I will post the final word by 5:00 am. It will be here on the website, on Facebook, and sent out via the email list.

1. Eat Together - This may seem like such a simple thing, but it packs a lot of power.  There’s a reason why so many of our defining life moments involve food.  Things like holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, reunions, sporting events, community activities, church functions, weddings, graduations, and school programs often come with some sort of eating together.  Sharing food is sharing a basic human need.  It says, “Yeah, me too.”  We all have to eat and sharing that experience reminds us that we are not so different.  Also, we have to put down our swords in order to pick up our forks.  By this I mean that eating together naturally promotes conversation and commonality.  When a family eats together, they are reminded that they belong to one another – of who they are and who they will become.

2. Play Together - Playing with each other is not only fun, it’s honest.  Think about it, we can’t fake the enjoyment of playing together.  We’re either having fun or we’re not and fun unites people.  When was the last time you had a fight with someone while having fun at the same time?  Play lets us forget about all of the things that divide us and enjoy time together.  It also creates lasting positive memories that inspire us to return to each other again and again.  Have you ever tried to create a memory by orchestrating the behavior of others?  ”You stand here.  You stand here.  Squish over to your right.  I know it’s uncomfortable, but it will be over in a minute.  Alright, now everyone smile.”  Seriously?  We may not be able to create precious, life-long memories, but we can create situations where they are likely to happen and then get out of the way.

3. Serve Together - At its core love is an action verb wrapped in genuine concern for other over ourselves.  This is the secret known to and practiced by the greatest lovers of all time.  Not the Valentino, Cassanova, Arthur Fonzarelli lovers, but the St. Augustine, Mother Theresa, Jesus Christ kind of lovers.  True love begins the moment we fully realize that it isn’t about us.  Serving together does that by building teamwork and creating positive feelings of accomplishment.  Families that serve together share a deeper love for one another, because they operate in an unselfish nature.  Whether it’s a church program, a school event, a community initiative, or a local charity, serving together fortifies a family like nothing else.

4. Sacrifice Together - Sacrifice is voluntarily going without something for the benefit of someone else.  Going without is not something we readily identify with in this day and age or in Western culture for that matter.  we are constantly told that we deserve things and shouldn’t have to go without.  However, sacrifice carries with it some very specific rewards.  It places things in perspective.  Stepping away from our “things” grants us a clearer understanding of their true importance.  It requires accountability, because it’s hard.  This helps us to stand beside one another and cling to each other instead of “things” that can’t cling back.  It also creates spare time.  If there is one overwhelming deficiency in the lives of people today, it’s time.  We have money, we have talent, but we can never seem to find enough time.  Families who sacrifice together often discover the treasure of time that they didn’t know they had.

5. Create Together - Creating is a great thing for anyone to do, but it holds special benefits for the family.  Gardens, hobby projects, home improvements, games, traditions, stories, art, music, the possibilities are nearly endless when it comes to things we can create.  The key is doing it together.  Creating together requires cooperation.  We must learn to collaborate and compromise – two very countercultural values these days.  Creating together allows for the combining of each person’s unique abilities to bring about the existence of something that wouldn’t be possible otherwise.  There is a reason why John Lennon and Paul McCartney achieved far more together than either of them ever did alone.  Creating together produces something in which every member can take pride.  It deepens us when we pour ourselves together.

6. Dream Together - Some of us are born dreamers – others have to work at it.  Regardless, dreaming is something everyone naturally longs to do.  It promotes an optimistic view of life.  Dreaming opens us to possibilities that planning cannot see.  All of our goals and eventual accomplishments start as dreams.  Cultivating and environment where dreams are encouraged greatly improves our chances of success.  Also when we dream together, we focus on the positive aspects of each other.  We speak the language of optimism as we each bring our best to the process.  Every lasting legacy begins with the casting of a vision.  Dreaming together allows all members of a family to join in the creating of a vision that can endure for generations.

There you go.  Six Things Families Can Do To Get Stronger Immediately.  These are the only six things, obviously, but they are a place to start.  Let us know what things your family does to get stronger by leaving a comment below this post.  Thanks.

Greg

• When one of my Toddler teachers asked a child in her class, “How do I look?”  The 2-year-old answered, “Not too shabby.”
• A 3-year-old asked his teacher for more juice at snack time.  To which another child responded, “How about you try some water?”
• When a class of little ones was asked, “Who do you love most?” many of them answered, “Mommy,” or “Daddy,” 2 said, “Brothers.”  The last one to answer said, “I love Mason.” (that was Mason)

One of my favorite things is when a child believes that closing her eyes makes her invisible.  It took me a while to catch on, but now I just say, “Where did she go?” and I look diligently around the room until she opens her eyes and reappears to the world.  Oh, how many times I have wished that I could simply close my eyes and disappear for a few minutes.  And it amazes me how some things never get old – like Peekaboo.  It doesn’t matter whether they are babies, toddlers, or preschoolers.  Peeking out from behind a door, through a window, or around a corner gets a smile every time.

