Parenting and Family
Family is one of the most important, and one of the most complicated bits of our lives
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Steve Jobs may have had a bigger impact on the spiritual formation of a generation than any other person in the last 50 years.
As we see the impact of the i-devices on our society I am starting to wonder whether Steve Jobs may have had a bigger impact on the spiritual formation of a generation than any other person in the last 50 years. I used to joke that Jobs was the Anti-Christ, an image he did little to dispel by pricing the Apple 1 at $666.66 and shaping an apple logo with a bite out of it. Of course, I was never serious. I fondly remember the day I saw the unveiling of the iPhone, and then the iPad. I was fascinated and excited by this new and seemingly magical technology. While…
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Everyone needs an Auntie Anne, someone you know is always in your corner and doesn’t give up when things get tough.
Over the past month I have written about three women who have inspired and influenced me: Wendy Thomas, my wife Leeanne and my mum. Today I need to complete the set by talking about another woman who has shaped my life and continues to inspire and challenge me: My Auntie Anne. Like mum, Auntie Anne grew up on the North West Coast of Tasmania in a middle class family headed up by an entrepreneurial father (Pa) and a mother (Mema) who knew 95% of the people in Tasmania (maybe I’m exaggerating… it could have only been 90%). I think it was probably Pa (a.k.a. Gordon Nanscawen) who shaped an understanding…
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There are two things I wish everyone could say about their Mother.
It is Mothers Day on Sunday, which seems like a great excuse to write about what I’ve learned from the woman who profoundly shaped the person I have become: my mum. It is interesting to look at this photo, in which I guess I am about eight, Liz is around 6, Danni 4 and Nat is probably 2. Mum is in her mid thirties, about ten years younger than I am now. As I look back on the photo I glimpse in a fresh way what it must have meant for a young Tasmanian woman who grew up in the midst of a large extended family, church networks and family businesses…
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Steve Jobs may have had a bigger impact on the spiritual formation of a generation than any other person in the last 50 years.
Everyone needs an Auntie Anne, someone you know is always in your corner and doesn’t give up when things get tough.
How can I bring my children up in the training and instruction of the Lord without exasperating them?
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Jesus was Un-Albertan
St. Albert Gazette Article published on Saturday In Alberta we like to achieve. We pride ourselves on our ability to push though, to power ahead, to “get ‘er done.” Most of us are busy, and even our time outside of work is full. We take pride in just how much we can cram into 24 hours. Deep down we all know that living life at this frantic pace is not healthy… which is why we devote so much time an energy to planning our vacations and retirement. We tell ourselves that once we “make it”, everything will be better. I’m fascinated by how un-Albertan Jesus was.
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My role in my kids lives is changing, and that’s not easy, but it is ok.
My son Josh will be waking up in Australia for the first time in four and a half years. That is now two of my children living more than thirteen thousand kilometres away. That reality certainly has had me reflecting. I am realizing that there are two distinct phases of being a parent. In the first phase you are completely responsible for the teaching, care and nurture of your child. In the second phase your only responsibility is as a cheer squad, willing them to win the race of life that lies ahead of them. The problem is that there isn’t really a line you cross to say you have…
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I used to say that annual leave was not biblical… Until I realized how wrong I was.
I used to say that annual leave was not biblical… Until I realized how wrong I was. Taking time out can be a bit like climbing a mountain. It actually takes effort to stop and reflect. It is so easy to bounce along with life, moving from one major life event to another, without ever taking the time to work out if you are headed in the right direction. I still remember our hike to Grassi Lakes near Canmore in Alberta. They were called Grassi lakes not because there was grass there, but after the Italian guy who blazed the trail. About 200m into the walk there was a fork in the…
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I am glimpsing both the kind of family and kind of church I want to be part of
I loved the week I spent with my two eldest children, driving 2,500 km from Edmonton to Vancouver and back in 5 days. My daughter Maddi needed to renew her passport, which must be done in person and at the consulate. 24 hours in a car gives a lot of time for incidental conversation. It also gives a lot of time to listen to music any anything else we happened to have on our phones. I felt old. We caught up with friends in Vancouver. Sam and Danni both worked with Fusion in Australia and are closer in age to Josh and Maddi than me. It was helpful for me…
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How can I bring my children up in the training and instruction of the Lord without exasperating them?
