Participants: Melissa Summers (Host), Linda Johnson, Cinda Sanner
Series Code: IAA
Program Code: IAA000170A
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00:30 Hello, and welcome to Issues and Answers.
00:32 My name is Melissa Summers, 00:34 and I want you to grab a pen and paper really quick 00:36 because if you were like me 00:38 and I know that you're going through issues, 00:40 because Satan is seeking whom he may destroy. 00:43 So want you to write me because at Issues and Answers, 00:46 we have a committee of Christian councils 00:48 from around the world 00:49 that will pray with and for you now, 00:52 is the Lord that has those answers, 00:54 but we will pray with and for you for those answers. 00:56 Okay, so jot it down my email address 00:59 is melissa.summers@3abn.org. 01:03 And of course you can feel free to mail us 01:05 at Issues & Answers, PO Box 220, 01:08 West Frankfort, Illinois 62896. 01:12 Okay, wanted to give you that right of the bat. 01:14 Now, speaking of issues, today, 01:16 we're gonna be talking about balance in career and family. 01:20 Is there such a balance? Is there such a thing? 01:22 Well, we're gonna talk about it. 01:24 Today, we have some special guests 01:25 that should look very familiar to you. 01:27 So, ladies, we are glad to have you, 01:30 Aunty Linda and we have Miss Cinda from Tiny Tots. 01:35 Now we were thinking, 01:37 who could talk about raising a family, 01:40 handling a career better than you two. 01:41 You have studio filled with children, 01:43 taping and so forth, 01:45 but we really want to just know 01:47 little bit more about your personal. 01:49 We're not trying to get into your business, but... 01:53 Why you're laughing? 01:54 But we know, it has to be a serious challenge, 01:57 just like every other person in the world, 01:59 I'm sure that's dealing with family. 02:01 So, you know, starting with you, career and family. 02:04 Now, honestly, Linda and I were talking earlier 02:07 and we got two sides of the spectrum. 02:09 That's right. 02:11 Your side, you're... 02:13 you know, a mother, you are a wife 02:16 and you were balancing that effectively. 02:19 So what is effectively, balancing the career? 02:23 I think you should always make your children feel like 02:28 they're the most important thing in your life. 02:31 They're more important than your career, 02:33 they're more important than social activities, 02:36 they're more... 02:38 They're just very important to you. 02:40 And a child needs to feel that. 02:43 They need to feel loved and they need to feel, 02:46 I mean, your love and they need to feel 02:48 that they're important in your life. 02:50 Okay, well, 02:52 another person to say, I don't have a child, 02:54 so I can't come from my personal point of view, 02:56 but the others, they say, I love my children, 02:58 that's why I have to work, and I come home late, 03:01 because I've got to make money. 03:03 You know, we got to provide for our children, 03:05 to show them that love to, so I mean, 03:07 how would you explain that? 03:10 I think by showing your children, 03:13 I think it's by spending time with them. 03:15 It's not like just providing for them 03:18 for their comfort, 03:20 though that is very important, 03:21 and both my husband and I have very busy careers. 03:26 He's a busy physician. 03:27 I mean, he can work, I mean sometimes, you know, 03:31 he would be gone for three days at a time, 03:32 when he is on call for the weekend 03:34 and but, when he is home, 03:37 he make sure that he spends time with the kids. 03:40 I make sure that I'm never taping 03:43 or I'm never out of town on, 03:45 you know, speaking engagement or doing seminars, 03:49 if my kids are home. 03:50 And even with the older like, 03:52 Catie is in academy and David is in college, 03:54 but even now, if she's on home leave, 03:59 I'm gonna be there. 04:01 Okay, so you do taping for 3ABN for Tiny Tots. 04:05 And what is that schedule? And cooking, yeah. 04:07 Okay, why and you also, yeah, you guys come here? 04:09 Us three girls cook together, our other sister is not here. 04:12 Honestly, when I got here, 04:13 I thought you guys were full time employees 04:15 working everyday, I'm serious. 