How To Honor Difficult In-Laws – Discipleship for Dads

When in-laws criticize and undermine your parenting choices, what do you do? When trying to reason together just creates contention, how should you respond? When a mother-in-law shows interest in only the grandchildren she likes and ignores the others, what is the right course? The dads discuss biblical strategies, and assess cutting off contact…whether “boundaries” are biblical…what the role of the church is…and a smart tactic for honoring bad in-laws.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_04 0:06

Welcome to the Generations Broadcast friends. Kevin Swanson with you today. Another episode of Discipleship for Dads with Todd Strasser and Bill Roach. A couple of dads and granddads in studio. All three of us, I guess, grandchildren. Nine as of last week. That's right. Sixteen on the way. Sixteen? I have one. And one. That makes for 26. Yeah, I get it. Not too bad. Among the three granddads and fathers in studio. Now, today we're coming back to a controversial and difficult subject. In-law questions revisited. In laws, in-laws and outlaws. Today on the Generations broadcast. And you know what? We have to come back to this because I think it only affects about 92% of our listening audience. It does. I'm just saying it. It does. It just does. And maybe even to some extent 100%, right? Because I, you know, I'm so thankful that you know our relationship with my parents has been great. And I think in general, uh it's been really good across the board. Um, but they're godly people. I mean, they're just godly people to just understand, uh, you know, not like they don't sin, but it's been great. I mean, praise the Lord. Right. Because I I I I have had some in-laws where there's a contrast. And in my case, my in-laws were not believers.

SPEAKER_01 1:24

Right.

SPEAKER_04 1:24

So that made a difference. Um but but actually, you know what? My wife has commented on this before. I think sometimes um professing Christians can be more difficult than unbelievers at points. So that's another aspect of this that uh that comes into play. And again, we're addressing several questions that are coming into our mail atgenerations.org email address. I had a question. Here it is. I wanted to see if you could do an episode on how to deal with difficult relatives-in-laws as a dad. We've had relatives criticize and undermine our parenting choices for our entire marriage, almost 12 years. Most of it's done subtly, but other times openly. As parents, it's been tempting at times to just cut off all correspondence, but we also want to honor the Lord and show love. Any issues that we've ever brought up to discuss and hopefully move forward on is responded to with antagonism, anger, and further criticism. As a dad, I've struggled with a sin of bitterness at times, but have asked the Lord for forgiveness, and I believe we are trying to patiently move forward biblically. We have set up boundaries and on and on. Okay. So that's the first one. We'll hit the second one in just a moment. But let's let's address this one at a time. I think to to to talk through this is important. It sounds to me like communication in this situation is not working. They've attempted some communication, it's just spiraling into more dysfunctionality in the communication and the relationship itself. Right. Now, uh if if we got unbelievers uh here, there's not a whole lot you can do about it. A couple of things I'm gonna say from the outset, because I've had some experience with this with members in our church. Number one, it's really helpful to get perspective from your own elders and pastors. Yeah. You know, now you know, even in my case, you know, I'm I'm this amazingly objective person. I'm I'm just kidding. But still, I I see myself as fairly objective. But when it comes to relationships within families, I'm not sure I'm the most objective person. And to right. You know, I I think it's amazing at if you just sit in front of pastors and say, here's the situation. The pastors can actually bring some objective things to play that you never thought of. Now, a couple of things. I've had one situation where both parents and adult married children and the respective pastors, they went to different churches. We got into the same room together over two to three hours. Again, these were the in-laws and the the children, right, and the the so the children are married, and then we have these in-laws, and there was some conflict. So, so the the the parents, the grandparents, were attending some little Baptist church in downtown Denver, and they were attending our church, the children were attending our church. And so the two pastors and the two couples in the same room for two to three hours, we worked it out and effectively saved the relationship. I mean, it really worked out well. But but this is kind of rare because you know you gotta have humility on both sides.

SPEAKER_02 4:22

Yeah, go for it.

