Civilization

The Good Dinosaur -or- The Not-So-Good Dinosaur?
“They stole our story!” I told someone the first time I saw a trailer for Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur. The stunning shots of a human boy playing with a little dinosaur are firmly impossible in the standard evolutionary narrative—the dinosaurs supposedly died out eons before humans appeared on the scene, so theories of historical human…
Avoid The Awkward Pause
One of the great joys of the holiday season is the chance to spend time with family members that you don't get to see the rest of the year. Unfortunately, that's also one of the stressful things about the holidays – extended family that you don't see the rest of the year. (more…)
Guys That Help Around The House Are Just Being Biblical Men
This time of year, the housework goes into high gear - cooking, cleaning, and all that, getting ready for the holiday rush. If your home is like ours, the cry for "All hands on deck!" is deep, often, and heartfelt in November and December! When we were a boys-only family, though, a friend with daughters…
Q&A Do You Do Halloween? It’s Just Pretend, Right?
Readers ask us, "Do you guys celebrate Halloween?" We had a lot of discussion about this when we were first married. We went back and forth between the fun we'd had as kids and the opportunity to perhaps share the gospel with neighbors who came to the door, and our discomfort with the whole celebration…
Q&A: Why Do My Boys (And My Husband) Like Such Dumb Entertainment?
It's one of those mysteries between the sexes - what makes our choices of entertainment so different? Wives and mothers shake their heads over boys' choices of movies, videos, books, and so on. To their thinking, so much of it is just stupid. And it's not simply childishness - dads and husbands are laughing too. Why is there…
Celebrating Independence Day When You Don’t Feel Much Like It
Our podcast on Making Family Life Practical this week is our answer to our friends posting on social media that they are so worried about our country that they don't really feel like celebrating the Fourth of July.  Click this link or graphic (after 10pm Monday!) to listen to the show. Keep scrolling for our…
Save on Hotels with Christian Hospitality Networks
We travel a lot. No, really, a LOT. As authors and speakers, we're on the road more months than we're home now. We used to picture speakers as those glamorous people who flew in to the conference, stayed in the nicest rooms, and had everything taken care of. Then we became speakers. We didn't want to…
A Question About Fifty Shades of Grey
This morning a friend asked, "Do you think I should watch Fifty Shades of Grey with my teen and talk about it?"  We're not as strict on media as some are. We think there's some value in watching things you don't agree with and analyzing and discussing them with your teens. Sometimes, though, there's more…
Why Off-Year Elections Are Important Too
Tomorrow is our infamous "off year election," where local elections are in focus and the president watches returns to see whether he finishes his term with a friendly Congress or an opposition in control. Voter turnout is always lower when The Big Prize is not on the ballot. That's a huge opportunity for the party faithful…
Finding a Mate: Honoring Your Parents
We've said some critical things about the way the courtship model of finding a mate is generally carried out, but one good thing that has come out of it is the recognition that courtship and marriage involves more than two people, it involves two families. We're always amused when we hear someone say, "I'm marrying her,…