We’re moving into the holiday season with lots of parties, gatherings, and festivities! In this episode, I want to focus on creating traditions and holiday rituals your children will remember. How you do create memories and create traditions that your children will want to continue to do as they get older and desire to implement with their own families?
When I was first married, I was very career focused. Having a large family wasn’t on my radar because of my upbringing. But, when I found myself with a growing family, I knew I wanted to do things differently. I watched what my husband’s mom and families in our church did and took cues from them for how to develop traditions and holiday rituals to implement with our kids.
Holiday Ritual Suggestions
Here are some ideas for things you can do as a family during the holiday season:
Celebrating Advent
Doing cookie decorating
Going Christmas tree hunting and decorating
Going Christmas caroling
Attending candlelight services
Feeding the homeless
Playing piano at the senior or assisted living facility
Reading books at the Children’s Hospital
Doing plays and reenactments
Reading the Christmas story together
Watching Christmas movies
Preparing and sending Christmas cards
Taking gifts to a friend
Sending handwritten letters and pictures to family
Matching outfit Christmas photos
Think about the ages of your children. What types of activities fit this stage? If there’s grumbling and complaining, try changing up the activity or doing something new. These traditions and holiday rituals don’t have to cost you a lot of time or money. The activities don’t need elaborate planning. The point is celebrating together and pointing your kids to Christ.
Making Memories and Passing Down Traditions
I’ll be honest. There was a time when I tried to do it all. I knew the day would come when my children would leave my home and trying to scheduled these activities would become a nightmare. I learned with activities held the greatest importance to my kids over time. We don’t do them just to do them because we’ve always done them, but we also don’t not do an activity if one child is complaining. Pray for discernment.
My kids remember these things we did together. The purpose was to bring our whole family closer together. These things are written on their hearts and they discuss their memories when we get together at family gatherings. I’m watching now as my adult children are taking some of these traditions and holiday rituals into their new families!
We’ve experienced a lot of change in the last few years. Everywhere I turn, I’m reading or hearing about someone else in crisis. I’ve had seasons of crisis in my own life recently. Today, I thought it would be helpful to talk about how to help others in a crisis.
Whether it’s the loss of a loved one, a medical diagnosis, the loss of a job, a wayward child, or just the concern about how to put food on the table this week, there’s someone near you in crisis.
Some people want to talk through these things while others want to be quiet. On either extreme, people want to know that they are not alone. They need to know that someone cares about them but not judging or giving three simple steps to fix the problem.
In this episode, I share some tips and thoughts surrounding:
The difference between internal and external processors
Praying for others in crisis
Giving and receiving advice
Giving grace
Asking for help
You don’t have the capacity to help every single person you know in a crisis. Lean into God’s leading to walk alongside those He puts on your heart. In the midst of helping others through crisis, He molds and changes you too!
There’s a difference between resting and quitting. Many times I feel like I want to quit. Today, I want to remind you that it’s okay to rest, but it’s not okay to quit.
In this episode, I’m being vulnerable and sharing some recent life events that have made me want to quit. I know I can’t quit, but I also know that God is calling me to a season of rest for a while.
For some of you, you might just need mental rest. A vacation or some kind of physical exercise like a walk or a trip to the gym might be just what you need. You might need time to read the Word and pray, even if it’s just five minutes. For others, like me in the season, you might need physical rest.
I want to say it again: It’s okay to rest!
How to Make Decisions About Seasons of Rest
Here are some things that you can do to help figure out how to prioritize a season of rest in your life:
Ask yourself in what areas of your life can you rest? There are things like raising kids that can’t be stopped, but there are other things that you could let go of. What are those things? Can they be let go of entirely or do you just need to press pause on them for a bit?
Don’t measure yourself by productivity. God isn’t measuring you by your level of productivity! He’s looking for your faithfulness. Are you doing what He has called you to do?
Pay attention to what God is telling you. Is this something that God is calling you to lay down? Is there something else that God is telling you to pick up?
Make a list of what you’re doing with your time. Are there places you can delegate? Can you hire someone to do a task? Can you ask a friend for help?
