times”. Any good hearted, God-loving parent will be quick to point out the amazing blessings that come from child rearing. However, that same parent, assuming he or she is
honest, will also be quick to confess to the reality of the pain and angst that comes
with being a parent. Perhaps we should have paid more attention to the second
line in Dickens literary masterpiece which says, “It was the age of wisdom, it
was the age of foolishness”! Don’t misunderstand, I am not suggesting that
the “Tale of Two Cities” was a work on parenting. Nevertheless, there is
something profoundly instructive about the reality that child rearing is
a messy conglomeration of wisdom and foolishness. Few areas highlight this struggle in greater clarity than in the arena of “work”.
Whether you call it familial responsibilities, chores, duties or jobs…
each and every family operates within a structure that requires
some measure of work and cooperation. As the familiar idiom
states, “Many hands makes light work”. But perhaps even more
important than leading our children towards the goal of getting
things done, is the greater goal of developing a “work ethic”.
According to one online dictionary, a work ethic is, “a belief in
the moral benefit and importance of work and its inherent ability
to strengthen character.” In other words, more than simply teaching someone how to work, a work ethic is an internal reality that
answers not “how”, but “why” we work. Throughout the remainder of this article, it is my hope to present an approach to