SPEAKER_04 4:24

It's tough. I know. I sorry I had to say it, but one of the qualifications for working stuff out is um humility. And they've got to listen to counsel from uh objective, faithful, thoughtful pastors, and and pastors oftentimes are hesitant to get involved in these sorts of things. So there's got to be submission to the church. There's not a whole lot of that going on. There's a lot of church copying, there's not a lot of commitment to church, there's not a lot of submission to pastors, pastors aren't always engaging, and I get that. Um now there's a book out there called Toxic In Laws published by Lewis and Roth, which is the Alexander Strauk publishing organization. It deals with the epidemic of toxicity in these relationships, uh really all kinds of relationships in the present cold sort of derelationalized age. But uh this guy's basic uh th theory or approach to this is uh smile, don't say anything, and pray. That's kind of like his conclusion. Okay. Which as I see it is a little bit of just sort of duct tape the thing together and drag along for indefinite periods of time. Oh, I know. I it it's it and sadly you know, people kind of just drag along. And I uh you know, this is I don't know, 60% of the problems out there. I I would say the gospel can do stuff. I really believe in Jesus here, right? And I think we should believe in Jesus. I think we should pray for a miracle that the gospel would step in, people would humble themselves, confess their sins one to another, and call me you know Pollyannish about it, but I think it's this kind of thing would work. I really believe, you know, this would work if if that would happen. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 6:10

After 65 years of living, I've run out of brooms and rugs to sweep stuff underneath that rug. Yeah, yeah. Uh it just that and the in the end of the day, it does the quiet and say nothing doesn't work. Now, I get it with in-laws, you you've got so many different things going on. You're honoring and you're loving. Right. But let's let's realize the premise is this there's a creation of a new household. And you they're going to build a new house. They're the they're the general contractors, they're the ones that get to bring in subcontractors. Oh, yeah. And they should go to their in-laws and their parents for help in building this house. But boy, the in-laws need to remember they need to back off. They're they're building the house. And and building new houses is not easy. And if you have six different opinions of what that house should look like, you're going to have trouble.

SPEAKER_04 6:57

Yeah, if you have sidewalk superintendents yelling at you from all sides, that's kind of confusing. You're right.

SPEAKER_03 7:03

Tom, we have to remember that as like the parents. That's right. But like from this from this uh listener's perspective, you know, he doesn't have the that control over them or anything. So I think you know, engaging in communication to obviously address the concerns is important. Um, he says that might not be that's not been responded to well. Um, I would say that you know he does have an obligation, we all have an obligation to honor. So we have to keep that in our that is the command the Lord's given us. Yes, they might be having all these challenges. Even for unbelievers, right? But but but remember, absolutely, but you must honor. And so, and I so I would I would encourage honor, continue to honor, patience. This is gonna take some patience. This is probably not gonna be solved overnight. And and uh also, yeah, go go to the church, or it might take, you know, it might bringing someone else in, a third party, a pastor, somebody that can bring the we've done that in our church. Bring bring these, you know, the the children and the parents together and say, can we let's talk through the the differences?

SPEAKER_00 8:04

You know, one one specific thing that I would say to this situation, and Kevin, you taught me this uh a while ago, is there might be 10 list of 10 things that they don't appreciate about the in-laws, but there's there's go find the two things that they're those in-laws are good at and go ask them their advice on things.

SPEAKER_02 8:21

And that'll be honoring. That's honoring honoring art.

SPEAKER_00 8:24

Yeah, set aside the 10 things you don't like about them, right? Go find the two things that make they are good at all. You appreciate their good. Yeah, that's a way to show.

SPEAKER_04 8:32

Have you ever had the thought, brothers, that uh if I just didn't have this issue in my life, just this one issue, everything would be great. Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:41

You ever have that impression what is your wife said something the other day on fruitful and faithful and fruitful? She said, around our house, we say it's not what comes at you, but what's coming out of you. Right.

SPEAKER_04 8:54

But my point is my point is this is that, but this is the trial that God has placed in your life. That's right. This is the thing. This is like own it. It's own it, Mom. It's your baby. Yeah. Take that baby and and you know, struggle through it by prayer. And you know, don't waste a good trial. Don't waste a good trial. Exactly. This is the means by which you're going to grow in faith and love. And uh, you know, people closest to you are the hardest to love. Isn't that always the way it is? I mean, it's okay if it's just the checkout clerk at the grocery store. I mean, I I have no trouble, for the most part, being polite with her. No issue. Yeah. Actually, I have not sinned against a grocery checkout clerk in quite some time. And that's because there's really no relationship. Exactly. The people closest to you are the hardest to love. There's no time together where they see your own. Now, with relationships, you have to be intentional and wise. Now, I don't particularly like the idea of boundaries, it's not a biblical word. Now, but and yet there is a degree of engineering distance where we can't just jump into people's laps and and just kind of like, hi, you know, I'm just gonna live with you. No, no, there's the leaving and cleaving element. So there is something of a distance that develops, and that's okay. But use biblical categories, as in 1 Corinthians 13, where love is not rude, and at the same time, love is not easily offended. And so you you have both sides of this aspect of love. You're not easily offended by how they approach you, and you are not rude in how you are approaching them. Now, if that works two ways, in other words, in a total of four factors, two times two equals four on the love is not rude, love is not easily offended for me, for our side, and for their side, that's four factors. That's not just two factors, that's four factors. So if if if we're working the four factors, if I'm working the two factors on my side, they're working the two factors on their side, then you know what? Everything's gonna work out.

