The Danger of Certainty
For those who are reading my blog for the first time…thanks for your interest in this vitally important topic. Each message is intended to help you raise your kids (primarily boys) to be Tender Lions…to be tough, decisive, brave, discerning …and to be tender, sensitive, empathetic, and vulnerable.
In the last few years (if you’re paying attention at all you already know this) our society is increasingly more chaotic, divided, racist, polarized and examples of hate are plentiful. So ...
7 Vital Lessons Learned from Dr. Deborah Birx
Recently I watched a riveting interview with Dr. Deborah Birx, former leader of the White House Coronavirus Response Taskforce. Her way of dealing with a very challenging situation illustrated a number of vital leadership qualities, particularly needed in our fragile and fractured country today. To see the interview just click here. By the way, the lessons listed below are my observations not hers.
Calm Under Pressure – When you’re in the public eye and how you appear is just as ...
Apocalypse Now All Over Again or 7 Lessons for my Son from this Week in History (6 min. read)
Most people associate the word “apocalypse” with a disaster or horrible event nearing the end of times. Actually, the word means “to uncover” or “an unveiling.” My hope is that this blog will provide some “unveiling” for you.
If you’re a new reader this blog is about raising a boy to be a “Tender Lion,” and how to do that in a very challenging world. This last week brought with it some terribly challenging events, and I’m predicting that the coming weeks will bring ...
Seven Lessons Learned in Bed about Generosity
As a small boy, late at night I recall overhearing my mom and dad have intense discussions, that at first seemed like arguments. As I listened more closely from my bed, I discovered that they were discussing about whether or not they would tithe during months when they had little income as poor farmers. Each time, my parents would end up writing checks to the church and other organizations they cared about first, and then paying their other bills.
This was a lesson that went deep into my ...
An Answer For What Ails Us…
When I was a boy all the big decisions in politics, religion, business and my local community were made by people that looked, acted and believed the same thing as my dad. They were white, religious, married and conservative.
Even the radicals were conservatives. It wasn’t their fault. To not be that way would have been like trying to escape gravity. While I am very grateful for my local upbringing, it also had built into it some faulty and ugly beliefs about race, religion and ethnici...
The Yoke…Surrender is the Best Path Forward
When I was a kid my dad told me stories of his youth when he was a farm boy during the Great Depression. He explained how they placed yokes on two cows to do their plowing. The images in my head looked painful and abusive to me. That’s because I was, incorrectly, associating the farm yokes with how the pilgrims used stocks to punish and shame people in the public square.
A calf placed in the yoke with the older cow wasn’t placed there for punishment, but rather as a teaching guide. The ...
Don’t Drink the Kool-Aid This Election
Recently I’ve read a number of Facebook exchanges concerning political differences. Mind you, these are highly educated “friends” who have good jobs, and seem to be very productive members of society. And…these people are "losing their minds" arguing about “their candidate”, statistics about COVID-19, and how our country will fall apart if the other party wins.
In July 2017 the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, in a research article titled, Social Media Use and ...
7 Tips to Raise a Discerning Son
I've been thinking a lot lately about how to cut through all of the "noise" that calls for my attention. With so many competing sources of social media, cable and network news, blogs and podcasts…how can I teach and model for my son to be discerning?
It’s my observation that too many Americans just “drink the Kool-Aid” when absorbing their media content. And worse yet, far too many intentionally watch only sources that feed and align with their world view. This never challenges them ...
Tender Lion Interview – Oscar Benavides, CEO of Vistage Worldwide
Our readers tell us that one of the unique and powerful sections of Tender Lions is the chapter that includes interviews of six dads. One of them is Oscar Benavides. I've known Oscar for about ten years. He is a man of deep faith, a successful businessman, and a great dad and husband.
In this particular post Oscar is interviewed on the Jeff Crilley Show. He speaks candidly about his difficult childhood, and how that shaped who he is today. While the talk is primarily about leadership in ...
Love in Action – An Interview with John Lewis
This interview with now-sainted Congressman John Lewis is his reflection on what is called “Bloody Sunday.” Lewis tells of March 7, 1965 when he was beaten bloody by State Troopers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge while leading a peace march from Selma to Montgomery Alabama.
A few years ago I walked the bridge and stood in the spot where Lewis and many other marchers were beaten. And recently I've studied a bit about Senator Lewis' life. Our country, our politicians and our communities need ...