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A Book Surprise- Take Back Your Family
By Kendra | January 5, 2009
Recently I was hanging out at a bookstore with friends (a rare experience) when I spied a book that caught my attention. The title, Take Back Your Family, seemed like the type of parenting/family book I’m accustomed to reading, but the photo of the family on the front set it apart.
I picked it up and read on the flyleaf about its author, Rev Run. The lead singer for Run DMC? Are you kidding me? See, I’m not super savvy about the shows produced and aired on MTV, but lo and behold Rev Run and his family have a reality show.
I was curious about the book because its chapter titles intrigued me: Making Your Marriage Work First, Putting Family First, Clean Out Your Clutter- Not Your Children, Examples Move the World More Than Doctrine… but what really piqued my interest was the comment the librarian made when I checked the book out: “I LOVE his show! Talk about family values!”
I have not been disappointed. Although their family has made choices vastly different than ours (Rev and his wife Justine absolutely love hip hop music and I, well, don’t), the principles put forth in the book are spot on. I actually laughed aloud when I read the line they tell their children when they are seeming ungrateful, entitled to stuff, spoiled, and discontent: “I’m rich and you’re not”!
Sometimes it’s good to hear the same message in a new format, retold so that we gain insight into different facets of the same issues. I love that Rev and Justine love their kids so much that they want to give them the very best they know how, establishing high expectations while creating their home environment to be a place where fun, laughter, and joy abound. Walking alongside, letting them make mistakes, discovering joy in the journey.
The book is great, but if the reality show isn’t for you, then by all means don’t watch it. How’s that for solid advice?
Topics: Resources | 5 Comments »
January 5th, 2009 at 6:50 am
This post made me chuckle a little bit. I’m so glad you posted it. I think it’s great that you took a further glance… with pleasantly surprising results!
January 5th, 2009 at 5:34 pm
Kendra,
I love your site. I love how real you are & desire so greatly to share the love of the Lord through this journey of parenthood. I read your last post & your admitting you don’t have all the answers. I am hoping the Lord will grace you with an answer for me, because I desperately need one. I am a mom on preschoolers, 3 of them, and have no joy. Or peace for that matter. Let me preface my question with a little bit of information. As I mentioned I have 3 preschoolers. Emma turned 4 in November, Nathanael will be 3 this week & Maggie turned 1 in October. My husband is an active duty Marine & is currently deployed for the 3rd time in 3 years. By the time my husband returns home in late March we will have been in our current location for slightly less than 4 years, he’s been gone for slightly over 2 of them. I homeschool, love the MOTH principles, love my children & most importantly love the Lord. Somewhere in the midst of potty training, teething, weeks on end of sick children, correction, training, more correction, I’ve lost my joy. Plain and simple. I can’t play there’s always a million things to do and to be honest I don’t want to. I feel like one really long showing of the movie Groundhog Day. My kids know it too. How many more times will they have to tolerate the mommy got angry/please forgive my cycle? I have no family support close by & the majority of my friends are going through similar situations. I just want my children to know that I think they are terrific but somehow it gets lost in the translation of “stop playing at the dinner table,” “stop fighting”, “speak kindly”, “you may not hit”. So all of that to so simply ask how do I find my joy in parenting, for my childrens sake as well as my own. I realize I’m asking a tall order, asking you to answer a question I can’t even answer myself.
January 5th, 2009 at 10:44 pm
I have a question though (I’ve caught parts of the show here and there, but never watched an entire episode), do you really think that exposing your young children to having cameras around all of the time is really putting them first?
January 5th, 2009 at 10:57 pm
It probably wouldn’t be our choice, but then I know there are people who think choices we’ve made aren’t the best thing for our kids.
I do know that it’s time for a portrayal of a functional family on tv, and this was the family’s objective in pitching the show to MTV. Other networks rejected the idea because they weren’t dysfunctional…
Perhaps it’s a mission of their family? Perhaps it’s not a lot different than a family putting their kids in a dangerous environment on the mission field?
It’s a good question.
January 7th, 2009 at 10:13 pm
Barbara-
Thoughts coming soon…
~Kendra