Pay Attention, Momma!

She was busy playing with baby dolls. I was busy doing who knows what.  But suddenly, a preschooler was tapping her toes, hands on hips, saying with great conviction, “Pay attention, Momma!” Now she’s ten … and she still cries out for my attention but it’s not always so obvious.  I have to listen a little more carefully for her cues and learn the right timing for serious talks and building our relationship as she grows up. If you have not yet encountered the tween/teen years, you may not ... [Read More]

The Point of Obedience

We’ve launched into a discussion of what I’m now calling Polite Parenting.  Yesterday, we began by considering: Principle 1: Don’t make it all about you. Remember this is all grounded in a recognition that all our relationships are to be defined by submission to one another (Ephesians 5:21) and that the very foundation of this mindset is being polite.  So as we consider the biblical instruction about parents and children, we understand that simple courtesy is the starting point of how we are ... [Read More]

It’s NOT All About You

I’ve been using Ephesians 5:21 as a guide in all my relationships for the past few weeks.  Remember that great paraphrase from The Message: Out of respect for Christ, be courteously reverent to each other. We spent several days looking at how that principle applies to to the first relationship Paul discusses following that verse – husband and wife. But what happens when we apply that same idea – that all our relationships need to be undergirded with politeness, common courtesy – to the other ... [Read More]

Quiet Submission

I *think* this is the last post on submission in marriage for a bit … next week, we’ll move on to submission as parents – which I’m afraid may be even more challenging in some ways.  {I’ve got a tween, y’all, and every day parenting gets more and more confusing and complex.  E.V.E.R.Y. D.A.Y.} As we wrap up this idea of being courteously reverent in our marriages, let me recap some of the questions we’ve looked at so far: Does submission begins with simply being polite? What if we did just a ... [Read More]

When We Disagree

It happens in every marriage.  Sometimes it is something silly but sometimes it is something significant.   He sees the situation one way, she sees it another.  That’s real life, y’all … and our marriages, our Christian marriages, are not immune from disagreement. But how does submission work into that?  The struggle we all have, huh?  I can’t even count how many blog posts I’ve read concerning this type of thing.  Because it’s a big deal!  As we grow in our faith and as we desire to apply ... [Read More]

Building Him Up

We’ve been discussing submission for the past few days … and I’ve been asking myself this simple question, “What if submission simply begins with being polite?” Though it’s a simple question, it’s not simple to live.  The chaos of raising a family, managing finances, and a busy calendar can often push common courtesy away. “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”  ... [Read More]