SPEAKER_00 10:56

You get it, you confuse me when you get all engineering on me.

SPEAKER_04 10:59

Two times two, that's not two intense, Bill. That's that's two times two is four. With you're all working on all the same things at the same time. Yeah, if both sides are working on both issues at the same time in the communication, well, right, it's gonna work out. It's gonna work out then.

SPEAKER_00 11:15

When you say love is not easily offended, the implication is somebody's coming at you rudely and offending you.

SPEAKER_04 11:22

But if somebody comes at you rudely and you're not easily offended, it's gonna work. That's right. If if you're doing what you can not to be rude to them, and they're not easily offended on their side at the same time, you with me? I'm with you. Now it's all working out because all four factors are being you uh affected, uh, you know, both factors being worked on on both sides, and now the relationship's gonna work, and we got love, like you know, oil in the cylinders. Yes. And if love's work in the cylinders, and forgiveness, by the way, let's throw forgiveness into the mix as well. If love and forgiveness are working in the cylinders, voila, the Jesus approach to life is going to make it work. So but in lieu of high levels of dysfunctionality, you gotta be realistic. This is the other aspect to this. And you may wish there to be closer relationships, but wisdom may dictate that you engineer eight feet distance instead of two feet distance in order to maintain a peaceful relationship. Because the Bible does say, as much as is in you, live at peace with all men. Yes. So that's another overarching principle that ties into this.

SPEAKER_00 12:32

And some of some of this, I think, yeah, you take a take a period. Like if you're really struggling, like he mentions here, any issues that we've ever brought up to discuss and hopefully move forward on is responded with antagonism, anger, and further. Oh boy. How do you how do you operate in that? I say, you know what, family, we're gonna take a six-month hiatus from talking about any of these things, and we're gonna go find 12 things we can do for for grandma and grandpa to help them. We're gonna go serve them and not talk about any of the issues. What we're gonna do for six months is go serve and love on them because they must be hurting in some way to be responding in this way. And children, this is what you do. When people respond to you in this way, you turn around and you go serve them and love them and and expect that God's gonna change their heart. That's good. That's right.

SPEAKER_04 13:17

Todd, have you had any glitches in relationships or how do you work through those things?

SPEAKER_03 13:21

Yeah, you know, and it as I mentioned before, it does take awaiting on the Lord and and looking, looking to God. I think you you're kind of going uh what you're saying is good because we we can't control the other people. We can't change the other people. It is nice when both sides are operating perfectly, but yeah, right, that we we can do what we can do. And so we have to, I think your your comment of starting of what are we grateful for? There's certainly some things we do appreciate, and we're grateful, we're thankful for these things and and recognize those and then yeah, find find ways to serve, but also we need to continually, and I think for dad, we're talking to dads, um, you know, it can be harder like for our wives or for our children, and how to help shepherd them and navigate them with the right response is so so important.

SPEAKER_04 14:06

Let's just deal with this question of criticizing undermining parenting choices. Let's deal with that for just a moment. Yeah, yeah. What do you do? May maybe there is an issue. Well, here, number one, if there's a clear violation of God's law going on, now sometimes this is just application and disagreement concerning application. That's why, okay, you know, are they just disobeying God and you're you're sure of that. Well, sometimes as a brother or sister in Christ, you do have an obligation to uh to bring an issue to a brother or sister in Christ, and there should be some reception. If you're attending different churches, I think oftentimes you know you can trust pastors, elders, shepherds on the other side to help with that. Um but I I do think there's limited passport in many situations, and you have to consider your passport. Do you have enough passport to come alongside? Now, Bill, are there ways in which to address something in a thoughtful, careful way where it doesn't come across as criticism?

SPEAKER_00 15:17

Right. Again, now if you're talking about receiving the criticism, right?

