New Year's Eve in America USA

New Year's Eve, which is on December 31, is the last day of the year in the United States. It is a major social observance and many parties are held, particularly in the evening.

Many Americans attend special New Year's Eve 

celebrations where food and drinks, such as wine, are 

served.

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Celebrate New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve is a major social holiday for many people in the United States. Many people hold parties at home or attend special celebrations to celebrate the upcoming New Year. In many cities, large scale public events are held. These often attract thousands of people.

A particularly striking aspect of the New Year's Eve festivities is the ball drop in Times Square in Manhattan, New York City. The ball is made of crystal and electric lights and is placed on top of a pole, which is 77 feet, or 23 meters, high. At one minute before midnight on December 31, the ball is lowered slowly down the pole. It comes to rest at the bottom of the pole at exactly midnight. The event is shown on television across the United States and around the world. The event has been held every year since 1907, except during World War II.

Across the United States a range of cities and towns hold their own versions of the ball drop. A variety of objects are lowered or raised during the last minute of the year. The objects are usually linked to an aspect of local history or industry. Examples of objects 'dropped' or raised in this way include a variety of live and modeled domestic and wild animals, fruit, vegetables, automobiles, industrial machinery, a giant replica of a peach (Atlanta, Georgia), an acorn made of brass and weighing 900 pounds (Raleigh, North Carolina) and ping pong balls (Strasburg, Pennsylvania).

Public life

December 31 is not a federal holiday, but it does fall in the holiday season at the end of the year. It is a holiday in some states like Kentucky, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Most schools and other educational institutions throughout the United States are closed. Some organizations are closed and others are open but offer limited services. Many stores are open on New Year's Eve, but may close early. Many theaters, clubs and other entertainment venues have special programs. It may be necessary to reserve tickets many weeks in advance.

Public transit systems may operate normal or reduced services. Some companies extend their schedules into the early hours of January 1 to enable people who have attended New Year's Eve parties to return home safely. If you need to use public transit on December 31, it is wise to check the appropriate timetables carefully before you travel.

There may be some congestion to traffic or diversions around large scale events. Diversions may be in effect in the days before New Year's Eve so that stands can be built. It is wise to check the local media if you wish to drive to or near large scale events.

About New Year's Eve

In both the Gregorian calendar, currently used in the United States, and the Julian calendar, which was used until 1752 in the British colonies, the last day of the year is December 31. In Europe, the mid-winter period was traditionally associated with feasting and parties. In the early years of the American colonies and within the United States, this type of celebration was often frowned upon, particularly by religious communities.

Around the start of the 1900s, New Year's Eve celebrations in America started to appear. The first Ball drop in Times Square was held in 1907. Around the same time, special events to welcome the New Year started to be organized on January 1.

How Disneyland Gets Ready For The Holidays

The Christmas Story of the Birth of Jesus - Paraphrased from the Bible:

This Christmas story gives a biblical account of the events surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ. The Christmas story is paraphrased from the New Testament books of Matthewand Luke in the Bible.

References:

Matthew 1:18-25; Matthew 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-38; Luke 2:1-20.

The Conception of Jesus Foretold

Mary, a virgin, was living in Galilee of Nazareth and was engaged to be married to Joseph, a Jewish carpenter. An angel visited her and explained to her that she would conceive a son by the power of the Holy Spirit. She would carry and give birth to this child and she would name him Jesus.

At first Mary was afraid and troubled by the angel's words. Being a virgin, Mary questioned the angel, "How will this be?" The angel explained that the child would be God's own Son and, therefore, "nothing is impossible with God." Humbled and in awe, Mary believed the angel of the Lord and rejoiced in God her Savior.

Surely Mary reflected with wonder on the words found inIsaiah 7:14 foretelling this event, "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." (NIV)

The Birth of Jesus:

While Mary was still engaged to Joseph, she miraculously became pregnant through the Holy Spirit, as foretold to her by the angel. When Mary told Joseph she was pregnant, he had every right to feel disgraced. He knew the child was not his own, and Mary's apparent unfaithfulness carried a grave social stigma. Joseph not only had the right to divorce Mary, under Jewish law she could be put to death by stoning.