Don’t let fear dictate your choices. There are always new opportunities. You can’t do everything!
Bottom line: don’t quit when life gets hard. Live your life in seasons with the right perspective. God has a plan for you and He will lead you!
In episode #134, I told you that teaching kids to serve is a great way to help manage the impacts of stress. I mentioned the recent devastation in southwest Florida from Hurricane Ian and that Samaritan’s Purse is an excellent ministry to give money to or to partner with for serving in person in a disaster area. This week, Shannon Dailley from Samaritan’s Purse joins me to talk about the work that ministry is doing in Florida and around the world.
Shannon and I discuss the kinds of work that Samaritan’s Purse does in disaster areas around the world. We also talk about how families can get involved together and how impactful that can be for kids for the rest of their lives. Shannon describes what a volunteer day looks like, starting with breakfast and devotions and ending with volunteering for and ministering to a homeowner.
*Please note that volunteers with Samaritan’s Purse must be at least 14 years of age due to the nature of the work and proximity to heavy equipment.*
Hurricane Ian Service Opportunities
Samaritan’s Purse is responding to Hurricane Ian’s destruction in three locations in southwest Florida: Fort Myers, Englewood, and Punta Gorda. The North Carolina-based international Christian relief and evangelism organization has mobilized more than 880 volunteers from 26 states with another 2,500 on the way. In just the first six days of work on the ground, Samaritan’s Purse has already received more than 1,800 requests for help. As of today, more than 80 families have been served so far with a large volunteer turnout expected across all three locations in the coming weeks.
If you are local to these areas of southwest Florida and would like to serve as a day volunteer, please contact the local volunteer numbers for more information:
Fort Myers, FL (DR 6)
Citygate Ministries – 1735 Jackson Street, Fort Myers, FL 33901
Pastor: David and Michele Pleasant
Volunteer Phone: 239-944-0120
Staff: Chandler Saylors, Jacob Rutz, Rachael Miller & Jeff Bradbury
Day Volunteers Check-In: 7:30 am and 12:30 pm
Punta Gorda, FL (DR 7)
New Life Church: 507 W Marion Ave, Punta Gorda, FL 33950
Pastor: Mike Loomis
Volunteer Phone: 941-290-8650
Staff: Shannon Daley, Jodie Yoder & Phil Engel
Day Volunteers Check-In: 7:30 am and 12:30 pm
Englewood, FL (DR 8)
Calvary Baptist Church: 75 Pine Street, Englewood, FL 34223
Pastor: John & Darla Boutchia
Volunteer Phone: 941-290-8528
Staff: John Schultz, Jaime Keoshian & Nate Smith
Day Volunteers Check-In: 7:30 am and 12:30 pm
If you are a homeowner in need of assistance in one of these affected areas, please contact Samaritan’s Purse using the corresponding local homeowner assistance phone numbers:
For those in need of assistance in Fort Myers, please call (239) 944-0119
For those in need of assistance in Punta Gorda, please call 941-290-8648
For those in need of assistance in Englewood, please call (941) 290-8527
Other Ways to Serve
What other ways can you think of to serve those affected by hurricanes or other natural disaters? What could you do with younger kids? What can you give away or sell that could be needed in this area right now?
About Shannon Dailley from Samaritan’s Purse
Shannon Dailley is a regional program manager with Samaritan’s Purse US Disaster Relief. She began working with Samaritan’s Purse 11 years ago as a volunteer during Hurricane Katrina and has now been on staff for over 6 years. She and Samaritan’s Purse work with local churches to mobilize volunteers and assist homeowners when a disaster hits.
There’s a new term in HR departments around the country: quiet quitters. It refers to people who don’t want to overexert themselves. They do just enough to get their paycheck and not get fired. Your children have the opportunity to take the marketplace by storm in this quiet quitter culture!
Have you ever seen this tendency to do just enough in your kids? They do just enough in their math work or put just enough sentences in that writing assignment paragraph. The problem with the quiet quitter mentality comes back to integrity. Even at this early stage, you can work with your kids to show them how to have integrity in their lives.
