well as the tools and encouragement the gospel offers you to help carry it out.

Click here to read the article by Trish Donahue.

Reinventing Graduation: 3 Ways to Honor Milestones in the Midst of Pandemic

This will be a challenging season for graduates who have looked forward to this milestone for a long time. We shouldn’t minimize the effects that it can have on seniors and the discouragement it could leave them feeling. There are so many good ideas in this article for how to recognize and celebrate this huge accomplishment in the lives of our seniors. We want to think about what we can do as a church but also what we can do as family, friends and mentors. I’d love to hear some of what you decide to do to celebrate a senior in your life.

Click here to read the article by Hannah Lee Sandoval.

How to Care For Friends with Anxiety and Depression

Even before this pandemic, this generation of middle and high school students were facing an epidemic of anxiety and loneliness. Needless to say, Covid hasn’t improved the situation. Whether we’re talking about our kids, another family member, a friend, or neighbor, it can be a helpless feeling to watch someone you care about struggle with anxiety and depression. While you can’t replace the effectiveness of a trained counselor, this article gives some good suggestions on things you might be able to do to help and encourage someone who is struggling. 

Click here to read the article by Emma Scrivener.

PODCAST: All About Boys with David Thomas

This is the first episode of a new podcast about raising boys, and it’s really good. I heard David Thomas do a seminar on raising boys a few years ago and I still use some of the things I learned there. This will be a weekly podcast where he looks at raising boys from lots of different angles. This first episode includes the developmental stages of boys, a positive look at boys’ needs to be constantly moving, discipline and more. There were enough good things in here that I’m going to listen to it again. I love how he takes so many things that people typically look down on about boys, and that even frustrate us parents in them, and looks at them as a good part of what makes them who they are and challenges us embrace those characteristics and help our boys use them for the good God intends. I’m looking forward to this whole series.

Click here to listen to the new podcast from Rooted Ministry.

This Week in Faith 5-1-20

Here is our new Scripture and catechism memory fro the month of May. If you want to take a video of your child reciting their memory stuff and send it to either Stephanie [baandsteph@yahoo.com] or myself [stevenb@faithpcachurch.org] then we’ll send them a prize. Bonus points if you memorize it and say it with them :)

SCRIPTURE MEMORY
Psalm 136:1-6, 26

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his steadfast love endures forever;

to him who alone does great wonders, for his steadfast love endures forever;
to him who by understanding made the heavens, for his steadfast love endures forever;
to him who spread out the earth above the waters, for his steadfast love endures forever;

Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever.

CATECHISMS

Question #17 and #18
Click here for the questions and answers.

————————————————————————————-

What Does a Christian Owe Their Neighbor in a Time of Crisis

If you haven’t seen it yet, I thought it was worth pointing out the letter that Martin Luther wrote 500 years ago about how Christians should respond in a time of pandemic. It is an incredibly balanced position that this article sums up well, what the author calls an “ethic of responsible love”. There is a link to the original Luther letter in the article. Even though the article is a month old, I think it applies as much to thinking about how we return from quarantine as entering into it. Everyone will need to consider for themselves and their family what is the best speed to return to normalcy, including participating in worship on Sunday mornings [when we return] and serving. And part of loving each other will include patient understanding with those who decide differently than us. I hope this helps us with that.

Click here to read the article by Andrew Walker.

What Your To-Do List Can’t Accomplish

I am finding, spring this time, that it is easy to feel like I’m not measuring up. Everyone has ideas about what to do, and a list of projects they have accomplished. It’s hard not to feel like we should constantly be doing more. This is a great reminder that what’s been done for us by our savior, Jesus should define us more than what we have been able to do today, this week, or during this pandemic. It’s a reminder I needed to hear…and maybe you do too.

Click here to read the article by Gloria Furman.

The Hiding Place: A Family Read-Aloud for Uncertain Times

We read The Hiding Place with our kids a few years ago. It was a great book to read and a good way to help our kids think about what it looks like to live out their faith, even when it is not easy. If you are looking for something to read as a family, especially with kids of varied ages, this would be a good one. She includes some good discussion questions in the article as well.

Click here to read the article by Christina Fox.

PODCAST: Ask Alice: The Impact of Both Order and Family Roles on Sibling Dynamics

I’ll be honest- I haven’t listened to this one yet. But it looks interesting and I’m looking forward to it. With 4 kids, and such a big age gap between our oldest 3 and our youngest, we have some complicated birth order dynamics. There are a couple other podcasts about siblings in the article as well. I’ve listened to some of them and they are good.

Click here to listen to the podcasts with Alice Churnock.

VIDEO: How COVID-19 is Affecting Kids with Anxiety

Sissy Goff is a Christian counselor who has written a number of books and speaks regularly about raising kids. This video is part of an interview she did at a conference I participated in last week. She talks about some of the positive and negative things she has seen in kids with anxiety as she continues to counsel them through the pandemic.

Click here to watch the interview with Sissy Goff.

This Week in Faith 4-24-20

Pandemic Parenting: Starting New with your Teenager and Young Adult Kids

The longer we go through this season of life, the easier it is in my moments of weariness to settle for surviving this time instead of taking advantage of the opportunities it gives me to grow closer to my family and to Jesus. I appreciated this article challenging the cynicism we’re all tempted to fall into and to help think what it could look like to really grow in our faith and with our kids during this time. He also has some good questions to get conversations going about what’s really going on with our kids. I’m praying for you [and me!] to be able to look back when all this ends and be really grateful for what God has done in us and our families.

Click here to read the article by Steve Argue.

It’s Not Often in Life You Get a Do-Over [so take the do-over!]

So much of what’s been written over the last month and a half revolved around life in a pandemic. This article is an encouragement to think about when we return to normalcy. So often we get swept up in the busyness of schedules and commitments that before we know it, our lives look much different than we had hoped and we feel trapped with no way to honestly reevaluate what we’ve filed our lives with. What a perfect opportunity, when we get through this time, to be intentional about what we add back. What have we been fine without? What have we really enjoyed about this time [we don’t have to stop doing it!]? What has helped us grow in our faith during this time? Begin to ask these questions now for yourself and help your kids do the same.

Click here to read the article by Tim Challies.

VIDEO: Parenting Teens in Quarantine with Cami Summers

This is a short video with a couple of good ideas to try and some encouragement for the weary.

Click here to watch the video with Cami Summers.

BOOK: Why Do We Say Good Night? When You Are Afraid of the Dark

This has been our bedtime book with Randy, our 3 year old, for the last month or so. I like it a lot and it has helped him go to bed a little easier [on most nights at least]. It talks about our fears of the dark but also that God made the dark and he is awake and at work in the dark. If you are looking for something to help a younger kid with their fears of the dark, I would recommend this book.

Click here to see the description of the book and more info.