Although Joseph's initial reaction was to break the engagement, the appropriate thing for a righteous man to do, he treated Mary with extreme kindness. He did not want to cause her further shame, so he decided to act quietly. But God sent an angel to Joseph in a dream to verify Mary's story and reassure him that his marriage to her was God's will. The angel explained that the child within Mary was conceived by the Holy Spirit, that his name would be Jesus and that he was the Messiah, God with us.

When Joseph woke from his dream, he willingly obeyed God and took Mary home to be his wife, in spite of the public humiliation he would face. Perhaps this noble quality is one of the reasons God chose him to be the Messiah's earthly father.

Joseph too must have wondered in awe as he remembered the words found in Isaiah 7:14, "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." (NIV)

At that time, Caesar Augustus decreed that a census be taken, and every person in the entire Roman world had to go to his own town to register. Joseph, being of the line ofDavid, was required to go to Bethlehem to register with Mary. While in Bethlehem, Mary gave birth to Jesus. Probably due to the census, the inn was too crowded, and Mary gave birth in a crude stable. She wrapped the baby in cloths and placed him in a manger.

The Shepherd's Worship the Savior:

Out in the fields, an angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds who were tending their flocks of sheep by night. The angel announced that the Savior had been born in the town of David. Suddenly a great host of heavenly beings appeared with the angels and began singing praises to God. As the angelic beings departed, the shepherds decided to travel to Bethlehem and see the Christ-child.

There they found Mary, Joseph and the baby, in the stable. After their visit, they began to spread the word about this amazing child and everything the angel had said about him. They went on their way still praising and glorifying God. But Mary kept quiet, treasuring their words and pondering them in her heart. It must have been beyond her ability to grasp, that sleeping in her arms—the tender child she had just borne—was the Savior of the world.

The Magi Bring Gifts:

After Jesus' birth, Herod was king of Judea. At this timewise men (Magi) from the east saw a star, they came in search, knowing the star signified the birth of the king of the Jews. The wise men came to the Jewish rulers in Jerusalem and asked where the Christ was to be born. The rulers explained, "In Bethlehem in Judea," referring toMicah 5:2. Herod secretly met with the Magi and asked them to report back after they had found the child. Herod told the Magi that he too wanted to go and worship the babe. But secretly Herod was plotting to kill the child.

So the wise men continued to follow the star in search of the new born king and found Jesus with his mother in Bethlehem. (Most likely Jesus was already two years of age by this time.) They bowed and worshipped him, offering treasures of gold, incense, and myrrh. When they left, they did not return to Herod. They had been warned in a dream of his plot to destroy the child.

• More Christmas Bible Verses

• Bible Story Summary Index

Church of God in Christ Statement 107th Holy Convocation

During the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) 107 Holy Convocation in St. Louis, MO, November 3-11, 2014, many tremendous things occurred that demonstrated the church’s love for community and for the whole man.

Through a number of COGIC Cares initiatives, the St. Louis and metro east communities were helped in some of the following ways:

• During our Health Fair and Job Fair, hundreds received free healthcare services while many unemployed attendees were able to network with St. Louis employers;
• 5,000 people received assistance in the form of food, clothing, blankets, toys, haircuts and medical check-ups at our Christmas in November event on Saturday, November 8, 2014;
• Members of our denomination dispersed within the North St. Louis Fourth Ward community to provide cleanup assistance to blighted areas; and
• Several COGIC leaders visited a St. Louis Public School to conduct “a day of reading” among elementary school children.

Since 2010, when the Church of God in Christ Holy Convocation moved from Memphis, TN to St. Louis, the economic impact to the bi-state, metropolitan area has been over $120 million.

As a Pentecostal, Bible-believing organization, our goal is to edify and care for the entire individual, both naturally and spiritually. Thus, during the convocation:

• 559 individuals committed their lives to Christ;
• 97 individuals re-dedicated their lives to Christ;
• 224 Christians were filled with the Holy Spirit, according to (Acts 2:4); and
• 227 individuals received divine deliverance from a number of afflictions.

