Welcome!
Come on in, friend! Pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, and let's chat! I'd love to share what God's been putting on my heart about the topics of family, femininity, and faith, and you do the same. If you want to go deeper, join my Facebook group for "This Side of Heaven", and be sure to subscribe to keep up with every new post (no spam, I promise!). I look forward to getting to know you and sharing the journey "this side of Heaven!"
I'm both excited and honored to be guest blogging at Grace for Moms today! I share my story of two births and whether one was "better" than the other. Please join me there for a conversation about labor and delivery and the grace-filled choices that we can make. http://www.graceformoms.com/better-birth/
0 Comments
In the last eight weeks, I have become what I once thought I would never be allowed to be. A soccer mom. My five-year-old daughter joined a soccer team this fall, and we have had the fun of twice-a-week practices and Saturday games, and I've had the privilege of being on the sidelines cheering for my girl and remembering my childhood days of playing soccer and thinking I am becoming a little more like my mom everyday. But along with the fun of soccer, we've also had the regularly-scheduled frustration of shin guards. Every practice, every game, it has been the same." "I don't like them. They don't feel good." And my response, like every good mom, has been, "Stop whining. I didn't like them either. Wear them anyway. And be ready in five minutes or you're not going." After about five weeks of this, I did something new. I listened. Why didn't my daughter like her shin guards? It was because these newfangled ones have a elastic strap-thingy that goes under a players foot, then the sock over that, then the shoe on top. Perfectly designed to keep a shin guard in place - and to completely annoy a sensitive little girl who hates to have bumps in her shoes. So we went off to the sporting goods store, found an old-fashioned pair shin guards without the strap-thingy, and tried them on. She loves them. "They feel wonderful!" No more fights, no more lengthy "Get dressed or else" battles. No more tears. Peace. Smiles. Fun. Ahhhh..... I'm all about training our children to obey their parents, and I know we have plenty of battles ahead. But I don't ever want parenting to turn into a power struggle instead of a relationship. The Battle of the Shin Guards reminded me never to stop listening to my daughter's voice, and that sometimes the stubborn heart that needs to give way is not hers, but mine. What lessons have your children taught you lately?I've seen a lot of articles about Halloween this year - more than I remember seeing in the past - and they're coming from both sides of the "debate". Followers of Jesus defending their decision to participate in Halloween, and other followers of Jesus explaining why they don't. I'm glad to see that most of the debate has been friendly and non-judgmental. After all, the Bible doesn't say what to do with this day specifically, so it's all about interpreting and applying principles and if the focus is to glorify God, then there is no reason to give anyone a hard time about it. (And seriously, of all the things that Christians can debate among themselves, getting mean with each other on the public Internet about what we do on October 31 is way more damaging to the cause of Christ than whether nor not we hand out candy to trick or treaters.) But that said, a little friendly debate is good for the soul and the mind, and all those articles have gotten me thinking, because I didn't celebrate Halloween growing up. My parents pulled the plug on Halloween when I was in elementary school after some good friends of ours shared how they were no longer comfortable with it. Our church started having a harvest party instead (no costumes, even), and as the years went on, NOT celebrating Halloween was very normal to me. Not only that, but I had all the arguments against it down pat, and even wrote my own article about it to hand out to friends if they wanted to know more. (I don't think anyone ever did, but I wanted to be ready!)
Until I had children and there were church and preschool events that included costumes and candy - certainly not embracing the darker parts of Halloween, but enjoying the fun, innocent side. And so we got a costume for our then two-year-old daughter. We attended a couple of kids' parties. We went Trunk or Treating at a nearby church. Cute. Fun. Innocent. And definitely a time when you can get to know your neighbors. So why do I still feel like I am putting up with Halloween, anxious to get past it to November 1? I've really given it some thought this year, and I think I've finally figured out where I am at. And at the risk of muddying the waters and adding fuel to the fire, here are my thoughts about why I'm just not into this particular celebration. No judgment if you participate, really. And I am actually very interested in hearing the ways people find to "redeem" this celebration and use it for God's glory, because I may be there someday. But here is where I am right now.
So what exactly is my hang-up with Halloween?
Now, all that said - our daughter did go to a church Trunk-n-Treat his year and has several more costumes on hold just in case. We have a Winnie the Pooh Halloween movie (given to her by someone, not bought by us) that she loves. We've dipped our toes in the Halloween waters more than I ever thought I would with my childhood background. But I think I'm ready to pull back again and create our own family traditions - maybe focusing on the Reformation, or on telling stories about family members who have gone to Heaven or reading books about Heaven, or about Noah and the Flood, or just a fun family movie night. I'm not passing judgment on anyone who wants to participate in the festivities, and not even saying that we won't join in an occasional activity, depending on the circumstances. But as a whole, it's not working for me, at least not in this season of life. So, especially to my brothers and sisters in Christ, if we pass each other on October 31, your kids in costume and mine not, I'm not looking down on you as if you are unbiblical, and please don't feel sorry for us, as if we are tied to some kind of legalistic outlook. Like so much else in life, we are each finding the best way for our family to follow the Lord, not only on Halloween, but all year long. And with the season of Thanksgiving and Christmas just around the corner, we have a lot to celebrate together, don't we? |
Welcome!Welcome! My name is Kristi. I am a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a teacher, a writer, a musician... but most of all a child and worshiper of God discovering that even in life's messes, God is still good. Learn more about me and my journey here!
Subscribe!
Subscribe to keep up with This Side of Heaven. As a special thank you for trusting me with your time online, I will send you my e-book, Dear mom of a baby in heaven, for free.
Popular postsClassical Christian PaideiaSupport This Side of Heaven by shopping with these companies!
Memoria PressCompass ClassroomLilla Rose!Homeschool Mom Fitness program!
Christian Book Distributors!
Archives
July 2023
|