Shaping Your Family's Faith

Jack Eggar

Description

Sometimes parables communicate truths better than any self-help book. Meet the Millstones. Jason and Sarah and their three children are just the sort of Christian folks you'd want for next-door neighbors. Or so it seems. As the story unfolds, the "good" family takes some wrong turns. Petty theft, online affairs, bad lifestyle choices, and troubling attitudes show that things are far from well in the Millstone family. As the pages turn, readers discover practical concepts such as change can be good but is often painful; marriage requires constant maintenance; crisis can be opportunity; actions speak louder than words; and love for your children and spouse means commitment and sacrifice. As they follow the parable of the Millstone family, readers will see these truths illuminated in a fresh new way that will help them strengthen their own marriage and family.

Informations

• Publié par: Baker Publishing Group
• Date de parution: 07 mai 2007
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781441266224
• Langue: English

Extrait

2007 Jack and Dona Eggar
Published by Baker Books a division of Baker Publishing Group P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287 www.bakerbooks.com
Baker Books edition published 2014
ISBN 978-1-4412-6622-4
Previously published by Regal Books
Ebook edition originally created 2012
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-for example, electronic, photocopy, recording-without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
All Scripture quotations are taken from the New KingJames Version . Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
C ONTENTS
P art I
T HE M ILLSTONE F AMILY : A F ABLE
1. Welcome Home
2. Family Meeting
3. Visit with the Pastor
4. Meltdown
5. Fame
6. The Rose
7. Fiji
8. Kavala Bay
9. Family Mission
10. Kavala Village
11. Parenting 101
12. Welcome Home
P art II
T HE M OSES M ODEL
Introduction: Biblical Parenting
Lesson 1: Love God
Lesson 2: Obey God
Lesson 3: Train Your Children
To our four children: Joshua, Justin, Jessica and Rebekah. All grown-up and quickly becoming our dearest friends in all the earth .
P ART I
T HE M ILLSTONE F AMILY : A F ABLE
C HAPTER 1
W ELCOME H OME

