Josh and I begin our discussion of the book, “Family Vocation.” We talk about the first section of the book which deals with marriage and specifically the office of husband, the office of wife, sex, and the crosses in marriage. Interview with the Authors Family Vocations, Part 1 – Deaconess Mary Moerbe and Dr. Gene [...]

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In this episode Josh and I talk about the importance of having a Christian mom and dad when trying to raise Christian children. Josh tells his story about he imagined bringing up his children which was intentional and well thought out, and I tell mine which would have to be described as “magical thinking” (I [...]

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Some of the The Parental Office audience probably do not care about a confessional Lutheran conference held in the dead of winter in suburban Chicago, but I know at least a few who do. Therefore, I decided to writeup a “review” of the enriching event which my lovely wife and I attended this weekend. About [...]

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Foundational, Frustrated, Busy, or Sponge

February 3, 2012

Dr. John Oberdeck has an article in The Lutheran Witness entitled “Designing the Ultimate Stroller“. In it he talks about many of the issues we discuss here regarding the responsibility of parents to educate their children. He identifies four types of families: There are families that care a great deal about their children’s spiritual growth, [...]

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Episode #12: The Vocation of Father

January 29, 2012

Josh and I talk about the how God, the perfect father, has called us to be fathers to our children. We talk about how about how Scripture teaches us what our responsibilities are and most importantly how Christ’s sacrificial death for us covers our sins as we live in our vocations as fathers. Scripture: Ephesians [...]

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Episode #11: Money, Stuff, and the Christian Family

December 22, 2011

In this episode, Josh and I talk about how we teach and live out Christian stewardship in our families. We recognize that the topic can focus too much on “do this, don’t do that” but as always we work toward focusing on Christ and His work that allows us to be Christian stewards. Scripture: Genesis [...]

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Episode #10: Christ vs. Santa: Whose Birthday Is It Anyway?

December 12, 2011

In this episode, Josh and I talk about Santa can overshadow Christ during the holiday season. We discuss ideas for focusing our families’ attention on Christ by talking about Advent and the origin of “Santa Claus”. We also talk about how even some wholesome family traditions can inadvertently overshadow Christ’s incarnation. Links The Origin of [...]

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Episode #9: A Christ-Centric Thanksgiving for Your Kids

November 10, 2011

In this episode Josh and I delve into multiple aspects of Thanksgiving. We talk about how our families celebrate Thanksgiving and some of the interesting tensions that arise because of the differing views on faith and God. We then talk a little about the history and Christian roots of Thanksgiving (Were the Pilgrims practicing Open [...]

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“My First Hymnal” Book Released (with Video Promo)

Thumbnail image for “My First Hymnal” Book Released (with Video Promo) November 2, 2011

Echoing the topic of podcast #6 titled “Using Music and Hymns to Enrich Christian Kids and Why”, one of our favorite book producers, Concordia Publishing House, has released “My First Hymnal” edited by David A. Johnson. The description and promo video note the book includes hymns, but also the Creeds, prayers, Psalms, and explanations regarding [...]

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Learning about Reformation Day with the Kids

October 29, 2011

My wife had some good ideas to celebrate “Reformation Day” this year with our children.  We want our kids to understand this historic event, and more importantly, how the Reformation refocused the Church on Christ-crucified for us sinners. Listeners to The Parental Office podcast will know my children are still young (3, 1, 1) so an academic [...]

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