SPEAKER_04 15:20

No, I'm talking about giving it.

SPEAKER_00 15:22

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 15:22

Because how how how do these parents maybe there's a disagreement on parenting choices?

SPEAKER_00 15:27

Right.

SPEAKER_04 15:28

For the most part, I would say keep your mouth shut. But are there instances at which you might say something? That's the question I'm posing to you.

SPEAKER_00 15:36

I think I think you come in with humility saying, number one, I may be wrong on this issue.

SPEAKER_04 15:41

And and and and we've made mistakes in some of these areas right.

SPEAKER_00 15:44

And I don't have the full story. I don't know everything that's going on in your home. That's right. You you preface everything with humility, saying, I might have this wrong, but here's what I see. If you're talking about the people given it, now these are the ones that are taking it on, right? What do you do with that? I think any and generally, whatever you have criticism, right? You guys are elders, you get criticism. What do you do? You you look at the two things that they might be right on or are right on, and you maybe set aside the six or eight things they're not right about, would they have the wrong list on it, or they've exaggerated on, but you try to focus on the two things because God's bringing it to you to make you feel like that.

SPEAKER_04 16:19

And let's pray over it. You know, one thing I've said, and I think my children have approached me at times with, you know, hey dad, this or that. And I've I've responded with, you know what, you may be right here. But there are four lists. There's your list of my problems, there's my list of my problems, there's the devil's list of my problems, and then there's the Holy Spirit's list. Right. So as much as they're all different, but as much as you can contribute to the Holy Spirit's list, that's the one to go. I'm listening.

SPEAKER_03 16:46

That's the one to go.

SPEAKER_04 16:47

And I want to pray through what you just said to me. I want to pray through that. So I think that's a good way to say it. You know, hey, thank you. Yeah. Thank you. Right. And and you know what? It may not be, you may not be batting a thousand on this. Right. But you might be batting 880.

SPEAKER_00 17:02

Right.

SPEAKER_04 17:02

In which case, I'm gonna take this and I'm gonna pray over it.

SPEAKER_03 17:06

So that's one way to approach it. Well, uh, you know, it comes to mind whatever your whatever position you're in, maybe the parent, maybe the child, but we're called to lead in love. It's kind of like what you're saying, Bill. It's it's you know, how do we serve? How do we leave in love? I remember, and I did not do this well many times, but I remember one time in particular, and I was uh r really convicted to I was actually reading a book called The Silent Adam, and I was convinced like not to be the silent Adam. Because often is, you know, when it's when it's maybe in-laws, is you you kind of want to be like, they're not my family. I don't know what to do. I'm out of here. But but I was called to not be that Adam over there doing nothing and to to step in and to love, to lead in love. Remember, we kind of had with an in-laws like big this is early in our marriage, a big kind of blow-up, and uh, and it was it was pretty tense, and they're you know, it was like we're just gonna leave. And I'm like, well, this well, this is bad. And I just said, Well, I tell you what, let me just I'll just go buy us some Taco Bell because I don't know what to do. I mean, Taco Bell. Well, I mean, this was like this was like an issue with it. I didn't have money. I didn't have money for that. But I'm like, but I'm like, I gotta figure out how to like love somehow. How to do something to to to like at least encourage you know something here and be like, well, you know what? I'll just buy us dinner. Because I and and and it did, it softened everybody. It was like, oh, like, wow, you know, like somebody loves somebody here. You know what I mean? And it was it was imperfect, but it but we just we have to figure out in that situation, God helped me to love.

SPEAKER_00 18:39

Wasn't there leftover food that they gave you when you didn't have enough money to pay for it?

SPEAKER_04 18:43

I yeah, yeah, but you know, I don't know, you know some way don't negate the biblical principle, a soft answer turns away wrath. Yeah, that's I mean, do not negate bib. You know what, guys? I mean, go to the Bible. Turns out the Bible's got a lot of good stuff about this kind of thing. Right. I'm serious. And to the extent, okay, so you got wrath, you got criticism, you got, I'm tired of you guys doing this, saying this, whatever. A soft answer turns away wrath.

SPEAKER_03 19:12

That's right. That's the key.

