Susan Merrill's Blog, page 14

How to Keep Your Marriage on Track When Life Derails You

I don’t know about you, but when I got married, I had a fewexpectations of the way things were going to be. Mark and I had plans and goals, and we were blissfully on board our marriage train to chase our dreams. But like every other couple, we learned pretty quickly that life can derail you in an instant! An unexpected pregnancy, a job change, financial struggles, sickness, any number of things can swiftly change the plans you thought you had.

Then we had to ask ourselves, “now what?” What do...

How to Find a Messy Balance

I confess that I am by nature a messy. However, I am also highly productive. Being messy and productive is like having two beasts at war within. You see, I love to take on lots of creative challenges which can lead to jumping from one thing to the next. And jumping creates a messiness; messy drawers, messy closets, messy desk, messy car, messy purse… An overall disorganization can set in that creates a huge roadblock to my productivity. It took time, but I had to learn (and am still learning)...

Are Your Kids Running You Ragged?

Something I’ve learned during my two dozen or so years as a parent is that there’s a fine line between being good parents and spoiling your child. As parents, it’s natural to want to do everything you can for your children…but that does not mean you should make them the center of your universe. It’s bad for the parents, kids, and everyone around you! Every married person with kids needs to be reminded that no matter how much you love your kids, the marriage needs to come first. If that’s not...

Fighting the Lies We Live By

Lies have a really sneaky way of disguising themselves as truth. Once we hear a lie in our head enough times, it begins to convince us that it is right! Then we unknowingly accrue a list of lies we live by. Don’t believe me? Think about a few of these lies we live by, or at least I live byand I am fighting not to live by!

Lie #1: “No one notices what I do” Truth: “You are LOVED”

As moms, we are the ones finishing laundry at 2 a.m. to make sure our son has a clean uniform for practice. We are...

Will Your Child Stand for What Is Right?

Ok, so this is hard. And it is getting harder because right and wrong are getting a little squirrelly. Our family talks about this a lot. You have to talk to your kids because if you don’t, how will they know what is right and what is wrong. And if they don’t know what is wrong, how will your child stand for what is right?

I am going to give examples of how our family walks through this process all the time. If you watch the news or live in this world, your idea of right and wrong are constan...

Marriage Killers and How to Slay Them

When marriages fall apart, people tend to point fingers and look for something or someone else to blame. Sometimes there are outside circumstances that put pressure on a marriage, like the loss of a job, financial troubles, health issues, the death of a loved one, or problems with kids. But for most of us the most dangerous marriage killers are more stealth. The silent killers are things likecomparison, criticism, curtness, and control.

And early on in our marriage, it was criticism. Mark tho...

What’s Going on in Your Child’s Heart?

When my kids were young, it was so easy to know what was going on in their heart because it usually came out of their mouth nonstop. The constant stream of random questions along with verbal observations about life provided a wide open window into their heart.

I loved it. I just love to help people figure things out—especially little people.

But as my little ones grew older, they naturally grew a little more guarded making it difficult to know what is really going on inside their heads. Getti...

How to Chain, Tame, and Train Your Tongue

When was the last time you said something you didn’t mean? Spoke before thinking? Hurt someone with your words? Let a careless comment slip? I can’t tell you how many times I’ve done all of those things! And I know I’m not the only one who struggles with my words. Why is it so easy to say things we regret?

The book of James has an answer for that. James 3:2-6 tells us, “For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle h...

5 Answers You Need About Your Teen’s Social Media Use

Nowadays it seems like teenagers are born with an extra appendage attached to their fingertips. You know what I mean. That iPhone they just can’t seem to look up from may as well be a part of their bodies! Spending too much time using social media may be detrimental to your child’s mental, emotional, and spiritual health. It’s important that parents be aware of their child’s social media habits, especially if it has become a huge part of their lives. Asking these five simple questions about y...

When to Let Your Child Quit

In our family, we discouraged our children from being quitters from a very young age. If they started a game, they needed to finish it. If they wanted to do an activity, they couldn’t just leave halfway through. Because quitting should only be allowed or encouraged in rare circumstances, we wanted to raise our children to persevere!

Earlier this year, one of my daughters faced a difficult decision. She had recently started a good job that utilized her skills and looked good on her résumé, but...