The Bible tells us that if we don’t work, we don’t eat. Sadly, culture has shifted to a lot of people who don’t want to work but want to spend a lot of time eating and shopping!
Pursuing Excellence
This is a great opportunity to talk to your kids about doing things with excellence and greatness. Show your kids how to give their best. I’m not suggesting that you sacrifice your family for work, but there is a relative balance that can be achieved when you do your best and have integrity.
What Are Companies Looking For?
Corporations, businesses, and the marketplace in general are all looking for people who will work hard. The world needs thought leaders who know how to put in a good day of work. It’s time to teach our children character qualities to reach that goal. They need to learn about:
Perseverance
Diligence
Determination
Grit
These qualities will give your kids the ability to add value and make a difference in the world.
Find Your Kids’ Strengths
One of the best ways to practically help your kids develop these qualities is by helping them find their strengths. I often talk to parents and students about finding their strengths so they can pursue their unique calling. When you have this understanding of yourself, you can add knowledge, skills, and hard work to build a fulfilling life. People are not just handed a life, they build a life, a career, and a family.
We are made by God to build things and add value to the people around us. Work doesn’t have to be something we dread. We’re not raising a generation to live in mediocrity. We’re raising a generation to lead, be innovators, and be risk-takers. We want them to shine a light for others to make a difference and an impact.
To reach this goal, we have to model this lifestyle and character. We must talk about these attributes with our kids. Show your kids the possibilities. Show them how to have a good work ethic. Don’t let them become quiet quitters!
Are you immersing yourself in today? Or are you wrapped up in taking pictures “so you won’t forget?” Or consumed with what someone else is doing? Or thinking about work that needs to be done? I have the same temptations and I want to encourage you to focus more on immersing yourself in today rather than the cares of tomorrow.
How many times when you’re on vacation or on a nature walk with your kids, do you pull out your phone and take pictures? You start snapping pictures of everything because you want to remember it all. You want to be able to look back and relive the moment later.
I’ll confess. I have a ton of pictures on my phone. I tell my kids that I take so many pictures so I can remember everything. But, I feel a little convicted about the number of pictures.
Not Fully Present?
How often do you take pictures but forget to be fully present in the moment? I’m not saying that you shouldn’t take pictures. I just want you to truly experience the moment you’re in. When you look back at the pictures, do you remember what was going on around you? It’s kind of hard to relive a moment that I didn’t really live in the first place. Was I distracted instead of present? I encourage you to embrace where you are whether is it a waterfall, a vacation destination, or a typical day.
Sadly, these days, when you’re out and about, everyone is on their phones. They are missing what’s right in front of them! Don’t get caught up in trying to do more or that feeling that you might be missing out on something. Stop missing out on what is in front of you because you’re looking five steps ahead. Immerse yourself in today!
What is going on in your life today that you might be missing because you’re not fully immersed in today? You can’t go back to where you once were in life. That’s now history. This moment only happens once. The enemy loves to rob us of our time. He loves to see us busy. The enemy wants to distract us. He is trying to make us believe that we can multitask. Resist and choose to be present today.
Regrets and Living in the Moment
What do you regret not doing or not doing more of? Do you wish you would have traveled more? Wish you would have been in the corporate world? Something else? I made decisions in my life that meant I had to pass up opportunities in order to be present with and for my kids.
If I was out on the boat with the kids when they were little, I couldn’t be consumed by what others were doing that might be more interesting or more fun. In some ways, you could say I was oblivious to what others were doing because I wanted to be fully present with my kids, but I also had the luxury of not having instant access to social media when my kids were that little. But, I could have easily allowed myself to be consumed with news headlines instead of reading that bedtime story. You have the opportunity today to help a child with a math problem, show them how to cook or ride a bike, and more. Be there and be present!
Be Interested in Your Kids for Long-term Relationships
Your kids want to know that you’re interested in them. When they know this, they want to be around you. My adult children pop over to the house regularly. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t have a kid come by the house at some point. These relationships don’t happen by accident. It takes a vision of the future and intentional work on your part today.
Don’t go through life taking pictures of places and activities where you weren’t fully present. Immerse yourself in today!