04:17 You know, so I'm like, you know, how do you this? 04:20 Now, now for you. 04:25 How do you see your balance? 04:27 Because, I know immediately, 04:29 initially it was just gonna be the two of us, 04:31 but you were like, honestly, 04:32 I hope you don't mind me saying this, 04:33 but you were like, well, Melissa, 04:35 I think my sister Cinda 04:36 could give a better perspective on that perfect balance, 04:39 so where do you feel, 04:41 maybe you didn't have that balance? 04:44 I just... 04:45 I didn't work until my son was about four years old. 04:49 And then we moved to a youth camp in Michigan, 04:53 where my husband was the system manager there 04:56 and I was right away went into food service. 04:59 If you know anything about, anybody knows 05:01 anything about food service, it's all consuming. 05:04 It definitely is. 05:06 And I just poured my heart into that. 05:09 You know just day and night, I mean, 05:12 I was going to work like at 3:30 in the morning 05:15 and finishing at 10 at night. 05:17 Well, I had my son in the morning, 05:20 where I had a little playroom but obviously 05:22 what Cinda was talking about what she does with her kids, 05:25 it wasn't necessarily that quantity of time, 05:27 she was giving her kids quality. 05:30 You were concentrating on the quality. 05:33 I had him there, but I wasn't with him 05:36 and I didn't have the quality time with him, 05:39 but my husband picked up the slack on that. 05:42 I mean, my son didn't suffer 05:44 because my husband did everything with him. 05:46 He took him, if he was going to go, 05:48 take a group canoeing, he took our son with him. 05:52 If he was going to go, take him on a horse trailer, 05:56 if he was in the shop, he would take him with him, 05:57 and he show him and he explained him, 05:59 this is how I change the tire, you know, and he just. 06:02 He would, he actually involved him 06:04 in his work which I didn't do as much, so. 06:10 Now, how would you advice, 06:11 you know those having those issues, the mothers. 06:14 First of all explain the void that you may have felt, 06:17 you know seeing different, 06:18 you know aspects of the growth of the child 06:20 that you missed out on possibly. 06:23 How did that feel? 06:24 I didn't even really notice that void as much... 06:29 Well, I did while I was there, because I would come home 06:31 and he would be sleeping, and when I left in the morning, 06:34 he would be sleeping 06:35 and so that was little bit hard for me. 06:38 And this wasn't, you know, totally all the time, 06:40 this was during some of the busier times 06:42 like summer time when, you know, 06:43 I was cooking seven days a week 06:45 and I did have other days 06:47 that we did go camping 06:48 and we did a lot of things with our son, 06:51 but I just had this ache inside of me 06:55 to spend more time with him, 06:57 but yet at the other end of it I wanted to be 07:00 able to give my job what it needed to, 07:03 and my husband was able to balance both of them. 07:06 And when my, as my son got older, 07:08 I really, really missed. 07:11 you know that closeness and I mean we're close, 07:15 he was always respectful, you know, 07:18 my husband went out of his way, 07:21 you know to do a lot of things for him and as it was, 07:23 how it ended up and Cinda knows this is true 07:26 with our son Jimmy. 07:27 When he was gonna be married, 07:29 he wanted his dad to stand up with him 07:31 in the wedding and he said, "Mom, 07:33 I hope you won't mind that dad won't be beside you, 07:36 but I really want him beside me." 07:38 And I was like, Jimmy, 07:39 I'm so proud that you love your dad that much, 07:42 and so, they had that strong tight bond from that 07:46 and I'm close to him 07:47 but I don't have that tightness like they have. 07:52 So coming to, you ever fear, 07:54 feel remorseful about that? 07:57 I do but you know, 07:59 that is one thing that I had to give to God, 08:03 because you know God doesn't, 08:05 He wants us to be joyful happy Christians. 08:07 Right. Right. 08:08 And you know if I was doing this with my son, 08:11 you know, you can imagine what my time with God was like. 08:15 Perfect point, perfect point, so that was lacking. 