While the adults at my delayed gate in Atlanta looked around frustrated, tapped their toes, and checked their watches often, a group of small children decided to take a different approach to the inconvenience. I like their approach better. It was a typical scene in most busy airports in America: people trying to get to their final destinations, hoping that their delayed flight would not derail their best laid plans. I had joined the rest of the self-important business travelers whose body language clearly displayed our discontent with the situation. During my time at the gate, I saw a few small children finding each other and impromptuly forming a circle on the floor. Then they began to play games, and by the time we were boarding, they were breaking into song. Our delay became their party. As I was boarding I looked at the children and could not help but…

Guest post by Dr. Tim Elmore Love. We probably talk about this concept more today than ever before, but actually practice it less than ever. At least in the way God intended us to do so. We find love in movies, romance novels, in Hallmark cards, on YouTube, and on bumper stickers. At Christmas time, especially, love is promoted by stores to push sales, and by cinemas to sell tickets. We all love the idea of love! But how do we practice it on the people we are closest to — like — in our home? Sometimes, the hardest people to love are not the strangers we meet out shopping, but our own family members. Try this simple idea. Sit down at dinner one night and talk about “love languages.” You may be familiar with the concept. Author, Dr. Gary Chapman, introduced it to us in his 1992 book: The…

Tim Elmore’s new book “Generation iY” has messed me up lately, particularly the chapter on amending the lies we told Generation iY. According to Tim, these are well intentioned platitudes we say to our children in order to encourage them, to build their self-esteem but at their core, they are lies that will potentially wreak havoc as kids get old. According to him, “we have lied to manipulate, and often we have lied out of love. We’ve even taught young people to lie to themselves. . . in ways that will eventually sabotage them as a young adult.” Out of Dr. Elmore’s list of seven lies, the one that hit me the hardest was: You can be anything you want to be! Wait a second Tim, isn’t this part of the American Dream? Don’t people risk everything to come to America so their children can grow in a place they…