Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

Mike Smith:
My guest today is Stephen Mally. Stephen and his sisters authored Making Brothers and Sisters Best Friends. Stephen, welcome to the program!

Stephen Mally:
Well, thanks for having us.

Mike:
Stephen, you’re the middle child in your family and the only boy. How can the dynamics of birth order act as a help instead of a hindrance when building strong sibling friendships?

Stephen
Well, I like to say that the firstborn’s philosophy is, “Never put off ’till tomorrow what you can order somebody else to do today!”

But you know, God is the one who puts families together, and sometimes the traits that irritate us the most are the very ones that God is using, not just to develop character in us, but also to make our family a well-balanced team for His glory. And as the middle child, I’ve realized that my responsibility is to serve right where God has put me. You know, we all want to do great things for God, and maybe we’ll pray, “Lord, I want to do something big for You.” But sometimes we fail to realize that God is perhaps most pleased with the little things that we do faithfully when nobody else sees, such as spending time with a younger brother or sister, or encouraging an older one.

Mike:
Thanks for that tremendous insight, Stephen. Until next time, I’m Mike Smith.