Temperature Control

The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. Isaiah 32:17 When you enter a room - whether it's a church class, a company meeting or maybe a lunch event - it's usually not very hard to gauge the mood of the place. It's warm, it's cold, it's engaging, it's distant, it's comfortable, it's stuffy. Anybody can be a thermometer. But as Donna Otto, founder of Homemakers by Choice, once stated, we are not called to be thermometers in our homes but thermostats. That's because thermostats don't just read the temperature. They guide it. They determine how warm or cool the home environment will be. In the same way, parents determine whether a home environment will be fun, peaceful, authentic, full of grace. Will it be a quiet sanctuary from the hard press of life? Will it be a place of joy and celebration and fellowship? Many parents today feel helpless in adjusting the climate of their home. They feel as if they can't control the predominant tempo and rhythm of the day. They've grown weary of fighting the TV-watching, video game-playing, tuned-out isolation of individual family members. In the process, far too many homes have lost a sense of purpose and direction. They've become little more than random activity centers, with no grown-ups willing to set the tone. I encourage you to counter the frantic, frenetic pace of modern life by creating an environment that limits the endless noise of bustle and commotion. Train your children to be still and read a book, to interact, to ponder and to create. Don't be a thermometer. Set the temperature. Please comment below or email me directly at curtis.songer@gmail.com