I have a herniated disc in my lower back that acts up from time to time.  I suffered a recent flare up due to too many hours in my office chair and had to use a cane for several days.  I was helping out with playground duty during this ordeal and one little girl wanted to play hide-and-seek with me.  I let her hide and hobbled around searching until I found her.  Then it was my turn to hide.  ”I don’t think I can hide today,” I said, “My back is hurting me.”  ”That’s OK,” she said, “You can rest and I’ll hide for you.”

I am so thankful for the opportunity to have these kids in my life and I want this kind of joy for everybody I know.  That’s why I’m so nuts about helping families.  I just believe that strengthening our families is the key to healing so many of our pains and struggles in life.

If you haven’t had a chance to download my new eBook “The 12 Freedoms of Healthy Families” please click this link and get your copy now.  It’s my completely FREE gift to you.  Thanks for reading.

Greg

1) Family Secrets: If you follow Freeing Families on Facebook or Twitter, you have begun receiving a series of posts entitled “Family Secrets.”  These are my 52 rules for healthy family living.  My wife and I are big NCIS fans and I was inspired by the show’s main character, Agent Gibbs, to create these rules.  I will release  a new Family Secret to our Social Media pages every Wednesday at Noon.  So if you haven’t liked or followed us yet on Facebook or Twitter, go do it.  Then you can collect all the secrets as they come out.  Who knows, there may even be a contest down the road where those rules come in handy.

2) 12 Freedoms eBook and Email Course:  Many have requested more in-depth information about the 12 Freedoms and I’m happy to announce that I will soon be releasing an eBook and an Email Course.  Here’s how it will work.  In the near future, the 12 Freedoms page of the website will change significantly.  Instead of containing basic information about the Freedoms, it will be a place where people can register for our mailing list to receive a free copy of the eBook or participate in an Email Course.  The eBook and Email Course present each of the Freedoms in greater detail along with helpful suggestions for how to make them a regular part of your family life.  The book will be available for sale on iTunes, the Kindle Store, and other internet publishing sources, but there will always be a free copy offered at www.freeingfamilies.com.

3) The Freedom Formula Video Series: I haven’t abandoned the Freedom Formula Videos.  In fact Video 3 will release by the end of April.  I just felt it was important to take a break from producing this series to concentrate on the eBook.

4)The Freeing Families Podcast: As soon as the eBook is finished and Video 3 is released, I will begin production on the Freeing Families Podcast.  Two episodes will be available through iTunes each month.  The podcast will focus on providing helpful ideas and discussion regarding the 12 Freedoms along with some interesting interviews.  Look for episode 1 in early June.

So that’s what we’re up to here at Freeing Families.  Let us know what you think about the Family Secrets or if there’s something specific you would like to us to include in an upcoming video or podcast by leaving a comment below.  As always, thank you for connecting .

Greg

My dear friend Kyle lives in Colorado with his wife, Deborah and their son, Matthew.  Not long ago Matthew was diagnosed with Autism.  As you can imagine, this has presented some unique challenges to the way my friends do family life.  Everything from speech and motor skills to dinner and bedtime takes on an additional complexity that many parents don’t face.  Matthew’s Autism has brought a special kind of blessing to the lives of all who are privileged to know and love this amazing little boy.

Click Here to read some of Kyle’s poetry and experience the world through Matthew’s eyes.  You’ll be glad you did.

Greg

The teaching in these videos has revolutionized the way our family lives and we know they can do the same for yours.  Each week we will post a new video.  For a while, this teaching will remain on this site and on YouTube for free.  All I ask is that you tell as many people about it as you can.

Our goal is to help as many families as possible all over the world, so please take a few short minutes and watch it.  Then share it on Facebook, Twitter, or by email.  You’ll find share buttons at the end of each post.  If you would like to be notified by email when new videos are posted, simply sign up for our mailing list using the form on the right.

Finally, please leave a comment and let us know your thoughts.  Your feedback is vital to our success.  We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Freedom Formula Video 2 Transcription

Where We’ve Been

Hi, I’m Greg.  Welcome to Video 2 of the Freedom Formula video series from freeingfamilies.com.  In the 16 years that I have been working with families, I have seen so many of them settle for less than ideal situations because they didn’t realize that they had the power to change them.

Families are made out of relationships and relationships are made of choices and choices are made one at a time.

You can have the family you’ve always dreamed of and I’ll show you exactly how to do it.  But first we need to look back and understand how we got here.

