Robert & Kay Camenisch encouraging and equipping relationships

It’s that time of year when we review the past year and set goals for the new. Time to make New Year’s resolutions. It’s good to have a new beginning that nudges us to pause and consider where we are and where we want to be. Most resolutions deal with better health by focusing on…

Monday, I blogged about conquering fear through Directing Your Mind on positive things—things that are honorable, lovely, excellent, of good repute and worthy of praise. If we look at the positive things of life instead of at the negative, Paul tells us, that “the God of peace will be with you” (Phil. 4:8-9). But there’s…

In ongoing conversations of the Newtown attack, I continue to hear comments that speak of fear that it could happen to “me.” The tragedy has negative ripple effects far beyond the local community if we allow fear to creep in. The truth is that we can never put in enough laws and safeguards to prevent…

A tragedy such as that in Newtown, Connecticut is beyond comprehension. It’s impossible to process such a horrendous scene. Impossible to understand the motives. Impossible to fully feel the pain and loss of the families or the shock and trauma to the community. I don’t know that the senseless tragedy could be any worse than…

Joy, Peace, and Good Will are common greetings of the Christmas season. Indeed, they are probably at the heart of what most people seek during Christmas. And, I’d venture to say that we usually experience them during Christmas more than any other time of year. The expectation of joy, peace, and good will at Christmas…

According to a Foxnews.com story, Cottondale Elementary School in Jackson County Florida is displaying their nativity scene on the lawn, just as they’ve done for years. But this year, it’s different. A snowman is lying in the manger. Baby Jesus is stored away in the closet. As you might guess, their decision to put Baby…

Our family celebrates Thanksgiving for a week. First our children join us for several days, and then we joined the larger family for the remainder of the week. This year, dynamics of the gathering were impacted by caring for Dad, who fell down a flight of steps almost two months ago. We cut our family…

The Pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving in 1621 to thank God for bringing them safely to the New World. After that, individual colonies and states frequently declared days to be set aside to celebrate and express gratefulness for particular things. In 1863, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of “Thanksgiving…

Thanksgiving and Christmas are upon us, the season of family, celebration, and joy. It’s also a time of great stress because of busy schedules and tight budgets. When relationships aren’t healthy, disharmony frequently erupts during times of stress, destroying dreams of family fun. Even if relationships are solid, family tension builds as a direct result…

Anyone who has struggled with anger can tell you that they don’t want to manage their anger. Instead, they want resolution. They want to get rid of it. They’ve found that anger management doesn’t work. Indeed, that’s what God wants too. He tells us “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander…