I told my children as they were growing up, “Don’t give anyone the power to control your emotions!” How many times have you heard someone say, “That person makes me SO MAD”? Sometimes it is stated, “As soon as that guy walks into the room he gets me angry.” I have listened to many people […]
It is very easy to feel trapped and hopeless. One cannot give or receive love once hope is lost. We simply must not give up when we feel like we are at a dead end. Hope is still an option. Hope – When you are going through a troubled time from PastorBobDouglas on Vimeo.
In the rush of day-to-day living we sometimes forget to stop and think about our long term goals. As parents, we are faced with many different roles we could fill. Pastor Bob helps lead parents through the process of finding the best ways to prepare children to live as independent adults. What are your Goals […]
When marriages run into problems, it is easy to feel like you are living in a war zone. Sometimes we treat our marriage partner like the enemy who is “out to get us”. We divide our world into “us” and “them” and trade shots back and forth. Pastor Bob teaches about how to love your […]
I hear it all the time, “I will NEVER forgive that person for what they did to me. I trusted them and they made me look like a fool. I will never give them another chance to stab me in the back again.” Betray my trust once, shame on you. Betray me twice, shame on […]
It is in your best interest to repair your relationship following a broken trust. I know there are many people screaming just the opposite viewpoint. They have experienced hurt and betrayal of every description and degree. I understand how hard it is to face an uncertain future with only a broken past for a reference […]
We have talked about how we cover up our deepest thoughts, feelings and desires. We have talked about how we can paint over the outsides without changing the insides. We have already discussed our desire to be seen as “unbroken people” even though we know the truth about ourselves. When those broken things show up […]
Nothing breaks our hearts more than when someone breaks our trust. We work with an assumed social contract with those people closest to us. The people we call our closest friends are assumed to be those people who would never do anything to harm us. We expect our friends to support us and encourage us. […]
Life sometimes leaves us in difficult circumstances with big challenges. Being a single parent is one of those challenges. We have been saying that it takes two people in partnership to live out a healthy relationship for the children to witness. I don’t see being a single parent as a “second class” option or an […]
We, as parents, are basically different people who need to be working in partnership. When we see old western movies where teams of horses were harnessed together, their combined strength was much greater than their individual strength; each pulling separately. The trick is to keep both parents pulling in the same direction. There are times […]
There are two kinds of parental love; conditional and unconditional. Every child needs to have the unconditional love of their parents and mentors as well as a good healthy dose of conditional love. Parenting is a constant struggle to find the right balance. In my early years as a parent, I would feel like I […]
Being a parent is a non-stop event. We face daily challenges, crises and emergencies. Schedules become impossible. Illnesses and injuries catch us off guard and are emotionally (and sometime financially) draining. We face homework, practice sessions, tutors or team meetings and the pressure only gets worse as we move along. This constant pressure often results […]