It's summertime and many of us love to go to see the latest blockbuster films! But how often do we stop and think about why we watch the things that we watch?

In this episode, we share our personal experiences with films and media and how we have come to make decisions as a family in choosing what we watch, both as a couple and as a family:

What makes the cut?

How do we decide what is worth our time?

What content is allowable and when?

Does Scripture have anything to say about it?

All media comes with a message. Are we tuning in our minds to listen to what is being said or are we shutting off our brains and passively consuming? Learn how to engage your mind and take captive your thoughts for Christ even in front of the big screen.

How far are you willing to go for the sake of your children?

Parenting can be difficult and demanding. Caring for someone else and taking care of their needs requires a cost. But how far are we willing to go as parents? What's the limit of the sacrifice we're willing to make for the little ones in our lives?

In this episode, we discuss the concept of parenting as sacrifice and what it looks like to parent for the sake of future generations.

There's a story of a mother who pays the price of her own life in bearing a child. A heavy cost in parenting indeed. Was it worth it? There were other children born to the family by that point anyway, was it a necessary cost to pay? Should they even have considered having another child? And yet, God told them to have more children. In fact, He commanded it. Without this mother's sacrifice, you likely wouldn't be reading this right now. It's a story that you probably know, at least a little bit about. The story is the birth of Benjamin, the youngest of the sons of Israel. And there's a certain Benjamite that would later turn the world upside down in bringing the gospel all over the Roman empire as the "Apostle to the Gentiles." That's right, the greatest missionary ever to live, the Apostle Paul! We all have a reason to be thankful for the sacrifice that Israel and Rachel were willing to make so many generations before.

Aren't we all just supposed to be happy?

Do you remember that verse in the Bible where Jesus told His followers, "I just came here to make everyone happy..." Neither do we! That's really not what this is about is it... And yet, there are so many voices out there trying to tell us to do the things that just make us happy, comfortable, and feel good.

What does Jesus tell us?

"The Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost" (Luke 19:10b, LSB), and "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:10, LSB). And Jesus' followers later affirmed these things in saying, "Through many afflictions we must enter the kingdom of God" (Acts 14:22b). In this life, following Jesus isn't about being comfortable and happy, and oftentimes it doesn't feel good. Just because something doesn't feel good, doesn't mean that it isn't good.

Having a speck in your eye doesn't feel good, but that pain also helps us to seek out the source of the problem, so that the dirt doesn't act like sandpaper to our eye and cause us eye damage. The feeling certainly isn't good but it's good to know that there's something wrong with our eye!

In this week's episode of Full Quiver Parenting, we discuss the difference between happiness and blessing. What does that look like as followers of Jesus and how does it apply to parenting and family life as Christians?