Vince Lombardi was the legendary football coach of the Green Bay Packers. Throughout the 1960s, his teams dominated the National Football League. But their astounding success was not the result of new and innovative ways to play the game. It was quite the opposite.
In fact, one notorious example demonstrates how adamant Coach Lombardi was that his players master the fundamentals. At the beginning of training camp the year after one of the team’s most successful seasons, Lombardi gathered his men for a pep talk. Standing before a room full of professionals who had played the game since childhood, he held up a football and announced, “Gentlemen, this is a football.”
In certain respects, today and tomorrow’s broadcast featuring a message by Pastor Tommy Nelson is the equivalent of Coach Lombardi’s football speech. It’s a way of saying, “Ladies and gentlemen, this is parenting.”
Culture is constantly changing around us, and each generation of parents faces new and daunting challenges. But underneath it all, the fundamentals of parenting and the needs of children are no different than they’ve always been.
Kids need to feel loved, safe, and provided for. They need moral guidance. And they need parents who will listen to them and encourage them to share their thoughts and feelings.
I hope you’ll join us on your local radio station for “Essentials of a Healthy Home” (or listen online or via our free, downloadable mobile phone app). Pastor Nelson will share eight ingredients crucial to making a home thrive. I think you’ll find his message encouraging and informative, and you’ll even laugh a little along the way.
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