A video, which is now viral, of a young man stating his deliverance from a particular lifestyle does not, in any capacity, speak to all of the remarkable things that transpired during this great church convention.

We believe that we should reflect the love and compassion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in all that we do. We do not in any way compromise our biblical position against same sex unions or in favor of biblical teaching on matters of sexual conduct. At the same time we expect that our clergy and laity will be civil and considerate as they speak to men and women regarding issues related to our Christian faith. We love all people, regardless of their faith or moral standards. When we fail to express ourselves with love and humility we contradict our witness to the world

Furthermore, the Church of God in Christ wholly condemns acts of violence against and the subjugation of any person to verbal or physical harassment on the basis of their sexual stance. Such actions violate entirely the Christian’s obligation to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.

Thanksgiving -Things to be Thankful For

                                                              

  In the midst of the hustle and bustle of daily life, it's easy to take certain things for granted. But when you're feeling empty you can always fill up on thanks. Start now with this list of things you can always be thankful for..

At the end, it’s relationships that matter most. Invest in your family relationships by putting these ideas into practice. Cultivating strong family roots begins with laying the proper foundation. Just like you need the right soil to grow a healthy tree, the proper soil is a family mission statement. A mission statement is a powerful document that expresses your family’s sense of purpose and meaning in life; it acts as a governing constitution by which your family evaluates decisions and chooses behaviors.

Spending time together at meals is a great way for families to share about their day and to learn about what is going on in each other’s lives. Try to commit to eating together as a family as often as possible — without the distractions of the television or phone. Make dinnertime fun for your family with simple ideas.

By staying close to your children emotionally and by creating a positive home environment, you can help protect your children’s emotional health. But when you engage in self-destructive behaviors (substance abuse, harmful relationships), you are also affecting your children. By keeping yourself emotionally healthy, you will be creating a strong framework in which you can relate to and be a role model for your children.

‘God TV’ In Shambles After Founder Leaves Wife For Mistress, Abandons Network

AUTHOR: JAMESON PARKER OCTOBER 11, 2014 7:19 PM

God TV, one of the biggest Christian television networks in the world, is in complete disarray after its founder left his wife to move to South Africa with his girlfriend.

According to Wendy Alec, her husband Rory was seduced by a “Jezebel” jazz musician and had begun having an affair. Citing Satan, Wendy claimed that the woman stole her husband for ungodly reasons and the two have fled Israel (where God TV is based) to live on a farm in South Africa. For his part, Rory admits that he is now living with the woman but denies that she was sent by Satan.

The Alecs had co-founded the station together in 1995 and had since grown the network to the point where it was getting millions of viewers each week from across the world. Despite that international success, all was not well behind the scenes. According to Wendy, Satan was secretly working to destroy her marriage by putting her husband in a place that no man could resist temptation: the music studio.

“God knew before the beginning of time that we would face this time,” she said on a special edition of God TV programming. “The princes of hell designed a perfect strategy through that seductive Jezabel spirit.”

“It was a real strategic attack against his mind.”

“The music studio is one of the most seductive environments you can have”

In the Bible, the actual Jezabel was a princess who married Ahab. Using her womanly prowess, she convinced Ahab to stop worshiping the Abrahamic God and instead pray to pagan ones like Baal. Since then, the term has been applied to any woman who seduces men and gets between them and God. The “Jezabel” in this case, appears to be a young jazz musician that Rory had been collaborating with for an album. She too, apparently, had a divine interpretation to what was happening, and allegedly told Rory that she had heard “an audible voice from God that Rory was the man of her life.”

In an emotional scene, Wendy took to the airways to inform her viewers about what had been happening in her marriage.

Here’s the video:

In the mean time, Rory had sent a letter to staff explaining his side of the story and formally apologizing to them for the “moral failure” that he had committed and announcing that he was no longer going to be associated with the network.

After 20 years of service, I have had a moral failure this year. For this reason, I am stepping down. Please forgive me for the disappointment I’ve caused, but I know your eyes are on Jesus who is the author and finisher of your faith and not on me, an imperfect man,” he said. “It is with a heavy heart that I confirm my season with GOD TV is over for now.

It’s unclear how the network will handle the abrupt change in leadership. According to Wendy Alec, the show must go on. And for now, the programming remains largely unchanged (God TV’s twitter account didn’t even mention the scandal). For the past few years the network has been heavily promoting a singular goal to reaching the cable boxes of one billion people across the world. To do that, the network needs to get passed Rory Alec.

It’s not all doom and gloom, though. There are reasons for God TV to be hopeful. Audiences tend to be forgiving of the moral failings of their Christian hosts. If the network is looking to move past the scandal, there are ample examples of Christian networks doing just that.

In 2010, for example, the Christian network “Daystar” was rocked by the revelation that its co-founder was having an affair with an employee. Lawsuits between the founders Marcus and Joni Lamb and various employees flew back and forth, before finally being settled. The network rebounded only to fall into a second scandal just a year later when a former employee filed a sex discrimination lawsuitagainst it. Just two years later, Daystar remains one of the most successful Christian programming networks in the world.

If a network like Daystar can survive scandals on a near-yearly basis, it seems entirely possible that God TV can weather the storm as well.

Help us get the word out!

 

Small Churches have Problems

If we fail to understand and examine the underlying causes then the problem will manifest itself in other areas and so we will end up spending all our time “putting out the fires” rather than preventing the fires from starting.


I’ve been to a number of the smaller of churches, and visited the largest of churches. There is indeed a sharp distinction between the two and for good reason. 
By using the word “grow,” I do not mean in numbers for numbers’ sake. I do not subscribe to the fallacy that bigness is good and small churches are failures. What I mean by “grow” is reaching people with the gospel of Jesus Christ. 
       Problems arise in any and every church.  The fact that the church is composed of fallen people seeking to serve a fallen world where Satan and his cohorts are seeking to destroy the church means that we will encounter all types of difficulties and challenges. Anytime there is even a minor decrease in attendance or giving we feel pressure to respond quickly and decisively to the perceived problems least we lose more people and suffer greater financial shortfalls. Within the small church, problems are exponentially felt because of the rippling effect that it has within the small church and the impact even the loss of one or two families can have upon the whole congregation. 
    For example, there may be some conflicts arise over the style of worship that the church is having.  At first glance, it may appear that the problem relates to music and personal tastes regarding style.  However, when examined more closely, it may be that the real issue is low morale because the church is not attracting new people.  As a result, disagreements arise because people have different ideas on how the style of music may contribute or hinder the outreach of the church.  Just addressing the issue of music may ease the tension regarding the choice of music, but soon tensions will rise in another area (such as the style of preaching by the pastor) as people continue to struggle with identifying possible reasons new people are not coming to church. When the church is struggling with problems, one of the questions that the board should examine is whether or not there are underlying problems that need to be addressed as well.

Hip Hop Love

 Hip Hop Love 

Will Hip Hop Love Work?

And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”Genesis 2:18 

It is not good for man to be alone because God created man with the capacity and desire for relationships. Why did God create man? He wasn’t lonely; He had the Trinity. He didn’t need us to worship Him; He had the angels worshipping him long before we came into the picture. He didn’t create us to glorify Him; He already had glory. God created man so that we could enjoy what He has – loving relationships.

In John 17:21-23, Jesus prays to the Father, “that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.”

God models loving relationship for us in the Trinity, the three persons of God who all have different functions and roles, yet are united in One God. (SeeGenesis 1:26, John 3:16, John 7:16, John 16:13, 

John 17:1, John 16:14.) 

The Father sent the Son and the Son sends the Holy Spirit. Together they design and execute the plan of salvation, and they all point to each other and give one another glory.

God desires for us to have loving relationships with each other and with Himself. We can miss this fact if we get caught up in religion. Life with God is about relationship, and He wants to be involved in all of your earthly relationships, everywhere you go, in every area of your life.

2. Our design or ‘wiring’ actively seeks to live in loving relationships.

A relationship is defined as an interdependence between people where equal give-and-take exists…

If God commanded you to love, he must have designed you to love. We seek out what God created for us.

The human body has many different intricate systems (digestive system, skeletal system, endocrine system), including various brain systems. One of these is the relationship/bonding system, which constantly asks two questions:

• Am I loveable?
• Is love available to me?/Am I accepted by this group of people?

As a child you develop a sense of how to give and receive love, and sometimes this develops a pattern of falseness because you have learned that you will not be loved or accepted unless you do certain things or act a certain way. Whatever you learned in your relationship system, you will have the same pattern and expectations with God, because that’s what you know. (That doesn’t mean you can’t improve or re-learn how to love and be loved with God’s help.)

Our relationship system works in a very specific way because we were creative to love and be loved. Unlike animals, who can live among humans and never encounter another of their kind, people cannot live without love and human interaction; humans left to themselves will die. Don’t take these systems for granted. They have been given to you for a very specific reason – to enable you to have relationship.

3. God Himself is the ultimate satisfaction of our search for a loving relationship.

 We all have relationships that are not reaching their loving potential because we have not fully tapped into God’s love.

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.1 John 4:7-8

God not only loves and gives love; He is love. If you want to get back to the way God wants us to love, just start giving it selflessly! Don’t give out of selfish ambition or to get credit for how great you are. Relationships are not meant for manipulation, but for selfless love. You can’t get to that point unless you have the love of God in you. Ask Him today what relationships you need to surrender to Him and allow His love to flow through you.

“Should Women Remain Silent”

In 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, Paul wrote: “As in all the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church” (vv. 33-35).

If we take this literally, it would mean that women are not allowed to sing in church nor respond when the pastor asks for comments or questions from the audience. Moreover, it would contradict what Paul said in chapter 11, where he said that women could pray and prophesy in church if they had the appropriate attire.

Common sense, church custom, and good principles of biblical interpretation all say that we should not take these verses literally—and almost no one does. Paul is not making a blanket prohibition that says that women can never speak in church. Rather, he was addressing his comments to a certain situation, and his comments are limited in some way. The question is, What are the limits of Paul’s prohibition? In the following paper, the doctrinal review team examines the context and looks at the details of these verses.  

A call to order

In 1 Corinthians 11, Paul begins to instruct the Corinthian church about their somewhat disorganized worship services. As we studied in our previous paper, he says that women should wear a head covering when they pray and prophesy; then he corrects the Corinthians on the way they had been observing the Lord’s Supper. In chapter 12, he addresses the proper use of spiritual gifts in the worship service. He describes a number of gifts, and insists that all gifts are important to the Body of Christ; the variety of gifts calls for mutual respect and honor, not vanity or shame.

In chapter 13, he describes love as the best way, and in chapter 14 he makes an extended contrast between the gift of tongues and the gift of prophesying. Apparently some people in Corinth were extolling the gift of tongues as a mark of superior spirituality. Paul did not tell them to stop speaking in tongues, but he did put some restrictions on how tongues should be used in the worship service:

1) There should be two or three speakers (14:27).

2) They should speak one at a time (v. 27).

3) There should be an interpretation (v. 27b). If no one can interpret the tongues, “the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and God” (v. 28). However, this requirement should not be lifted out of its context to create a complete prohibition on the person ever speaking, singing or praying.[1]

Paul is apparently trying to give some organization to what had been a rather chaotic worship meeting—several people speaking at once, speaking words that no one could understand.

Paul recommends the gift of prophecy as a far more helpful gift, but he gives similar guidelines for those speakers, too:

1) Only two or three should speak (v. 29). If someone else has something to say, the first speaker should be quiet.[2]

2) They should speak one at a time (v. 31).

3) People should “weigh carefully what is said” (v. 29; cf. 1 Thess. 5:21).

Paul notes that “the spirits of the prophets are subject to the control of the prophets” (1 Cor. 14:32). That is, the speakers are able to stop; they cannot use “God made me do it” as an excuse for adding to the commotion.[3] When God gives a gift, he also gives the person the responsibility to make decisions to use that gift in an appropriate way. Simply having the gift is not an excuse to use it whenever and wherever the person wants to. Paul explains his reason: “For God is not a God of disorder but of peace” (v. 33).

Paul[4] then tells the women to be quiet, and to ask their questions at home: “As in all the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church” (vv. 33-35).

Commitment in Raising Children

What are the most common problems that face husbands and wives as they strive to parent their children together? 

Kyle Pruett, MD and Marsha Kline Pruett, PhD: Keeping their own relationship in suffcient repair to

cope with the sacrifices they will be making for theirkid's wellbeing for the long haul of child -rearing.

Commitment: What are ten things parents can do to enjoy a strong and successful
co-parenting alliance?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett:

1) Be prepared for the inevitable dip in marital satisfaction.

2) When you've got a complaint about your partner's management of
the kids, sleep on it, and pick a moment when you can finish the conversation.

3) Start any conversations about different opinions with "I...", not 'you...".

4) Regularly date your spouse5) Get enough sleep6) Keep your partner's strengths in the forefront of your mind

7) Make every effort to avoid sarcasm or personal attack when you are mad or hurt about your partner's co-parenting behavior

8) Protect 15 mins of 'veg out' time for each other every day

9) Make each other laugh regularly

10) Insure that your first impulse is always to support your spouse when they are going at it with your kids - if you really disagree, take it up later.

Commitment: What challenges do mothers and fathers face in raising children that
 stem from their gender differences?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Gender differences are probably less important than personality differences in shaping our parenting behavior.

Commitment: How can couples better understand one another so that their gender differences do not prevent them from giving their children what they need?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Gender itself is not a barrier; stereotypicgender-related socio-cultural expectations, such as fathers don't do diapers,mothers don't rough house, are more of the problem in limiting parent's
repetoiore of child-involvement behaviors.

Commitment: What advantages do these gender differences give the children?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: When both parents are emotionally engaged withtheir children, kids have a stronger self-image, more problem-solving skills,
do better in school, and handle life's troubles more competently.

Commitment: When parents first take their baby home from the hospital, what
 challenges do they face in forming a successful parenting partnership? 

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Not letting the baby's care and needs completely eclipse the existing marital relationship.

Commitment: What will enable parents to successfully cope with this stage of care taking?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Talk early and often with each other about your ideas about parenting, and what your dreams are for how your child's expereince will be different from-or benefit from- your own childhood experience.

Commitment: How can parents help one another feel supported in taking care of the
 children, rather than feeling like they are coping with parenting all
 alone?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Check in with each other every morning about how you plan to care TOGETHER for this child today - not simply talking logistics, but actually
discussing feedings, bathings, walkings, etc.

Commitment: What are some communication techniques that will help parents
 develop a strong co-parenting alliance?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Listening twice as often to your partner twice as often as you talk at them.

Commitment: How can mothers better value and encourage their husband's
contribution to parenting?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Avoid gatekeeping - controlling his relationship with the children according to your expectations of what is the 'right [i.e.your] way to parent'. Honor his unique conribution to your children's life.

Commitment: How can husbands better value and encourage their wife's
 contribution to parenting?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: The reverse is a more common problem, but tag
teaming [supporting each other's contributions] can always be strengthened

Commitment: How can parents work together to promote their child's emotional
 development?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Not undermine the other parent's interventions when the child is
having strong feelings or misbehaving.

Commitment: How can parents work together to promote their child's emotional and
physical safety?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: In the book, we take on the father's and the mother's offering differing attitudes about discipline, education, independence, spoiling and many other importing child-rearing challenges. What runs through all of our advice is the great power of ongoing  and open communication. are some issues that should be discussed and decided upon? What common problems do fathers and mothers face in agreeing upon safety issues? Mothers tend to keep their children on a shorter tether, especially when they are away from home, whereas fathers are more likely to encourage  a longer tether to support more learning about adventure and novel encounters. They tend to feel that the latter are important practice
for managing themselves in the 'real world'.

Commitment:  When it comes to education, what are some things parents can do to
 ensure that their home is a place of learning and creative growth?

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Mothers and fathers BOTH need to be reading to their children from the time they can sit up. Many men simply leave these areas around education and language to their wives. This confuses the children who assume that dad is a teacher, too!

Commitment: What tips do you have for parents who are divorced, but still both
love their children and want a role in raising them? 

