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November 2007 |
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"The bad news is that you can't get back
those hours your family has wasted, but the good news is
that God has given you more hours to
live!" |
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The
most valuable commodity God has given us is time. We
only have a certain amount of it on this earth, and what
we do with our time says a lot about what we find most
important. Think about that for a minute and then answer
this question, "What do you spend the majority of your
time doing?" Another important question would be, "What
is your teen spending the majority of his/her time
doing?" These sobering questions remind every parent
that every moment in your family's life is worth
fighting for. The bad news is that you can't get back
those hours your family has wasted, but the good news is
that God has given you more hours to live! To make the
most of every moment, consider the following when
fighting for time with your family. First, you must
start with the truth. Asking the questions above is a
great starting point in determining if you should change
or continue what you are doing. This exercise for your
family is NOT intended to be a "pity party". It is
simply a way to deal with reality. Once you have the
truth staring you in the face, then you can move forward
with a plan. Next, figure out how you want to spend your
time and help your teen make a plan as well. You
definitely need to give them some control, but remind
them, for example, spending all their time playing video
games is not the best idea. Take some time to coach your
teen in figuring out what activities could be
eliminated, changed, or increased that would make the
most of his/her time. Then, you must teach and model a
simple two letter word, "no". Not many people have
mastered using the word "no" because it's so much easier
to say "yes". But, how many "yes's" have caused you to
live a downward spiral of stress and fatigue? One good
thing about having a plan is that it will greatly
increase your chances of saying "no". You know what is
most important because you know what you and your family
should be doing. Solomon figured out that time is
precious after he had wasted many of his years. At the
end of his life, the one thing he figured out was this,
"Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the
matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is
the duty of man. (Ecclesiastes 12:13 NIV)
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Do you think your teen’s schedule is out of
control? Here are some signs to help determine if your teen is
on the verge of burnout:
1. Your
teenager is acting depressed. He doesn’t want to do anything,
he has lost interest in things he likes to do, and he has
decreased attention or effectiveness when doing things.
2.
Your teenager is feeling some anxiety for no known reason or
he is acting over anxious. He unable to relax, is not sleeping
well, having nightmares, restless, etc.
3. Your teenager
is suffering from insomnia. He is unable to get to sleep at
night or he wakes up and is unable to go back to sleep.
4.
Your teenager is either overeating or under eating, as both
are a response to being stressed.
5. Your teenager is
giving in to impulse behavior, more than normal, and is
showing signs of emotional instability, more than normal.
6. Your teenager is experiencing neck or back pain.
(parentingteens.about.com)
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 Here are some interesting thoughts on teens
and how their time is spent:
Students 12 to 17 years old were asked, “What
activities do you regularly spend time doing?” (top
five answers)
74% - Play sports
64% -
Exercise
56% - Play video games
55% - Read a
book
53% - Go to the mall
(teenage research
unlimited)
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• Adults
and teens will spend nearly five months (3,518 hours) next
year watching television, surfing the Internet, reading daily
newspapers, and listening to personal music devices.
(census.gov)
