I just finished reading Michelle Anthony's book Spiritual Parenting. At its core, Spiritual Parenting is not a book on "how-to parenting." It is a book about how to view your role as a spiritually minded parent. Essentially, it asks the question, “What is my end goal in raising the children God has entrusted to me, and then how will I parent them with that end in mind?" Her book … [Read more...]
What To Do When God Is Silent
There have been seasons of my life where it seems as though God had packed up, moved far away, and left me no forwarding address. I’m unable to sense his promptings and overall presence as I search for answers to my special needs questions: Father, why? Why does my son have autism? Okay, God, I'm sure you've got a plan. What am I supposed to do? I am emotionally spent Lord and physically … [Read more...]
We Need Online Community
I never could have guessed that being a special needs parent could be so lonely. Sometimes…perhaps often…life gets in the way of our best intentions. A child’s diagnosis often increases psychological stressors, therapy schedules stretch the daily “to do” list to the breaking point, and slowly the network of friends you had begins to fall by the wayside. The pressure of day-to-day parenting can … [Read more...]
Love Is A Gift
It’s February. The month when we officially celebrate “romantic love.” It seems like I had barely removed the ornaments from our Christmas tree when heart-shaped coffee mugs, paper heart doilies, and I-love-you teddy bears started appearing on department store shelves everywhere! Valentine’s Day: Russell Stover chocolate boxes, red roses, and romantic sentiments. Don’t get the wrong … [Read more...]
The Not-So Perfect Parent
The Perfect Story: There was a perfect man who met a perfect woman. After a perfect courtship, they had a perfect wedding. Then they had perfect children and were the perfect parents. Their life together was, of course, perfect. The End. Perfect. That’s how I always pictured how my life story was going to go. Wrong! It’s going more like this: There was an imperfect man who met an … [Read more...]
Don’t Give Up
Above us and around us—and sometimes even inside of us—thunderstorms are building. Sometimes these storms may come from behind the closed doors of your doctor’s office, or on the other end of the phone line…or from your child with special needs. I’ve spent almost 16-years years as a parent to a child with special needs. More years than some of you. Not nearly as many as others who are … [Read more...]