SPEAKER_04 19:13

A soft answer to the text turns away wrath. That's right. A soft answer to the email turns away wrath. A soft answer to the phone call. Turns away wrath. A gift makes room. And a gift makes room. Yeah. It is amazing how this stuff works. Try it. Yeah. Amen. Try it out. Yeah. It's amazing. Try it. Let me go to the last um email we got concerning in-laws and outlaws. Okay. So uh here it is. I have a question that's not seen answered on the podcast. My in-law does not show any interest in my children's lives. Oh boy. She takes care of one set of grandchildren but largely ignores mine. When she calls to speak to her son, I guess her husband, she does not ask about the kids or try to speak to them. And I'm moving down here a little bit. Yeah, yeah. Uh, my she constantly shows partiality and tends to constantly compare my husband and I to her other son and his family. My husband is used to it and does not say much, but it bothers me. I pray for my in-laws and my attitude towards her because I want to remain respectful, but I do not want my children treated unfairly. She asks for pictures of her grandchildren ever so often, and when I do send pictures, she posts the two children that she favors up in the front of the house and leaves my daughter that looks like me in the back of the house, etc. Okay, so and the thing goes on a bit. But uh wow, how do we respond to this, brothers? I I will say that it's really hard for moms, especially when people appear to be going after their kids. It just is the female species is more deadly than the male. I you know, when it comes to defending their young. And so I get that. I I get it, I understand that. But at the same time, God wants us to be forgiving, loving, assuming the best. All of the first Corinthians 13 stuff. How does this woman approach her mother-in-law in this?

SPEAKER_00 21:07

Number one, uh you have to teach your children those very principles. You know, our children can be a bit more resilient than we give them credit for. This idea that we have to protect them from every harm possible, every possible bad word or bad thought or bad intention, which is clearly here, you don't have to protect them for everything. You just have to help them to work through it. Because this is what life is about. Yeah. They're going to be treated unfairly, unlovingly, and it may even be by family. Yeah. So you have to teach your children. Sometimes people are unloving to you if they start to notice. She mentioned that they're too young even to notice it, but don't don't have that over protectiveness that God is bringing this into to your life to help you to teach your children uh the these these valuable lessons.

SPEAKER_03 21:53

That's good. I mean, it seems like there's obviously a relational dynamic here between the mother in law and the wife. This seems to be the breakdown. Maybe the children are sort of the outflow of of some of that. But it seems like, you know, there are times where, first of all, I would say, you know, we have to come together as a as a married couple on these, in a un in some unity of how to approach the situation. You know, you don't want one member of the marriage to feel alone in navigating.

SPEAKER_04 22:21

And this could be driving a wedge between husband and wife.

SPEAKER_03 22:23

Watch out for that. That could be an issue. Trevor Burrus, Jr. But I mean we we've got to have first unity in the marriage to know how to engage this situation together. Not as a one-off, oh, he likes me, doesn't like her, that whatever. But there have there has to be unity there. And you know, again, like we've said before, it could be an opportunity for to go to the church and and get counsel there.

SPEAKER_04 22:42

Yeah. So I think working the marriage is probably well worth it. That unity in marriage would help this situation tremendously. Hopefully the husband is starting to connect with the issue. Right.

SPEAKER_00 22:54

He says here my husband is used to it and does not say much.

SPEAKER_04 22:57

Yeah, which means though, but he needs to understand the dynamic of love. He needs to understand this dynamic. And perhaps getting a little bit of counseling for the marriage within the local church is probably helpful. That way we can be on the same page. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:12

Right.

SPEAKER_04 23:12

As we're addressing there's something about a unity in the marriage where, you know, it it it kind of gives you a little bit of resilience to whatever the in-laws might be bringing your way. So I think that's a good point. Uh also somehow decent communication needs to open up the issue because you know, you're assuming motives, you're not really sure what the issue is. She's probably thinking, I got about a 92% confidence that this is my mother-in-law's real issue. Yeah. But we're not absolutely sure. Right. So communication and opportunities to get together in the same room, maybe even with a pastoral counselor, could be super helpful because I think oftentimes you're shocked. You know, oh wow, I thought it was this issue. Turns out not to be that issue. Right. Turns out to be this other issue. Right. Right. So the preconceived problem was not the problem. But there's uh another problem that's, you know, that mother-in-law is dealing with, or maybe there's a communication issue that's arisen within the um relationship itself. So those are the sorts of things to look out for. Let me um let me close this with just some overarching uh, you know, watch out for these sins. What are the sins that we need to be watching out for in these relationships? Uh, first, I think is the controlling anger thing. Sure. Or just the whole controlling thing. Like, I've got to be in control of what's happening with my children and grandchildren. And there's a lot of fear sometimes that's working. You know, I'm afraid they're going off the deep end. Right. Oh, the grandkids aren't gonna turn out very well. You know, well, trust in God and prayer.

