September 9, 2025 • 8 mins
Teddy Roosevelt preached the doctrine of the strenuous life as the way to win the ultimate triumphs in life. We need stories and balance to help our kids see the value as we raise them. In a world of over affirmation and helicopter parents and institution that remove every difficulty, our kids ability to strive is out of balance.
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Episode Transcript
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Ethan (00:01):
Raising joyful children in an angry world, a podcast
dedicated to faithful parentsnavigating their families
through a stormy culture
This is raising joyful childrenin an angry world.
I'm your host, Paul Osborne.
I was reading a speech this weekby Teddy Roosevelt when he was
in Chicago, and the title of itis called In Praise of the
(00:23):
Strenuous Life, and it is socounter-cultural.
But important if we're going tohave children who, who grow into
adults of courage and liveconfidently in the world.
He was speaking to a group ofmen in Chicago, as they say.
He opens up the talk aboutLincoln and Grant, but he says
(00:46):
this in the speech, I wish topreach to you not the doctrine
of noble ease.
But the doctrine of thestrenuous life, the life of
toil, effort of labor, strife topreach that the highest form of
success does not come to the manwho desires ease and peace, but
(01:08):
to the man who does not shrinkfrom danger, from hardship, from
bitter toil, who out of thesewins, the splendid ultimate
triumph.
He went on to say that the lifeof ease, it springs from a lack
of desire.
Or a power to strive for greatthings.
And I would say that startsearly in life by not having a
(01:33):
worldview, a moral imagination,a story world that's filled with
the idea of a splendid ultimatetriumph through toil.
He goes on to say, and this isparticularly interesting to us
'cause we live, whether youbelieve it or not, in a very
wealthy.
Time in this country, if youcompare yourself to previous
(01:54):
generations, uh, in the GreatDepression or post-war, post
World War ii, we did not havethe kind of wealth and leisure
that we have today.
It's not uncommon for someone toget three weeks, four weeks
vacation in starting a jobwithin the first year or two.
This was not the case inprevious generations.
And he goes on to say that thosewho who have wealth and, and
(02:18):
their sons are free to haveleisure, shouldn't spend it in
idleness, but they're even morecompelled to strive for
something That's great inscience, exploration, writing,
and the arts, right?
Because.
They don't have to strive forfor money.
So they should even be more ininspired to do this.
(02:40):
And of course, the questionbecomes, in these days of ease
with all of our technology, youknow, push a button, buy a
house.
how do we instill this in ourkids?
How do we show the benefits ofthe strenuous life that will
help us win the ultimatetriumphs?
And I wanna say to you, I thinkwe have to start in the early
(03:01):
years in the stories we tell ofthose that advance humanity and
science, those that have greatwar stories, those that overcome
obstacles.
And I think it starts inchildren's literature, which
sadly, if you go to a bookstore,you're going to find a lot of
this is missing and it's, it'shard to find.
(03:24):
One of the things that I havebeen, spending some time on with
my grandsons particularly is.
The whole stories of the GreatKnights.
I'm, I'm reading a little kindof picture book called Ology and
I like what it has to say.
It's not just about learning howto be a good horseman or fight
with a lance or a sword, but itis the love of chivalry and
(03:47):
nobility as a protector of thepoor and defender of the weak.
It is not an easy task yet.
Be of good cheer in this book.
Uh, the Wouldbe Squire, that'sone that's training for the
night, will find all that heneeds to guide him.
In the stories of the KnightsKing Arthur, and the Round
(04:07):
Table, uh, sir Lancelot and allof that, you're gonna find some
great stories that the deal withthis issue of the strenuous life
and the ultimate triumphs.
I wanted to share a couple thatI will point out today.
One is called the Snow Queen byHans Christian Anderson.
If you've seen the movie Frozen,she borrows from this.
(04:27):
As does CS Lewis's Lion witch inthe wardrobe.
There's a snow witch I believein that story.
But this is a great story aboutevil infecting a young man and
he's captured by a snow queen,and his rescue and restoration
comes from his prayerful friend,Gerda.
It's an incredible.
Explanation of how sin and evilkind of come into the world.
(04:50):
It talks about a demon thatbuilds a mirror that's trying to
play tricks on the angels.
It shatters into a millionpieces and little shards get
into our eyes and into ourhearts, and it poisons the way
this boy, Kay starts to seelife.
He gets captured by this snowqueen on her false promises.
And then the rescue of this boyis by his friend Gerda, she has
(05:12):
to overcome many obstacles toreach him, and it's, it's just a
wonderful redemption story, uh,of love.
Another is Treasure Island byRobert Lewis Stevenson.
I think this is a particularlygood story for, for young men.
It's something that's probablygonna have to be read over a
number of days.
But it's a coming of age bookabout a young man who's in a
(05:35):
town of courageous men, and nowit's his turn to sort of stand
up to the bullies.
And of course it also haspirates and adventures and
treasures and all of that in thestory.