08:19 Yes, that was lacking too. 08:20 Yes, I had my worships but they were, 08:23 I had to hurry up and have it. 08:24 Yes, I would pray while I was working, 08:26 but now that I've realized through this thing with my son, 08:32 that it's so important to take that time alone with God. 08:37 The things that I do with God, the things that I do for God 08:42 can never replace my time with him. 08:45 And so, I take time now, so that I don't have that void, 08:50 where I go off by myself in the quietness of the woods, 08:53 just me and God. 08:55 And sometimes, I don't have an agenda, 08:56 just maybe sitting there, listening 08:58 and this summer I was out there 09:01 and he sent this every time I go out there, 09:03 he sent this, little goldfinch. 09:06 They would just sit there and sing, 09:07 just about as close as we're from right here 09:09 and I would just sit and watch that goldfinch 09:11 and I felt God's love and power. 09:15 He know, we can. And peace. 09:16 Yes, when we are in a rat race, we can't do that. 09:19 We have to say, God you're first. 09:23 You know, what I think about. 09:25 There was a study that I've seen 09:27 and you know it was saying, 09:28 what is the center of your life? 09:30 Is it God? Is it your family? 09:33 Your children? Your work? 09:34 Your husband, you know or your wife, your spouse? 09:37 And it had different little questions 09:40 and as you answer these questions, 09:42 it will show you and I was, it was so accurate, 09:46 and when you start realizing 09:47 that there is a void and what comes to my mind is 09:50 thou shall have no other gods before me. 09:52 Right. 09:54 And anything that we put before God including family. 09:56 I know we're talking about balance in career and family, 09:59 but if we have that sort to speak balance, 10:03 but we don't have God in it, we're still off. 10:05 He is the balance. Amen. 10:06 But it's knowing how to balance, 10:09 because I mean you can't, 10:12 while you can't miss your opportunity with God everyday, 10:18 you also can't miss your opportunity with your husband 10:20 and your children everyday too, 10:22 because if you're gonna have a relationship, 10:24 you have to nurture that relationship, 10:26 and if you let it go biased, you know, oh, 10:29 I'm so busy today, 10:31 you know I'll send the kids to the babysitter. 10:33 I'll deal with them tomorrow, you know. 10:35 Prop them in front of the TV, 10:38 you know, give them some food, okay, I can have my space now. 10:42 You know, since you bring that up, 10:44 where do you see or how do you see 10:46 the effects of letting TV baby sit our children? 10:49 Don't, I absolutely think that's wrong. 10:52 We didn't allow our children to watch TV 10:57 and when they got to be 10:59 even in elementary school and middle school, 11:03 they were only allowed to watch TV on weekends. 11:06 They could not watch the TV on school night. 11:09 Well, guess what? 11:10 On the weekends we would plan these activities. 11:14 We have this really neat Wyatts, 11:17 we happen to live in Knoxville 11:18 which is near the Smoky Mountains. 11:20 So we would always take them on picnics 11:22 and hiking and camping 11:25 and so they weren't used to watching TV, 11:28 so they didn't ask for it. 11:31 And my husband and I, we had one day a week, 11:36 that no matter, we, now it always changed, 11:38 but we always did it date night, 11:41 because I also think 11:42 it's important for the kids to see 11:45 that their parents have a strong relationship. 11:47 Right, right. 11:48 It's a best gift you can give 11:50 to your children is to love, you know. 11:52 Yeah, love one another. 11:53 You should let your children see you, 11:57 hugging your husband or kissing him goodbye, 11:59 I'm not talking about anything, 12:01 you know, intimate or you know. 12:03 I'm saying, just like goodbye, honey or let him hear you say. 12:08 You know, have a good day honey, 12:09 I love you, give him a kiss, let your kids see, 12:12 John and I always hold hands 12:14 when we're walking, always have. 12:16 Now doesn't that set a precedence for children 12:19 as they grow up to, you know, have families of their own, 12:24 and they saw mom and dad 12:26 relate to one another in this way, 12:27 so this must be the way. 12:29 Right. 