Great post, Ali. I'm glad more Christian families are asking these kinds of questions. I read the Anxious Generation last year and it was hugely helpful. More importantly, I'm interested in thinking about how busy the Lord actually wants my family to be. I appreciate how you framed it - we are not victims. We can choose, as parents, to slow our families down. And often that's probably what we should do.
I agree. :) My kids are eight, nine, and eleven and they are in very few extra activities as their school days are long. We also take Saturdays as a day to rest as a family, which means that while we might see friends or go to birthday parties on occasion, we also have Saturdays where we have a leisurely breakfast, go out for a walk, play games, and watch a film as a family. I think nowadays we're led to believe that having days like this is impractical at best, lazy and selfish at worst. But what if it's in the freedom of having nothing scheduled that we grow closer to God and to each other?
Great post, Ali. I'm glad more Christian families are asking these kinds of questions. I read the Anxious Generation last year and it was hugely helpful. More importantly, I'm interested in thinking about how busy the Lord actually wants my family to be. I appreciate how you framed it - we are not victims. We can choose, as parents, to slow our families down. And often that's probably what we should do.
Keep it up!
Hi Zak, thank you for your comment and encouragement! More to come on the biblical perspective on busyness…stay tuned.:)
I agree. :) My kids are eight, nine, and eleven and they are in very few extra activities as their school days are long. We also take Saturdays as a day to rest as a family, which means that while we might see friends or go to birthday parties on occasion, we also have Saturdays where we have a leisurely breakfast, go out for a walk, play games, and watch a film as a family. I think nowadays we're led to believe that having days like this is impractical at best, lazy and selfish at worst. But what if it's in the freedom of having nothing scheduled that we grow closer to God and to each other?
Hi Anna, I appreciate you sharing your thoughts here. And love that I am in good company!