I am a trained youth worker. I know most of the theories of adolescent development. I have worked with all kinds of youth from all kinds of backgrounds. You would think that being a parent of teenagers would therefore be easy. Its not. Being a youth worker is completely different to being a parent. A few months ago I wrote a reflection on the realization that parenting teenagers is fundamentally about a clash of Kingdoms. My realization was that parenting teenagers is about stepping into, and not avoiding the right kinds of conflict. Leeanne and I committed ourselves to seeking first the Kingdom of God in every area of our lives…
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Everyone needs an Auntie Anne, someone you know is always in your corner and doesn’t give up when things get tough.
Steve Jobs may have had a bigger impact on the spiritual formation of a generation than any other person in the last 50 years.
My role in my kids lives is changing, and that’s not easy, but it is ok.
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We need to learn to live from grace, despite the dots.
Leeanne and I spent last Saturday at a Marriage seminar. A year and a half ago we watched a video series called “Marriage on the Rock”, which we found extremely helpful (despite the fact that the guy looked like a used-car salesman). But Saturday was the first specific input on marriage we have received from anyone in real life since we did our pre-marriage counselling. Back then we felt extremely confident about just how uniquely qualified for the business of marriage we were. I remember clearly going for a walk with my bride-to-be and having a very serious conversation about how long we should wait before we started dispensing all of…
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Raising teenagers is fundamentally about a clash of kingdoms, and its not easy.
I remember two thoughts I have had in my life that now haunt me. The first was when I was about 15. I remember clearly thinking how much better job I will do at raising my kids than my parents did. The other was when my beautiful kids were all under 5 and I was in my late twenties. I remember thinking how complicated little kids were and how much I was looking forward to having teenagers, because as a trained youthworker, I would find that stage of life so easy. So… I now say publicly to anyone who is interested: I was wrong, and it has taken me a…
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Re-orientation is a complicated process
Well it’s been almost a year since I wrote my last entry on this blog. A number of times I have thought I would’ve liked to write more but I found that I didn’t know how to communicate complex reality that I found myself living in. The last five years have been a time of profound dislocation for me. Five years ago I was the director of Fusion’s work in the state of Victoria in Australia. Five years later here I am in Alberta, Canada, getting close to completing a Masters in Theological Studies and serving as a Pastor in a denomination (the Christian and Missionary Alliance) that I was…
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Who will celebrate Christmas correctly?
Yesterday I pre-recorded an interview with Terry Cotter, the host of the Australian talkback radio program “The Conversation.” I’m a regular contributor to the program, chatting to Terry once a month, but this time was the Christmas special, and all the program regulars were chatting about how we celebrate Christmas. The conversation brought home to me just how different this Christmas will be for us. Every year that I can remember, Christmas Eve has been spent watching the Melbourne Carols by Candlelight and then a good portion of Christmas Day is spent outside playing with new Christmas toys and the obligatory game of cricket. This year all the Christmas carols…
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The journey of understanding is not easy, but its the only way to fellowship
From time to time I will repost some of the reflections that seemed to get the most positive response from people over the past few years. This one was first posted 27th May 2010….. I know saying that people are different is like saying the sky is blue.. obvious (unless of course you are English in which case the sky is rarely blue : ) ). But it is this fundamental observation which I think I am only slowly starting to understand. I began my journey with this understanding with my wife. She would say something, and I would assume that she meant what I would have meant if I…
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Death isn’t something to be feared, its a reminder of just how precious life actually is.
I’ve been thinking about my own mortality lately. That has partly been brought on by the fact my grandmother is nearing the end of her life and one of my favorite parts of the days is when Leeanne and I stroll across the road for a cuppa with her and whoever else happens to be there at the time (usually either my Mum and Dad or Auntie Anne). My mum has worked with my Grandmother on the story of her life, complete with photos. It is fascinating to see my grandmother as a small child, a teenager and a young married woman. Now 95, Mema has seen so many things…
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How can I bring my children up in the training and instruction of the Lord without exasperating them?
Everyone needs an Auntie Anne, someone you know is always in your corner and doesn’t give up when things get tough.
My role in my kids lives is changing, and that’s not easy, but it is ok.
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The true joy in life is to be used for a mighty purpose, to be a force of nature
One of the questions that Leeanne and I have been talking about is how we live our life. My kids are not used to having me around as much as I am at the moment, and when I took my first overnight trip to Sydney last week, it wasn’t hard to detect a sense of “here we go again”, from them. As Leeanne and I talk about our 18 years of marriage, there is a sadness for me that I was so busy that I didn’t really understand what life was like for her with four energetic little kids. I think if I had my time over I would probably…