12:30 But that says a lot, you know, 12:32 and that's a whole different program talking about, 12:35 you know, single parent family, 12:37 which believe it or not is the majority 12:39 at least in the United States, 12:41 but that's a whole different show, but. 12:43 But I was getting back to the date night, 12:45 we also made, so once a week, um, oh, goodness, 12:49 we've done this for 20 or more years. 12:51 We always went out on a date, 12:54 just Joel and I but we made that night 12:56 very special for the children. 12:59 We had a babysitter and you know, 13:00 God blesses this wonderful nursing student that, 13:03 you know, she was their babysitter. 13:04 And they still love her, and they still love Velvet. 13:07 They still. 13:09 You hear that, hear that, they still love her, 13:11 taking some of mommy's love. 13:13 I mean, we made that the special night. 13:16 Whenever we had date night, they got to choose the video 13:21 and they got to have a treat. 13:23 They got to have, you know ice cream sundae or you know, 13:27 something that was a treat. 13:28 And her kids are like, 13:30 mommy isn't time for your date night? 13:31 They would. 13:32 We'll talk about teaching them about health 13:34 and that some day we'll go there. 13:36 But you know, if we could do like a chronological list for, 13:41 you know, families and I love the date night, 13:44 so we would say, you know, establishing a relation 13:46 before the children, planned activities. 13:48 Now what I want really loved is the activity 13:51 that you were saying. 13:52 These activities are our out in nature. 13:54 Where do you learn about God most? 13:57 But in nature, aside from of course the Bible, 14:00 and these are things that we need to teach our children. 14:02 I mean again, I don't have any children but am I right? 14:05 Yes. Oh, exactly. 14:06 And, you know, while I said that it's important to, 14:10 take care of their physical needs, 14:12 you know food, sleep, you know, that. 14:15 But you need to incorporate 14:17 where they know you're spending time with him. 14:19 By that, I mean 14:21 when I would talk to my children, 14:23 bend down and get at their level, 14:25 look them in the eye. 14:26 Don't just look down and go, okay, honey, mommy knows. 14:29 It's almost like yeah, yeah. 14:31 Mommy is busy or you know... 14:32 I'm on the phone, I'm on the phone. 14:34 Or I'm so tired, kids don't understand that. 14:38 They want what they want, when they want it. 14:40 Yes, they don't understand. 14:41 So get down on their level and that alone, by you just, 14:46 you know scrunching down and getting in their level, 14:49 that says you have my attention. 14:52 You know, go ahead, tell me, 'cause I'm listening. 14:55 Well, I know, I've seen you Cinda too, 14:57 like if she is on a phone call and her kid, 15:01 Catie want something or David wanted something, 15:03 she would say to the person on the phone, 15:05 excuse me just a moment. 15:07 Put the phone down 15:08 and get look into the yes and say, 15:09 mommy is on the phone right now 15:11 and I'll help you as soon as I'm on, 15:13 you know, I'm through and then she would say, 15:15 okay, you run along. 15:17 Okay now, we're ready now. 15:18 That's because that teaching them respect and patience. 15:23 And you know, I just go back to you know, 15:25 raising a child in the way he should go 15:27 and when he is old he will not depart from it. 15:30 So when we start establishing this character, 15:33 you know, or fruits of the spirit 15:35 so to speak as little children, 15:38 because they say children come out of the womb 15:40 wanting and demanding. 15:42 You know crying 15:43 when they want milk and so forth. 15:44 That's right. 15:46 You know, so, nurturing is 15:47 and teaching them this patience. 15:48 Right. 15:50 You know, also appointments that we have 15:52 and you know some people may not like to hear this 15:54 but I don't think there is an appointment that we have 15:58 that's more important than your child. 16:01 If your child needs you... 16:02 Except for our appointment with God, 16:03 I know what you're saying. 16:05 Right, but you know what I'm saying. 16:06 I mean, you know like, just what 2 months ago, 16:10 Catie and I had been traveling together. 16:15 So Catie is your daughter? 