SPEAKER_00 24:48

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 24:50

But trust in God. Pray. Yeah. There's not a whole lot you can do once your children are out of the house. Yeah. And once they're adults. At this point, you know what? Move mountains. Try prayer. Uh your kids need prayer. That's one thing my parents did. My parents have done almost nothing in terms of getting involved in our child raising. But you know what? They pray every day. I think my mother has prayed hours a day for probably the last 40 years for her children and grandchildren. Um so controlling, you know what, you're not in control. You're not in control, man. God's in control. That's that's number one. I think that's pretty much number one. Manipulation and lying, being easily offended. We talked about that. Um just love expressing itself differently.

SPEAKER_00 25:46

Selfish too.

SPEAKER_04 25:47

Self-centeredness, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 25:48

Yeah, selfishness. That you want certain things to happen a certain way for your benefit. Selfishness.

SPEAKER_04 25:54

Anything else strikes you?

SPEAKER_03 25:57

You know, it's just it there's gonna be opportunities here, I think, as well, for if we if we confront them rightly and we confront them in love and in faith and through service. Right. I I think as a as dad, again, we're we're talking to dads, we need to be hopeful about what God wants and and and look towards that outcome. You know, if there is a well, let's just move to the other side of the country kind of thing, and that'll solve the problem. It's it's it's no, let's be hopeful that Jesus is going to repair and restore this. And and there's a there's a you know, kind of it's like I'm just encouraging dads to be the ones that say, Yes, we're in the valley, but let's God's bring bring us to the other side, the other shore here. He's gonna he's gonna bring us there. And and to to give that vision to your family of hope that no, these these relationships are good and can be restored and fruitful and and glorify God.

SPEAKER_01 26:45

Amen.

SPEAKER_03 26:46

Um, and then on the positive side, what are you doing the rest of the time?

SPEAKER_04 26:51

And you touched on this already. Be kind, be kind, in doubt, love the kind of other way. Yes, be as kind as you can possibly be. Yes, serve, serve, serve every opportunity in terms of engaging with you know it's coming, you know they're gonna drop by this afternoon. What can you do? How can you you know meet them at the door? Smile. Right. Thank you for coming. And train the children. Affirming the things, the good things they've done. Amen. Keep going.

SPEAKER_00 27:25

Yeah, yeah. The children. Yeah, the children have got to be a part of it too. It's not just the wife, right? The children, grandma and grandpa are coming over. Let's meet her at the door, let's tell her how much we love her, let's give her a big hug when she walks in the door. Yeah, yeah. Every starting everything out of positive, rather than uh oh, grandma's coming, everybody runs to their room and go, I'm gonna go read my book for a little while.

SPEAKER_03 27:46

Yeah, that's not good.

SPEAKER_04 27:47

So I guess my view is that if 94% of your engagement, or 97% of your engagement, is affirmation, appreciation, gratitude, kindness, serving, then maybe you've got the passport to deal with those difficult conversations the rest of the time.

SPEAKER_00 28:07

Yeah. Yeah, there's such a fertile ground there for the spirit to come in and work when there's peace. That's right. And and and well, the tension has to begin.

SPEAKER_04 28:16

And I have to say, I'm not doing this perfectly, but I'm learning. I'm growing. And shouldn't we all be growing in this? I mean, this is what the Holy Spirit is supposed to be doing in our lives uh with with the growth of love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and self-control.

SPEAKER_03 28:34

Amen. Yes, that's right.

SPEAKER_04 28:36

Well, friends, and it turns out, it turns out the family and family relationships is the environment in which, well, this stuff is supposed to be growing. Yes, all of us. It is. Let's pray for this. Let's pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon our families. This is what we need more than anything else. Well, that's just continuing the conversation. And uh, we'll hopefully get back to this subject. Again, friends, if you've got inputs, I'm sure we didn't answer all the issues today, especially as uh affecting in-law issues. Uh so please email us at mail at generations.org. This is Kevin Swanson, as well as Todd Strasser and Bill Roach. Inviting you back again next time as we continue to lay down a vision for the next generation. This has been a production of the Generations Media Network. For more information, go to generations.org/slash media.