Dr. Pruett and Dr. Pruett: Co-parenting as a concept has it's roots in post-divorce parenting. This book brings the lessons learned into the marriage before trouble starts. Still, divorced parenting can benefit from the tag-team lessons taught in this book. CHildren need to be in loving relationships to thrive, and successful
coparenting shifts the odds in their behavior whether the parents are married
or not.

Prayers for My Husband-His Sexuality

Prayers from the Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

HIS SEXUALITY – Lord, bless my husband’s sexuality and make it an area of great fulfillment for him. Restore what needs to be restored, balance what needs to be balanced. Protect us from apathy, disappointment, criticism, busyness, unforgiveness, deadness, or disinterest. I pray that we make time for one another, communicate our true feelings openly, and remain sensitive to what each other needs. Keep us sexually pure in mind and body, and close the door to anything lustful or illicit that seeks to encroach upon us. Deliver us from the bondage of past mistakes. Remove from our midst the effects of any sexual experience – in thought or deed – that happened outside of our relationship. Take away anyone or anything from our lives that would inspire temptation to infidelity. Help us to abstain from sexual immorality so that each of us will know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor. I pray that we will desire each other and no one else. Show me how to make myself attractive and desirable to him and be the kind of partner he needs. I pray that neither of us will ever be tempted to think about seeking fulfillment elsewhere. I realize that an important part of my ministry to my husband is sexual. Help me to never us it as a weapon or a means of manipulation by giving and withholding it for selfish reasons. I commit this are of our lives to You, Lord. May it be continually new and alive. Make it all that You created it to be.

The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

• 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5
• 1 Corinthians 6:18-20; 6:13
• Proverbs 5:15-19

Prayers for My Husband-His Work & Finances

Prayers from the Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

HIS WORK

Lord, I pray that You would bless the work of my husband’s hands. May his labor bring not only favor, success, and prosperity, but great fulfillment as well. If the work he is doing is not in line with Your perfect will for his life, reveal it to him. Show him what he should do differently and guide him down the right path. Give him strength, faith, and a vision for the future so he can rise above any propensity for laziness. May he never run from work out of fear, selfishness, or desire to avoid responsibility. On the other hand, help him to see that he doesn’t have to work himself to death for man’s approval, or grasp for gain beyond what is a gift from You. Give him the ability to enjoy his success without striving for more. Help him to excel, but free him from the pressure to do so. I pray that You will be Lord over his work, and may he bring You into every aspect of it. Give him enough confidence in the gifts You’ve placed in him to be able to seek, find, and do good work. Open up doors of opportunity for him that no man can close. Develop his skills so that they grow more valuable with each passing year. Show me what I can do to encourage him. I pray that his work will be established, secure, successful, satisfying, and financially rewarding. May he not be lagging in diligence but fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. Let him be like a tree planted by the stream of Your living water, which brings forth fruit in due season. May he never wither under pressure, but grow strong and prosper.

The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

• Romans 12:11
• Psalm 1:3; 90:17
• Proverbs 22:29; 23:4-5
• Matthew 16:26
• Ecclesiastes 10:18

HIS FINANCES – Lord, I commit our finances to You. Be in charge of them and use them for Your purposes. May we both be good stewards of all that You give us, and walk in total agreement as to how it is to be dispersed. I pray that we will learn to live free of burdensome debt. Where we have not been wise, bring restoration and give us guidance. Show me how I can help increase our finances and not decrease them unwisely. Help us to remember that all we have belongs to You, and to be grateful for it. I pray that my husband will find it easy to give to You and to others as You have instructed in Your Word. Give him wisdom to handle money wisely. Help him make good decisions as to how he spends. Show him how to plan for the future. I pray that he will find the perfect balance between spending needlessly and being miserly. May he always be paid well for the work he does, and may his money not be stolen, lost, devoured, destroyed, or waster. Multiply it so that what he makes will go a long way. I pray that he will not be anxious about finances, but will seek Your kingdom first, knowing that as eh does, we will have all we need.

The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

• Luke 12:31; 12:29-31
• Ecclesiastes 5:19
• Proverbs 28:27
• Psalm 37:25
• Philippians 4:19