Carolina Conference Family Ministries

05/30/2026

Keeping kids safe online doesn't mean banning screens — it means smart boundaries and intentional conversations. Read our short guide from Pastor Shane Hochstetler on protecting children while letting them benefit from technology: https://wix.to/dPzIHEd

• Practical tips for parents
• A positive, real-world approach
• Quick 2-minute read

05/10/2026

02/14/2026

11/30/2025

A couple in the UK has kept the same daily ritual since 2001, racing each other in Mario Kart 64 to decide who makes the tea.

What began as a small challenge has become a 25-year-old tradition, with one race each day and friendly competition at its core.

Claire Monroe and Andy Bork say it started as a fair way to settle chores, and they’ve stayed committed even on busy days.

Their son Louis shared the story online, where it went viral, highlighting how a simple game became a lasting part of family life.

The couple says the ritual reminds them that small traditions often become the ones we value most.

10/03/2025

When Adult Children Leave the Faith

Christian parents don't talk much about kids leaving the faith. We don't want to shame them (and truly, in church or not, they are amazing people, whether in or out of the church). Admitting that they aren't "in church" opens us up to judgment. People assume parental failure, which adds a layer of shame to the disappointment.

Speaking as a mom, motherhood unleashed a depth of affection I'd never known. Maternal love is disabling in its solicitude. It feels as if my happiness is forever tied to my children's flourishing. Try as I might to disentangle the two, I can't fully.

God says that wisdom's "ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace" (Prov 3:17). He says to His own wandering children, "Oh, that you had heeded My commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, And your righteousness like the waves of the sea" (Is 48:18).

Parents watching adult children wander from peace, this is for you: Your quiet, relentless ache may isolate you from others, but it locks you in with God, Who knows that very ache 100 billion times over and 1000 billion times more intensely. If your life's purpose is to know and reflect Him, does this not give you that very opportunity?

And one day, who knows? On the horizon where they disappeared, where your eyes have been straining ever since, you may see a dot.

09/28/2025

09/26/2025

My son has been grounded for 7 days. He was caught by a Sheriffs deputy riding an e-bike without a helmet, which is illegal in our county, and against our house rules.

He has been without his phone and video games for 7 days. This has been incredibly hard for a 14 yr old. I mean, we all have some degree of addiction to our phones and this has been a really tough punishment for him.

Last night he was upset about how long he’s been grounded and he said, “You took away my phone. You took away everything!” I asked him to sit down and I told him a story.

A few weeks ago I was in an AA meeting and a man in there was talking about how he had lost his wife and his home and his job and his money due to his drinking. He had lost everything. Then, several months into his sobriety he realized he hadn’t “lost” anything, he had given it away. He gave away all the things he loved because he chose to drink and now he had to deal with those choices.

I said to my son, “I didn’t take away your phone, you gave it away, along with all of those other privileges when you made the choice that got you into trouble. You gave away the things you enjoy and it cost you. You can be upset. You can be angry, but you need to see that the choice you made is why those things are gone, not because I took them away. It’s all about perspective.

I continued to explain that we all make poor choices and decisions at times and the goal is to learn from them so we don’t repeat them. I told him I loved him and that I hoped he learned a lesson over the past week.

This is the raw side of parenting. The anger and angst they feel towards us when we are working to show them the path. Raising teenagers isn’t easy and sometimes it feels like you are screaming into a void. I’ll keep going because each day I “get” to be his Mom, and that is something I never want to give away.