In a recent issue of Parenting magazine, one mom recounted that it was hard for her to watch her child cast in a school pageant as the "cheese"—as in, the "cheese" that stands alone.

The child is three.

Yep—we are a culture that is terrified of adversity finding our kids. Strike that; we're terrified of even brief unpleasantness getting near our kids. I'm not sure it's even much different for the Christian culture. For instance, how many of us have been around parents on a Sunday morning who would never consider telling their three-year-old, "Do NOT interrupt—I'm talking to the grown-ups," for fear of bruising a delicate child's psyche?

Fear of any adversity touching our kids may be most pronounced as our children head back to school, and some of these issues are once again thrown into relief: What if my child has a teacher he doesn't like? What if he doesn't make the team, or she isn't invited to the popular girl's party? What if he has to play the "cheese"?

"What if she ...