Sacrifice and simplify

“Talk of them when you sit in your house, [and] when you walk by the way.” Dt 6:7 NKJV

Dr. Armand Nicholi, a psychiatrist from Harvard University, was invited to speak at a White House conference on the status of the American family. He explained how an overcommitted lifestyle that makes parents inaccessible to their children produces much the same effect as divorce itself. Cross-cultural studies say that parents in the United States spend less time with their children than parents in almost any other nation in the world. For generations fathers have devoted themselves exclusively to their occupations. But today, mothers have joined the workforce, rendering themselves exhausted at night and burdened with domestic duties on weekends. As a result, no one is at home to meet the needs of the lonely preschoolers and latchkey children. Nicholi stressed the undeniable link between the interruption of parent-child relationships and the escalation of psychiatric problems we are seeing. “If the trend continues,” he said, “serious national health problems are inevitable.” Year after year we are seeing more and more children suffering from depression, anxiety disorders and panic attacks. And that figure will continue to grow with the incidence of divorce, child neglect, child abuse, and child molestation continuing to soar. You say, “What’s the answer?” Sacrifice and simplify! Even if it means sacrificing certain material things and simplifying your lifestyle, spend time with your children! God told the Israelites, “You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house.”

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