16:16 Catie is my daughter, and she's in the academy, 16:18 at Highland Academy in near Nashville. 16:20 And she is the one that does cooking on Kids' Time. 16:21 Okay, yeah, little Catie. Cooking on Kids' Time. 16:23 Yes. 16:24 And we had flown into Nashville 16:27 and driven an hour to the school 16:30 and then I dropped her off at the school 16:32 in Nashville, in Highland 16:34 and then I drove three hours to home. 16:37 And this was, I just got to the edge of Nash, 16:41 I mean Knoxville, 16:42 and it was like 10 o'clock at night. 16:44 And how many hours was that? 16:46 Well, I've already been driving four hours, 16:49 because it's a three hour trip to the school from Knoxville 16:53 and plus, I come from the airport, 16:55 so but a whole bunch were driving, 16:57 but anyways I got ride to fours hours a drive, 17:00 but I got to the edge of Knoxville, 17:03 my phone ring and it was the dean 17:07 and she says it's 10 or 10:30 at night 17:09 and she said Catie is just vomiting 17:13 and vomiting and she said, 17:15 she's already you know vomit around, 17:18 how many times and she's sick and I said, 17:22 well, does she have the fever? 17:23 Oh, no. 17:25 I mean I used to be a nurse, so it was like okay. 17:28 You still are. I'm still a nurse. 17:31 Because I don't it... Your momma finish that as well. 17:33 Okay, but I said, uh, food poisoning, 17:38 because she had eaten at a fast food place 17:41 in the airport had a sandwich, 17:42 which I had from, you know, a chain. 17:46 And lettuces 17:49 and she had mostly lettuce on the sandwich 17:51 and lettuce is very high in for food poisoning. 17:54 You have to be really careful, 17:55 so I knew she had food poisoning, 17:57 so you know, I thought, I said, 18:00 you know what, I didn't even hesitate, 18:02 I took the first exit and I drove three hours 18:06 all the way back to the school. 18:08 I said to the dean, I will be there, 18:10 1, 2, about 10, 11,12, 1 o'clock in the morning, 18:14 I said I'll be there by 1 o'clock in the morning 18:16 and I start, I turn the car around 18:20 and started the three hour trip all the way back to the school 18:23 because I didn't want Catie to be 18:26 there in the dorm room, that sick, 18:30 even though I knew that, you know it probably 24 hours, 18:34 she would be okay, 18:36 but I called my husband and I said, 18:39 can you call in a prescription to a pharmacy, 18:42 you know on the way. 18:43 And so, he found the pharmacy that was open at midnight 18:47 and I swung off the freeway and got her some medication. 18:51 Drove three hours all the way back, 18:53 so now I've been driving seven hours, then... 18:55 'Cause you brought her back with you. 18:57 'Cause I brought her back, yeah, 18:58 so then I turned around 18:59 and drove three hours back home. 19:02 So she could be in her own bed with mommy. 19:03 So she could be in her own bed with me, 19:06 helping take care of in her familiar surrounding. 19:09 You know so that, she could recover... 19:12 And, she's an independent child, 19:13 so it's not like she... 19:15 No, but she was so sick, 19:16 but it was like and you know afterwards, 19:18 Catie wrote me a letter and she said, mom, 19:20 she said, I cannot believe, you would drive all night, 19:24 just so I can spend 24 hours in my bed just to recuperate. 19:28 She said that meant the world to me. 19:30 And she will never forget that. That's right. 19:32 I mean, that's a sacrifice. 19:34 That says so much, you know when you... 19:37 Yeah, of course, we love our children but to sacrifice, 19:41 nothing else aside from God before our children. 19:43 That's what I'm saying. 19:45 You could, it's things like that that show, 19:47 it's spending your time, you know, 19:51 you could take your kids... 19:52 Your quality, you don't always have quantity. 19:55 If you don't have quantity, that's okay. 19:57 Just let your kids know that you're there for them. 20:00 If you know, 20:02 I wanted my kids to know that I would drop whatever. 20:05 I never even thought twice about turning that car around. 20:09 I never thought twice about not helping her. 20:13 Oh, she'll be, you know, I'm a nurse, 20:15 I know she'll be ready, she'll be okay in 24 hours, 20:19 but it was, 20:21 I wanted her to feel the comfort and the love. 20:24 Those are gifts of love 20:27 that you can't buy at a store. 