Playing with emotions!  For the next few weeks, I’m going to explore playing with frustration, sadness, fear, separation, happiness, love and more.  But why play with emotions, you might ask?   I was walking along a path from a beach in PEI this summer.  Ahead of me were a family with young children.  The youngest, a little girl about 3 years old, was trailing her mom and sobbing.  The mom, without turning back, declared, “I don’t want to hear your crying.  I didn’t come on holidays to hear you crying all the time.”  Now, it would be easy to place all...

Doing nothing is doing something! In this time of year when our schedules are filling up again, activities are starting, and school is back in full swing, it seems that there is more than enough “somethings” to fill every minute of the day.  What at first may seem fun can quickly settle into an exhausting schedule, a demanding schedule, into which we try to fit family meals & sleep!   Into this frazzled kind of time that creeps up on us, the wisdom of our Judeo-Christian scripture speaks: “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under...

Take a bit of time each day as a family to reflect on your faith. It's a great spiritual practice that helps your children and you grow your faith. Print this out - and take it with you wherever you go. Everything you need it right there. Summer_Reflections_for_Family_2017.pdf Blessings for restoring your spirit this summer! Rev. Susan  ...

First of all, when answering a child’s question, remember:  -Children usually want simpler answers than we give them.   -Children may not be asking the question we think they are asking.   -Children love answering their own questions.  -There is no bad question.  -It is okay not to have an answer right away..  -It is also okay to say that some questions just don’t have answers, at least not right now.  ESPECIALLY – remember that children love answering their own questions.   This is a question to turn back to your child. Why do they think that they didn’t just magically get a...

First of all, when answering a child’s question, remember:  -Children usually want simpler answers than we give them.   -Children may not be asking the question we think they are asking.   -Children love answering their own questions.  -There is no bad question.  -It is okay not to have an answer right away..  -It is also okay to say that some questions just don’t have answers, at least not right now.  ESPECIALLY – remember that children love answering their own questions.   Now this is a fun question to discuss with your child.  And while discussing “who is Jesus?” you will probably deepen...

First of all, when answering a child’s question, remember:  -Children usually want simpler answers than we give them.   -Children may not be asking the question we think they are asking.   -Children love answering their own questions.  -There is no bad question.  -It is okay not to have an answer right away..  -It is also okay to say that some questions just don’t have answers, at least not right now.  ESPECIALLY – remember that children love answering their own questions.   These questions about a child's pet are ones that you can discuss with your child, while offering your loving perspective. And...

First of all, when answering a child’s question, remember:  -Children usually want simpler answers than we give them.   -Children may not be asking the question we think they are asking.   -Children love answering their own questions.  -There is no bad question.  -It is okay not to have an answer right away..  -It is also okay to say that some questions just don’t have answers, at least not right now.  ESPECIALLY – remember that children love answering their own questions.  However, this is another one of those questions that I would not let my child answer.   We want to protect our...

First of all, when answering a child’s question, remember: -Children usually want simpler answers than we give them.  -Children may not be asking the question we think they are asking.  -Children love answering their own questions. -There is no bad question. -It is okay not to have an answer right away.. -It is also okay to say that some questions just don’t have answers, at least not right now. ESPECIALLY – remember that children love answering their own questions.   However, this is one of those questions that I would not let my child answer first! I would immediately, lovingly, say,...

Children’s Question: What is God? Who is God?  First of all, when answering a child’s question, remember:  -Children usually want simpler answers than we give them.   -Children may not be asking the question we think they are asking.   -Children love answering their own questions.  -There is no bad question.  -It is okay not to have an answer right away..  -It is also okay to say that some questions just don’t have answers, at least not right now.   ESPECIALLY – remember that children love answering their own questions.  So, if a child asks me “What is God? Who is God?” or...

Who is God? What is heaven like? What happens when someone dies?  How do I love someone who is mean to me?  Children have all sorts of questions, including all sorts of faith questions.  In the next weeks, I’m going to share some ideas about how you might answer these faith questions. But, first of all, I want to share some ideas about answering children’s questions in general.   Children usually want simpler answers than we give them.  I remember going into a long, detailed explanation with my boys, only to have them say (when they were a bit older), “Mom,...