E xactly three seconds. That was the interval between each violent kick to the back of his airliner seat. Jason Millstone slowly stood, twisted to his left and pretended to look down the length of the aircraft at the rear bathroom. From the corner of his eye, he assessed the young boy sitting directly behind him.
The five-year-old's stubby legs dangled above the cabin floor. With arms crossed over his chest, the boy twisted his chocolatestained face into a combination of helplessness and indignation.
Jason continued to feign interest in the restroom while he watched his tormentor's red, watery eyes widen with concentration. The short, thick legs slowly rose to the boy's chest, pulled back like the hammer on a pinball machine. The velocity of the ensuing kick surprised Jason. A loud “thwack” signaled renewed contact with the back of his chair.
Not good , Jason thought.
A long, mournful sigh escaped from the man sitting next to the boy. Jason took him to be in his early thirties. Nicely dressed but with disheveled hair, the man did nothing more than stare out the tiny airplane window at the gray tarmac below.
“Get a grip here, Dad,” Jason murmured under his breath as he eased back into his seat.
Thwack!
An especially powerful strike caused Jason to clench his fists involuntarily. Could this get any worse?
Jason's thought seemed to be the boy's cue. “I want Mommy !” cried the boy. “I want Mommy! I want Mommy!” A powerful piston-like blow punctuated each “Mommy.”
Three days of intensive training at his company's headquarters in Los Angeles had taken its toll on Jason's brain and energy level. A sharp, twisting irritation shot through his neck, courtesy of a reckless taxi driver on the way to the airport. Each kick planted new seeds under what had now grown into a kudzu vine of stabbing pain.
Jason could feel himself losing the battle to remain calm. He's just a kid and the dad's probably dealt with him like this for a week , Jason rationalized. The mom's probably sitting at home watching soap operas right now .
Reasoning that his own wife, Sarah, would handle this situation with just the right grace and authority, Jason took a deep breath, stood up and turned around.
“Excuse me.”
The man next to the boy turned from the window, stared at Jason vacantly and blinked twice before blurting out, “Huh?”
“Your son has been kicking the back of my seat for some time now,” Jason continued, fighting to maintain an even tone in his voice. “It's going to be a pretty long flight and so I would really appreciate it if you could help your boy find something else to do. Thank you very much.” Without giving the father a chance to respond, Jason plopped into his chair. A satisfied grin crept onto his face. Sarah would be proud!
Holding his breath, Jason mentally counted the seconds. Thirty kick-less seconds passed. He began to celebrate sweet success and happily pulled his laptop out of his briefcase. Just then he felt a light tap on his shoulder. Jason turned and found himself looking into the disheveled face of the window-staring man.
“Um, that's not my son,” he whispered to Jason.
It was now Jason's turn to stare vacantly.
“Huh?”
“Yeah, I don't know where his mother is sitting, but I've never seen this kid before in my life!”
Jason's prediction came true: It was a long flight.
Approximately six hours and two thousand miles later, a rusty yellow taxi jolted to a stop in front of 586 Kearney Street. Jason glanced wearily at his watch. Five-thirty in the afternoon . Handing the cabbie a couple of worn ten-dollar bills, Jason slowly pulled himself out of the cab.
A long, luxurious stretch and a gulp of the warm, lazy air invigorated Jason long enough to see the taxi begin to pull away from the curb.
“Hey!” Jason shouted. A feverish run alongside the vehicle and a number of bangs on the rear window finally brought it to a stop.
“My luggage is in the trunk!”
The only reply was the metallic “click” of the trunk latch. Jason's briefcase and black Tumi™ suit bag were quickly snatched from the compartment before the trunk slammed shut, loud enough, Jason hoped, to send a message to the driver. The taxi sat for several seconds as if waiting for any more demands, and then slowly pulled away.
Jason set his baggage down on the sidewalk and gingerly rubbed his temples. His long, narrow frame hunched slightly. He slowly ran his hands through the short jet-black hair that framed his taut-skinned face. Reaching his hands to the air, he stretched his back for a moment. His dark, brown eyes—normally intense and piercing—were bloodshot and only half open. Drained, hungry and sore from absorbing several hours of punishment, Jason's kudzu-vine headache had swollen into a General Sherman-sized redwood tree. He was glad to be home.
Slowly, he gathered up his things and started across the wellmanicured, lawn. He followed the curved brick path bordered by an alternating mix of dusty miller and bright red geraniums to the front porch steps.
Even from the outside, the house exhibited the warm, natural hospitality usually expected in the South. Jason stopped to admire the façade. Despite being hammered over the years by inclement weather and errant baseballs, the vinyl siding remained an unscathed expanse of pastel yellow. Several dozen white shutters framed the windows of both stories. The recently trimmed hedges set off beds filled with a radiant assortment of annuals.
Must have rained while I was gone , Jason mused. He took one last admiring glance at his house, then ascended the porch steps, opened the front door and stepped inside.
“Daddy!” A delighted squeal rang out from an upstairs bedroom. Jason smiled broadly as he watched his oldest daughter fly down the staircase. She never touched the final two stairs. Jason opened his arms wide in preparation of embracing this bundle of energy, but she didn't seem to notice. Instead, she dropped to her knees on the hardwood floor and slid the final distance to Jason's feet.
“Did you get it? Did you get it?” she shrieked, already rummaging through his duffel bag. Jason frowned and dropped his arms.
“It's good to see you, too, Jules,” he said.
“Where is it?” Julia whined, still feeling around the bottom of the bag. After another fruitless couple of seconds, she looked up at her father with accusing eyes. Sighing heavily, Jason reached down and unclasped his briefcase. The brightly colored compact disc lay on top of a short stack of documents and noteads. The words “Parental Advisory” glared at him from a dark sticker on the cellophane wrapper.
Julia made a desperate pounce for her gift as soon as she saw it, but Jason was too quick. He held it as high as his six-foot frame would allow, while Julia leaped and yelped in front of him like a puppy.
“Dad!” she cried, despairingly.
“I just want a hug first.”
A surprised oomph wheezed out of him at the impact of his daughter latching herself around his waist.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” cried Julia when the prize was finally relinquished. Jason watched in fascination as his daughter turned the CD over and began reading through the song titles.
Julia already showed the potential of becoming a stunning woman. She pushed a lock of her long chestnut-brown hair from her face and focused her intense chocolate-brown eyes on the CD label. Her mom's hair, my eyes , thought Jason as he regarded Julia's powder and blush-caked cheeks. A large, pink heart dangled from each of her earlobes. Still appropriately skinny and gangly for her age, the signs of Julia's impending blossom were undeniable.
She doesn't look thirteen , thought Jason with a mix of admiration and unrest. She looks… “Uh, Dad? Everything okay?” Jason's thoughts fluttered away at his daughter's question. He realized he had been staring at her. He quickly changed the subject.
“What's so special about that CD that I had to drive halfway around L.A. to find it?”
“Are you kidding?” Julia gushed. “This is the new CD from Pink Centipedes! They just signed with a new label, which means these won't get to Midland for about twenty years. This isn't even on iTunes yet! Kim and Melanie will be so jealous.”
“Forgive me, Jules. I thought it was a computer game devoted to exterminating bugs,” Jason quipped.
“Computer game?” Julia was dumbfounded and unable to grasp his humor.
“Just kidding, sweetheart!”
Julia relaxed but felt the need to justify her CD selection. “Dad, this is a Christian singing group.”
“Well, good…” muttered Jason,