20:29 You know it's easy when, 20:31 you know, we think what can we get our kids, 20:32 you know and we try to find this perfect gift to give him, 20:36 which you know probably ends up on the shelf for 20:38 they don't even hardly look at. 20:40 But when you wrap up gifts of love like this 20:43 and give them to a child, 20:45 that's just and I had a lot of... 20:48 God's so gracious. 20:50 I've had chances now that when as my son gotten, 20:53 you know older in an academy. 20:54 But I had chances to come back 20:57 and give him some of those gifts of love. 20:59 So God does open up those stores for us, 21:02 if there are parents out there saying, 21:03 I know what you mean, 21:05 I haven't spent time with my kids 21:06 or whatever, you know what? 21:08 It's now with Christ that counts. 21:09 We can still do things for our kids right now 21:11 even if they're older. 21:13 And you know, and just, you know, 21:14 some of the reading that I've done in the counsel 21:16 that we have of course, you know and the Bible 21:18 and you know other writers, 21:20 I know there's a writer called Ellen G. 21:22 White who is truly my favorite. 21:24 And she has a book called child guidance. 21:27 And absolutely incredible book 21:28 and it says how we have to put our families first, 21:31 I mean what I think about is Mary, 21:35 she had to devote her time to raise 21:37 the most important being of the universe which is Jesus, 21:42 and she had to make time 21:43 because that was where he got his first vision of heaven 21:47 and what God was like and the character. 21:50 It was through, you know, 21:51 the need of his mother and of course, 21:53 God's word and nature. 21:55 So to hear this and of course, I always go back, 21:57 I go back to your planned activities 21:59 and being out there. 22:01 And like you said, Linda, when we see... 22:05 you know, where we've fallen short 22:06 with giving our children 22:08 and raising them and given them that time. 22:10 It's never too late, even as adults. 22:12 No, my daughter-in-law is expecting another child. 22:18 I have one grandson. 22:19 You're a grandmother. I wouldn't say granny. 22:23 Okay. Oh, my goodness. 22:24 And he's like 18 months 22:26 and their other it's due the end of September, 22:28 maybe the first of October. 22:30 Well, my son called up and he said, 22:32 mom do you think you and dad could come, 22:34 they live in Ohio, 22:36 where my son's a nuclear technologist there 22:38 and he is very busy. 22:39 Wait a minute, you sounds like who and a what? 22:42 He's a nuclear technologist. 22:44 He works at Kettering Adventist Hospital there. 22:46 Okay. Okay. 22:48 So, I mean, he has... 22:49 God's really blessed him with a good job 22:51 and a wonderful family and he is a wonderful daddy, 22:54 I have, I mean, I can't tell you, 22:56 it's just so exciting to watch him 22:58 do things for his own son now, 23:02 modeling what his daddy has done for him 23:05 and things I've done, you know, 23:07 God's allowed me to do things with him, you know too. 23:10 But the incredible thing is that he called up 23:12 and he said, will you come and watch Jack, 23:15 while you know, she goes into labor 23:18 and we said yes, we will take a week off 23:21 and do that, and he said, you would do that for me? 23:23 He said that means so much 23:24 and so we had to cancel some things 23:27 and you know I like they were important to let 23:30 and re-juggle commitments to say yes, 23:33 we will be here to go for you 23:36 and that was exciting to be able to do that 23:38 'cause it meant a lot to him. 23:40 And it had meant a lot for you. Right. 23:42 Because, you know, 23:44 I just really want to encourage, 23:45 you know those that are watching 23:47 and or listening to us, 23:49 because it's never to late to fill in the void, 23:52 they just felt you may have had. 23:54 But you know what, I also want to stress is, 23:57 you know right now we're taking about 23:58 our kids being older but, when my kids were littler, 24:02 it's like you have meals to get out 24:06 or you're so busy, involve the kids. 24:10 I would set them on the counter, 24:13 exactly and you know kids learned from you, 24:16 so how you talk to your kids, 24:18 you hear them talking to other people like that. 24:21 And don't children act things out 24:23 with each other as well? 24:24 Yes. 24:26 So, you know, you need to be careful, 24:27 how you talk to your kids, 24:29 how you relate your kids 24:30 and how you relate to other people. 