Council of Counselors: Parenting Teens / 2017 Marriage Check-Up / Don’t Say That / Family Devotions in 2017 / Child Abuse in the Church

This is a weekly post that highlights resources from other counselors that I have found helpful. The counselors may be from the biblical counseling, Christian psychology, integration, or secular counseling traditions. By linking to a post, I am not giving it my full endorsement, I am merely indicating that I believe it made a unique contribution or raised an important subject for consideration.

What Do Teenagers Want? Potted Plant Parents by Lisa Damour

Many parents feel that their adolescents hardly need them anymore. Teenagers often come and go on their own schedules, sometimes rebuff our friendly questions about their days, and can give the impression that interacting with the family is an imposition that comes at the cost of connecting, digitally or otherwise, with friends.

So here’s a complaint one might not expect to hear from teenagers: They wish their parents were around more often.

• Here is a catalog of my resources on parenting.

An End-of-Year Marriage Check Up b Kevin DeYoung

Here are 15 questions to help you and your spouse take the relational temperature of your marriage.

• Here is a catalog of my resources on marriage.

What Not to Say to Your Wife During an Argument by BJ Foster

Finally, I said something regrettably cutting, hurtful, and humiliating towards her. What I said is unimportant, but immediately after saying it, I wanted to grab it all back. The worst part about it was that before I said it, I thought about it, calculated its impact, and even then, I still said it. I cared more about winning than I did about her at that moment. Thinking about her running out of the room crying still makes my stomach sink.

• Here is a catalog of my resources on communication.

10 Ideas and 10 Tips for Family Devotions in 2017 by Tim Challies

With a new year dawning, many Christian families will resolve to approach family devotions with greater faithfulness in the year ahead, or perhaps even to begin family devotions for the first time. These are great resolutions! Here are 10 ideas and 10 tips that may help.

Eleven Vital Steps to Minimize Risk of Child Sexual Abuse In Your Church by Thom Rainer

As we approach a new year, I plead with church leaders to do all they can do to minimize this risk. It is definitely important for the health of the church. But, even more, we need to do everything we can for the safety and care of the children. It’s first about them.

• Here is a plan to help a church respond well if abuse does occur.
• In the “What I’m Reading” section I will recommend a book from Deepak Reju to provide more guidance on this subject.

What I’m Reading

On Guard: Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse at Church by Deepak Reju. In On Guard, Deepak Reju examines why child predators target churches and offers eleven straightforward strategies to protect children from abuse and to help young victims recover if it does happen. While On Guard does provide practical help for building a child protection policy, it provides much more. Full of pastoral wisdom, On Guard recognizes that the church s response to abuse must be more comprehensive in line with her calling than a simple legal policy or clinical analysis. On Guardmoves church staff and leaders beyond fearful awareness to prayerful preparedness with an actionable plan.

Church, be on guard! Child abuse can happen anywhere, and we need a plan for how to prevent and respond to it. What s yours?

Tweet of the Week

Meaningful Meme

On the Lighter Side

Because, “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones,” Proverbs 17:22.

Confession: As a UK fan who buys into the rivalry with Duke, I found the caption to this GIF particularly amusing.