QUESTIONS FROM A TEEN

This sunday I have the incredible honor to be able to speak for P. Lee when he is gone. I continuing the series on Relationship Revolution and will be addressing the disconnect that is so common among teenagers and parents. To prepare, I asked the students to write down an answer to this question openly and honestly,

"if you could tell your parents anything from your heart without getting in trouble, what would you tell them about you and/or your relationship with them?"

I thought I would share a few of the answers to enable us to see into the heart of a teenager,

dad, I hate how you left us and you are so stupid but i'm trying to forgive you and I love you. why did you leave us?
why do you always hurt and yell at me?
why do you yell at me when i'm doing the best I can?
I would tell my dad that nothing in the world matters more to me than your acceptance, but I feel like I will never get it.
why won't you listen to me when I even mention Dad? I miss him so much and you don't care!
Mom, please get some help to stop drinking, you are the only parent I have and I never see you--(from a 6th grader)
Why dad couldn't even make it for my birthday, He said he would come and never even called.

there are too many more to post, and maybe I was drawn to the ones about fathers for obvious reasons. This generation needs a genuine encounter with God and I would ask you to take a moment and pray for a young person you know.

As a parent, I pray God will continue to make His strength perfect in my weakness, and that He would be a Father to the Fatherless.

thursday thoughts

A few Aimless suppositions about this week in life.......

1. I am preaching a series called "boiling point" and it is about the need to handle our emotions. To ensure the students that I am preaching to myself, i recalled the story of how on tuesday Addy for the 2nd time in 3 months reached up and grabbed an entire gallon of milk off the counter and watched helplessly as it blew up on our wood floors. I reacted by throwing 24 rolls of toilet paper ( we were putting groceries away) across the room (although not at addy) and screaming uncontrollably. 8 milk soaked bath towels later, Ava came up to me and said.......Daddy, are you gonna be mad forever? Way to set the example Jon:)


2. A texas man attempted to cash a 360 billion dollar personal check. You have to hand it to the bank tellers though, she told reporters that she thought something was "suspicious" I can't believe she wouldn't just shell out the cash, it looked legit to me.

3. After a tragic carnival accident in california involving 17 children, kendra let me know that any future trips to the old abandoned K-mart parking lot need to be cancelled ASAP. (see earlier post)


4. Lastly, as a bit of an extension of my last blog involving the innocence of children, let me add to the insanity. A boston doctor has opened a clinic for transgendered kids (boys who feel like girls, girls who want to be boys) and is offering more than counseling. He also administers drugs that delay the onset of puberty and stop the natural flood of hormones to the body so that the "patient" (children as young as seven!) has more time to determine if they really want a sex change operation. Click on the link and read for yourself,

Allow me to quote English journalist Malcon Muggeridge, " we have educated ourselves into imbecility."--well said.

pornification

I;m sorry, but as a father of two little girls I am more than just mildly disturbed by the new fashion line, "house of Dereon" put out by Beyonce Knowles. To me it symbolizes all that is going wrong with our society. Seriously, these girls are five and six years old and we want to put make up on them, dress them in high heels and top it off with a pimp hat? If Beyonce chooses to be "bootylisious", more power to her, but can't children stay innocent for a few years?! seriously, what happened to gymboree?!!! I have no problem dressing your girls up as cute as you want to and expensive clothes are your prerogative. My issue is the message we are already sending to young girls that they need to be skinny, sexy and seductive to get attention, now we are communicating that to five year olds? Its really not as much the clothes (although they are way over the top) as it is the marketing ploy. Whats next, thong diapers so your 3 month old can flaunt at daycare? Maybe I am getting too worked up about this. I would really like to know your thoughts.

I pray a hedge of protection around my girls in the name of Jesus, may their beauty and value come from how God made them, not this worlds system.

OK, I'm off my soapbox now.

Alternative Energy!!

With gas and milk both pushin 4 bucks a gallon, I made an executive decision as head of the household. I told Kendra the gas hog explorer days were over and she needed to start bringing the "jeep" to work-This is her getting used to how it handles in the backyard before taking it on the highway..........The girls cried about mom stealing their "toy", but I know Dave Ramsey is smiling somewhere. She can get 90 miles to the charge on that beast.

Thanks for taking one for the team Kendra, Just trying to save a little dough and do our part to stay green.

VISIT FROM A FRIEND

Tuesday an old friend from the apartment complex Kendra and I lived in when we first got married stopped by. Jared and I both lived at viewpoint apts in G.R, in 2000 and have remained good friends. He and his wife Sara live in the big apple and are visiting their families for the week. Jared has appeared in some commercials and films and currently is co-owner of an awesome catering business. He met his beautiful wife when they were both on a modeling shoot. (what can I say, I rub shoulders with famous people:) anyways, it is sooooo cool that we have remained friends and my girls absolutely adored him!!! They chased him around the back yard for hours and the next morning Addy was asking where he went and saying "want to see him"

thanks for stopping by bro and I am so excited about coming your way again in the fall.

ps. I would be remiss if i failed to mention that I accomplished the "perfect storm" trifecta at the gym. We played b-ball and I won at horse, one on one, and three on three!!! Sorry I had to mention it bro, but this is something I have to document for the rest of time:)

DID I REALLY DO THIS?

Last week, the "carnival" came to an old abandoned K-Mart parking lot near us. I always drive by these and think to myself, who in their right mind would ride those things? Don't they know it only takes them 15 minutes to set up the whole "park" and the operators can't exactly be rocket scientists.........
Anyways, upon the request of my 3 year old daughter, I pushed past all of my fears and stereotypes and took my 2 nieces and 2 daughters to the carnival. We pretty much stuck to the small rides, so It only cost me about 40 dollars in one hour to sweat and pray while my daughters rode on a scrambler. When it was time to get an elephant ear for a snack, they were only six dollars so that was a pleasant financial surprise.

the highlight came when the three girls got to go on the "spider" ride again without having to pay!! The nice operator lady with the beard said that since no one was in line (what a shock) we could go again. I made sure to thank her and slip a mach 3 coupon into her ticket belt on our way out.

All in all, I got totally ripped off, but that's part of being a dad/uncle. When Ava asked if she could come back, I told her to play with her soup can at home because daddy barely had enough money left to buy hand sanitizer.