Email 1
Do you ever feel like your family calendar is a little out of control? For your kids, there’s school, sports, dance, drama, friends, church, homework, practice, rehearsal, games, events, and so much more. For you, there’s work, home, family, friends, church, plus all of the things I listed for your kids. It can be exhausting for sure!
There has to be a way to help your family develop a healthy pace of life and rhythm that will breathe life into your days instead of draining the life out of you. We have some tips for you. Check out this month’s parent video to hopefully find a few ways to lead your family into a good place as we start the fall.
Email 2
Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” It’s an encouragement for us to step away from the craziness of life and take some time to just rest in who God is. As parents, you have the opportunity to lead the way in taking time for God and maybe, just maybe, scaling back on all that you and your family are involved with. You can model to your kids and teens what it means to slow down and rest.
This month’s Ministry to Parents articles and parent video give you some great ideas on how you can lean into a healthier pace of life for yourself and how to encourage your kids to do the same. Click here to see the video and click here to read the articles.
To view the video, click on the link below.
Don’t forget that we’re here to support you and your family. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you,
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Video Script
If I asked you, “Are you too busy?” what would you say? Well, I think I know. When I talk to parents and ask “How are you guys doing?” the response I get most often is “Well, we’re busy.” It’s interesting, when people say they’re busy, there is rarely a qualifier on it. It’s not, “Well, we’re good busy” or “We’re bad busy” … although there is sometime a “we’re crazy busy” …
The question I think we need to ask is this: “How busy is too busy?” When it comes to you, personally, how busy is too busy? I went through a season recently where I was way too busy. I got into a spot where I had said “yes” to way too many things, and I could feel it. Now, probably like you, I usually feel like I’m too busy, but this was to another level.
As I found myself in that situation, I could sense that overwhelmed feeling that kind of hovers around you. It was with me all the time. There wasn’t much space to think because I just had to keep doing. There wasn’t much time to breath and just be because I had to keep things going and I had to be productive. I bet you can relate.
I noticed that the overwhelming feeling I had could easily bleed out into my family, into my wife and my kids. The way I was treating and dealing with them could easily drift to a place I didn’t want it to be.
And then, as our kids have grown up, THEY have gotten busier too. The demands on their time go up as they get older, and the activities they are involved with get more serious. There are more and longer practices, there is more and harder homework, there are more social opportunities and, if we’re not careful, our kids will drift into a pace of life that they simply cannot mentally and emotionally sustain. They may be able to put on a mask and get through it for a while, but a crazy busy, unsustainable pace is simply not good for kids and teenagers.
So, when it comes to both you and your kids, when you think about your family, what can you do to maybe slow it down a little bit and build a more sustainable, intentional rhythm to life? Hopefully you have some family traditions that are important, things that both you and your kids look forward to doing together, things that can stay on your calendar. But, I bet there are some things that you can, and maybe you should, say “no” to,
I know it may sound crazy, but what if you, as their parents, helped your kids scale back the things they are involved in? What if, instead of pushing them to do and be involved in more, you led them to do and be involved in less? What would it look like for you to lead them to make wise choices with their time and create some space to rest and just be a kid or a teenager? If they weren’t so busy, would they maybe not feel so much pressure and have some time to just be and grow? Because you know what, that’s what they need.
Psalm 46:10 says this, “Be still and know that I am God.” Do you have time to actually do that? More than just going to church services and events, do you have the space to just mediate and reflect on God and your relationship with him? Do your kids have the time and space to just breath and spend time with God growing in their faith, or are they just way too scheduled and are they crowded to the point that have no time for God?
As you step into a new season this fall, think about, are there some things you can do for yourself as a parent to slow down and just be? Are there things that you can say “no” to in order to say “yes” to some better things? Can you develop an intentional, healthy rhythm for yourself and for your family that will lead you to a more peaceful home, to better relationships, and to a more healthy heart? Can you maybe sit down with your family and make some decisions not just about what you will be involved with, but maybe decide that there are some things you won’t be involved with in the coming months? Will you miss some things … yes. Will you maybe at home a little more … yes. Will you maybe have a little more “down time” than you are uses to … yes? Will it be worth it? That’s a big ole yes! It will be worth it to develop a healthy, sustainable family rhythm that gives you a sense of peace that you maybe haven’t experienced in years. It’ll help your pace. It’ll help your heart. It’ll help your faith. It’ll help your kids. And overall, it will just help your family. Which I know is what you want.