Coffin Corner

Dear Bill ,
Below are your Marriage Moments and Parenting Pointers for SEPTEMBER.

Note: My September Family Resource is Dealing with Fear.

Shameless plug: My latest book, Money in the Kingdom of God, has just been published. It's a Bible study on use of possessions. I also have a Facebook group, Living Lightly. 

432. Sept. 5: (Labor Day) "Come to me, all you who labor and are overburdened and I will give you rest." (Mt. 11:28). For those who have full time jobs (whether paid or in the home) this is a comforting scripture. Unemployment, however, can be a stress on marriage. Pray for those who need money but can't find work. Maybe it's you.

433. Sept. 12: "Love is no assignment for cowards." (Ovid) Have you ever stood up for your spouse? Perhaps someone was making fun of her. Or maybe other wives were mocking their husbands and it would have been easy to join the banter. Be true to your absent spouse.

434. Sept. 19: Although flexibility is important in a marriage, sometimes relationships break down when one partner takes life too loosely. It's hard when you don't know if you can depend on your spouse to meet a deadline or a commitment. What's your spouse good at remembering?

435. Sept. 26: When good secretaries take a message they always repeat the telephone number and summarize the message. Your spouse deserves similar service. "Now you said ... Did I get it right?" Saves a lot of misunderstandings and mix-ups.

PARENTING POINTERS

431. Sept. 2: As school starts, it's helpful to have routines. For example: Set out school supplies and clothes the night before. No "screen time" till after homework is done. No cell phones after bedtime. What are your family rules?

432. Sept. 9: (Anniversary of 9/11) This Sunday the USA remembers with sadness the tragedy of 9/11. It was a day of fear that prompted a decade of security measures. Help your children move beyond their fears. (See my Family Activity, Dealing with Fears.)

433. Sept. 16: "I was sick and you visited me." (Mt. 25:35) Parents readily do this corporal work of mercy each time our child has a cold or we kiss a boo boo. But what about those physically or mentally ill people outside our family? Does someone need a visit? Take a child with you.

434. Sept. 23: Next Monday is National Family Day. The focus is on eating together with your children. If your children are young, this is easy. They need you to cook. If they are older, make an effort to eat together - if not Monday, one day next week.

435. Sept. 30: "I was in prison and you came to see me." (Mt. 25:35) Now this might seem like a hard work of mercy to do with a child. Consider, however, that sending a child to her room or "time out" is a kind of imprisonment. Give them a way to redeem themselves afterwards.