Family

We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Box

Stephan Tchividjian
10 Jan 2019
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box

Box of Mystery Years ago, when our children were younger, we used to schedule “mystery family vacations.” The idea was a brilliant one, I might add. The concept was simple. Lisa and I would devise a fun family vacation but keep it a secret. We would simply share with our children the date of departure, the date of return and provide them a packing list, inserted with a few decoys to throw them off. The first year our children complained that we were terrible parents trying our best to ruin their lives, (jury is still out on that one) but […]

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All I Want for Christmas is…What?

Dr. Bob Barnes and Torrey Roberts
3 Dec 2018
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The answer to that question could determine the success or failure of your Christmas experience. As a parent, the question is: What do we really want for Christmas? Don’t we want something that will last on into generations to come? Something powered by more than batteries. I have never heard anyone say, “We have a great family tradition of giving each other video games for Christmas. It’s been an awesome part of our Christmas for generations. It’s what brings us back home each year.” There are many things we could get for our family members – items that will not […]

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christmas

The Wonderful Things My Wife Says…

Stephan Tchividjian
12 Nov 2018
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wife

One day, my wife Lisa said she felt that it was time we sacrifice more. I wasn’t sure what she meant. Was it time to begin to construct an altar in the back yard?  What would our neighbors think? What would we do with all the animals? Would Chihuahuas qualify? “Stephan, Stephan, Stephaaaaaaan….I think God is telling us we need to sacrifice more.” When I heard my name repeated several times, I realized that I had drifted off, probably a coping mechanism. “What do you mean?”  I asked. “I think we ought to adopt a child, and I think that […]

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Communication – The Thermometer of Your Marriage

Lisa May
2 Nov 2018
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Fall in South Florida is challenging for those of us who long for the splendor of the leaves while dreaming of a crackling fire and meaningful conversations. The temperature and humidity are often smothering, so we lower the degree on our AC and light a candle to set the mood. Our health is often measured by our body temperature. When it rises above 97.8 we begin to exhibit symptoms associated with an illness, go to a physician and often begin some type of medication to treat the symptoms and the disease. When it drops below 97.8 we begin to exhibit […]

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communication

Why is “Thank You” So Important?

Dr. Bob Barnes and Torrey Roberts
1 Nov 2018
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thank you

Understanding “Thank You” is one of the most missing elements in our culture.  “Thank you” is also one of the most important lessons a parent should teach a child. Post Katrina a group of displaced, homeless people in Louisiana had been given “homes,” albeit trailers, to live in for the past year (emphasis on the word “given”). They had also received food supplies. In any other culture, they would be left to fend for themselves.  Praise God America is a country that has a plan. Even after all the help they had received, they wanted to file suit against the […]

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Being Childlike in a Childish World

Dr. Gary Hewins
8 Oct 2018
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Imagine a humble, little first-century home existing within the New Testament era. Picture a dinner being prepared in a small, humble kitchen in first-century Palestine. A family is about to have a meal together. Out in the courtyard—outside the home—children are playing, running about and laughing. Just outside of the kitchen in the common area, there is a chair. In the chair is the head of the household, and he is sitting down after a long, hard day’s work, listening and peering out the window at his children as they play. His little girl in the front yard hears her […]

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The Power of Us: Expressing Appreciation

Lisa May
1 Oct 2018
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appreciation

In the previous issue of the Good News, we shared a very common story of Zack and Ally, a couple living the Marriage Selfie life; appearances say they are amazingly happy in their marriage and successful in life. Sadly, social media has allowed us and sometimes pressures us to create “fake news” images and stories of relationship wellness and fulfillment, pictures of what we long and hope for versus the reality of where many of us live. I recently had a man share that his wife posted a picture of their family vacation that looked like they were blissfully happy. […]

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Keys to Healing Strained Relationships

Dr. Gary Hewins
26 Sep 2018
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Here are a few strategies to help you and I restore or at least redefine our strained relationships. Most people are weak when it comes to reconciling with another person. Most people are strong when it comes to ignoring problems in relationships. As a result, friendships take a nose dive, churches split, and marriages and families suffer. So what can we do to overcome this? 1.Reconciling with another person over an offense doesn’t necessarily mean the relationship will continue as if the offense never happened; this may be too high of an expectation too soon. New boundaries or different expectations […]

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Selfie Marriage

Lisa May and Patricia Hartman
1 Sep 2018
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The silence was thick Sunday morning as Zack pulled his 2018 BMW into a parking space at church. There was nothing to say to Ally, despite having just returned from a luxury Mediterranean cruise. The kids escaped to the safety of their friends’ company. Zack dutifully stepped out and retrieved their Bibles from the floor of the back seat. “Better take out the old bulletin so nobody knows I haven’t touched my Bible since the last time we were here,” thought Zack. Neither had Ally, even though she acted like some deep biblical scholar. Ha! If they only knew the […]

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Opening the Football Playbook

Dr. Bob Barnes and Torrey Roberts
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Football season is upon us. Whether you are a fanatic or “football-resistant” the fact is undeniable.  Here in South Florida we don’t have a lot of things that alert us to fall time. This may be the reason we all go crazy for our pumpkin lattes and fall decorations.  We don’t have the crisp air or the changing leaves. We may have a lift in the humidity but that is about it. One thing that we do have here is football. On Fridays, high school bands can be heard all over alerting us to the clash of the gridiron. And […]

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