24:32 Okay, ladies. Okay. 24:34 I'm looking at a time, 24:36 we have like three minutes and nineteen seconds. 24:38 I don't have a child and if the Lord blesses 24:40 that I remarry and that possibly 24:42 I have a child, what advice would you give to me 24:45 on both sides of the spectrum as, 24:47 you know, a career woman and finding that balance? 24:50 Both of you. 24:52 Spend as much time with your children as possible. 24:54 Read to them and we... 24:58 I would always have worship 25:00 every morning with the children 25:02 and I stress to them, family worship. 25:05 My husband was not always there 25:06 because he leaves the house at 5 o'clock every morning. 25:09 But sometimes, you didn't have time to have it right there, 25:11 you would have it on the way to school 25:14 and as they got older, 25:16 have one of them read the worship verse. 25:17 So they would take turns reading. 25:18 One would read the worship, one would have the prayer. 25:21 She'd go dada, my turn for prayer. 25:23 Oh, how older she'd been? 25:24 I mean, oh, yeah, little, she called him dada or bubba 25:28 and she'd say, I can't read bubba, 25:31 you read, I'll pray. 25:32 She would tell her grandmother. 25:35 But do you think still that at the age 25:38 where they can barely taught. 25:39 Right. Wow. 25:41 And so they knew, that I mean they helped, 25:43 they helped with the worship but we always had worship 25:46 and then in the morning and I told them 25:48 that you always have to ask Jesus 25:51 into your heart everyday, 25:53 because Jesus doesn't just come in your heart. 25:56 So you have to ask him in every morning. 25:59 So that was important, we started the day 26:01 and even if we were in a hurry, like Linda said, I forgot that, 26:05 we would have it in the car. 26:07 And I remember Catie would go, mama don't close your eyes, 26:11 I can't drive it. 26:12 That's a wise child. 26:14 And then she go, she goes like this, she go, 26:16 bubba are your eyes closed? 26:21 We can tell that you're used to doing Tiny Tots. 26:24 And what about you, Linda? 26:25 I would say that the very most important thing 26:29 is to start your day out first with God yourself, 26:32 because we cannot give our kids what we do not have ourselves 26:35 and so we need to ask him to fill us, 26:38 so full of His Holy Spirit 'cause we need the wisdom, 26:41 we need the strength to get through the day, 26:43 we need courage to face the things 26:45 that everyday families have to face in this world 26:48 and there is a lot of unhappiness, 26:49 unpleasant things, but we can have the joy, 26:51 even though we may have tears because of our humanness. 26:54 If we have started our day out with God, 26:56 we know he's first, 26:58 He is the one we are gonna run to. 26:59 Okay, Lord, this kids having a problem, 27:01 what do you want me to do? 27:02 How do you want me to handle this, Lord? 27:04 The kids will see that, that's important 27:07 that you've made God first in your life 27:09 and that will have an effect on them too. 27:11 Well, the kids don't always, I mean... 27:13 We saw our mother praying and reading her Bible, 27:17 and even though we didn't understand it, 27:19 we saw there was some connection there. 27:21 But I'm saying even if the kids don't see 27:23 you having your worship, make sure that you have worship 27:26 every morning with your children. 27:27 Yes, Miss Cinda and Aunty Linda. 27:31 Thank you so much for being with us, 27:33 and thank you so much for joining us. 27:35 We pray that the Lord has sent 27:37 a special message just for you. 27:39 And remember, balance in career and family, 27:42 there is a balance. 27:43 That balance is none other than the heavenly Father 27:46 and He will show you where it is. 27:48 Okay, and until next time, be eternally bless 27:51 we're praying with and for you. 27:53 Talk to you then. Okay, next time, love you, bye. |
Revised 2016-07-11