Human history follows an 80 cycle and resembles the swing of a pendulum.  It starts in the middle and swings up to the right for 20 years, then back the middle for 20 years, up to the left for 20 years, then 20 years back to the middle to complete the cycle.  With each swing of the pendulum, our society’s perspective changes.  When it swings to the right we find ourselves in a “We” centered society.  When it swings to the left we find ourselves in a “Me” centered society.

By “We” centered I mean that the prevailing perspective will focus on community, the common good, responsibility, commitment, and deep relationships.  We will live smaller, conserve more, manage more carefully, and preserve traditions.  Popular music will be made by groups rather than solo artists, people will keep the things they own for longer periods of time and buy from people they know and trust.  Commerce will become more local and civic pride will increase.  “We” societies prize the strength of communities and weight the opinions of many over the opinions of a few.  We are currently in the middle of a “We” society.

In “Me” societies, the prevailing perspective will focus on individuality, personal liberties, individual rights, and boundless choices.  We will live big, invest, innovate, blaze new trails, crave luxury, and do our own thing.  Popular music will be made by individual artists enjoying super stardom, people will prefer to buy new and replace often.  We’ll buy what we want, when we want, for the lowest price from whoever will sell it to us on our terms.  Commerce will be as global as necessary to get what we want.  “Me” societies prize the strength of individuals and weight the opinions of their chosen gurus over the opinions of the masses.  We just left a “Me” society.

Our last 80 year cycle began in 1923.  It swung up to the right until 1943, then back to the center in 1963.  It then began an upward swing to the left until 1983 and returned to center in 2003.  We are now nearly halfway through another upward swing to the right that will peak in 2023.

Now that you know a little bit about where we are and how we got here, watch Video 3 to learn how all of this dramatically affects your family.

Also, don’t forget to go to www.freeingfamilies.com and sign up for our email list to receive even more information about freeing your family.  We won’t spam you and we won’t give or sell your email address to anyone.  We will provide all kinds of helpful information you can use right away to make a difference in your family today.  I’m Greg and thanks for watching.

The teaching in these videos has revolutionized the way our family lives and we know they can do the same for yours.  Each week we will post a new video.  For a while, this teaching will remain on this site and on YouTube for free.  All I ask is that you tell as many people about it as you can.

Our goal is to help as many families as possible all over the world, so please take a few short minutes and watch it.  Then share it on Facebook, Twitter, or by email.  You’ll find share buttons at the end of each post.  If you would like to be notified by email when new videos are posted, simply sign up for our mailing list using the form on the right.

Finally, please leave a comment and let us know your thoughts.  Your feedback is vital to our success.  We look forward to hearing from you soon.

The Freedom Formula – Video 1 Transcription

Hi, I’m Greg. Welcome to the Freedom Formula video series from freeingfamilies.com.

Have you ever wanted to trade your family for a different one? OK maybe that’s a bit drastic, but haven’t we all felt that way at one time or another? Seriously, would you like your family to healthier, more supportive and loving? Would you like to reduce the amount of conflict and help your loved ones to communicate and get along better?

In this series, I’m going to teach you exactly how to make that happen. I’ll explain to you how today’s families came to be where they are, what the future holds for our families, and how you can create the kind of awesome family life you’ve always wanted.

I’ll show you how to strengthen your marriage, how to improve your parenting, and how to heal from hurtful things like divorce and generational pain. I’ll tell you why we are at a critical point in history and why the things we do in the next 30 years will shape the destiny of our families forever.

This is not a religious series proclaiming how faith in my particular brand of God will magically change your life for the better. This is real information from my real experience. This straight up, no-fluff teaching is what will free your family and mine for generations to come.

Give it a try. You’ve got nothing to lose. There are no marketing tricks, hidden agendas, or surprise catches at the end. I genuinely want to help every family I possibly can, beginning with yours. Please join me. The journey begins with Video 2.

Also, don’t forget to go to www.freeingfamilies.com and sign up for our email list to receive even more information about freeing your family. We won’t spam you and we won’t give or sell your email address to anyone. We will provide all kinds of helpful information you can use right away to make a difference in your family today.

I’m Greg and thanks for watching.

“I only have three more days until break,” she said, “How long do you have?.”

“I don’t get a break,” I answered, “I’m not in kindergarten.  Do you know when I went to kindergarten?”

“When?”

“I went to kindergarten in 1978.  That was a long time ago.”

“Were you born in the Back Thens? she asked.”

“You could say that, I answered.”

“I feel bad for you, she said, “That’s when everything was gray and you didn’t have things like colored pencils.  My mom wasn’t born then but my grandma was – she’s 72.”

Once I had finished laughing, I hugged her and walked to my office.  It’s interesting how just the span of one generation can seem like such a chasm when we’re young.  I guess our perception of that distance has more to do with our own perspective than reality.

Does your family have skewed perspectives between generations?  Investing some time with those you love can bring a good many things into focus.