But it's a great story of whatit means to strive and to take
risk and to not fear danger.
And I think these are the kindsof stories when are, that are
(05:57):
outside the scripture, that helpform a worldview.
And inform the moral imaginationof kids inside the Bible.
We could look at Joseph.
We could look at Daniel.
The lion's den as well as Shaddrag Meshach and ab Bendigo in
their, in their captivity inBabylon.
We could look at the stressbetween the David's facing as
(06:18):
Saul is trying to attack him.
These are classic stories ofdifficulty that God uses to
shape men, and, and there's alsoEsther and others that shape men
and women in the Bible, and, andthe key in our scripture has to
be though, that how they do it.
Where the power comes to strivefor something that's dangerous
(06:41):
or risky, that's the ultimatevictory, is by trusting the
promise of God.
That thread has to be sewn intothat story.
So, so the stories of the snowqueen and others are, are
excellent, but we need to alsohave that, that thread in which
this courage and the power comesfrom the promise of God to shape
(07:03):
us.
I thought this, this speech andthis concept was, was something
that was important to share, uh,particularly in a, in a time and
days where we, we often overaffirm, we overpraise, we run
out to remove the obstacles.
That's the temptation that, thatevery parent has.
(07:26):
No one wants a hard road fortheir child.
But we've gotta see there's abalance to this and the praise
of the strenuous life.
You can see that I'm sure onlinethrough Theodore Roosevelt's
speech has something to say tous.
And I think what it says to usis we've gotta have stories and
explanations and a worldviewthat have been informed by this
(07:49):
concept.
Paul (07:52):
The ultimate battle for the heart and soul is a fight
for identity.
Our king invites our kids toknow who they are, what to
believe, and where they belong.
Paul (2) (08:04):
Until next time, let's remember the words for theirs is
the Kingdom of Heaven.
Raising joyful children in an angry world, a podcast
dedicated to faithful parentsnavigating their families
through a stormy culture
This is raising joyful childrenin an angry world.
I'm your host, Paul Osborne.
I was reading a speech this weekby Teddy Roosevelt when he was
in Chicago, and the title of itis called In Praise of the
(00:23):
Strenuous Life, and it is socounter-cultural.
But important if we're going tohave children who, who grow into
adults of courage and liveconfidently in the world.
He was speaking to a group ofmen in Chicago, as they say.
He opens up the talk aboutLincoln and Grant, but he says
(00:46):
this in the speech, I wish topreach to you not the doctrine
of noble ease.
But the doctrine of thestrenuous life, the life of
toil, effort of labor, strife topreach that the highest form of
success does not come to the manwho desires ease and peace, but
(01:08):
to the man who does not shrinkfrom danger, from hardship, from
bitter toil, who out of thesewins, the splendid ultimate
triumph.
He went on to say that the lifeof ease, it springs from a lack
of desire.
Or a power to strive for greatthings.
And I would say that startsearly in life by not having a
(01:33):
worldview, a moral imagination,a story world that's filled with
the idea of a splendid ultimatetriumph through toil.
He goes on to say, and this isparticularly interesting to us
'cause we live, whether youbelieve it or not, in a very
wealthy.
Time in this country, if youcompare yourself to previous
(01:54):
generations, uh, in the GreatDepression or post-war, post
World War ii, we did not havethe kind of wealth and leisure
that we have today.
It's not uncommon for someone toget three weeks, four weeks
vacation in starting a jobwithin the first year or two.
This was not the case inprevious generations.
And he goes on to say that thosewho who have wealth and, and
(02:18):
their sons are free to haveleisure, shouldn't spend it in
idleness, but they're even morecompelled to strive for
something That's great inscience, exploration, writing,
and the arts, right?
Because.
They don't have to strive forfor money.
So they should even be more ininspired to do this.
(02:40):
And of course, the questionbecomes, in these days of ease
with all of our technology, youknow, push a button, buy a
house.
how do we instill this in ourkids?
How do we show the benefits ofthe strenuous life that will
help us win the ultimatetriumphs?
And I wanna say to you, I thinkwe have to start in the early
(03:01):
years in the stories we tell ofthose that advance humanity and
science, those that have greatwar stories, those that overcome
obstacles.
And I think it starts inchildren's literature, which
sadly, if you go to a bookstore,you're going to find a lot of
this is missing and it's, it'shard to find.
(03:24):
One of the things that I havebeen, spending some time on with
my grandsons particularly is.
The whole stories of the GreatKnights.
I'm, I'm reading a little kindof picture book called Ology and
I like what it has to say.
It's not just about learning howto be a good horseman or fight
with a lance or a sword, but itis the love of chivalry and
(03:47):
nobility as a protector of thepoor and defender of the weak.
It is not an easy task yet.
Be of good cheer in this book.
Uh, the Wouldbe Squire, that'sone that's training for the
night, will find all that heneeds to guide him.
In the stories of the KnightsKing Arthur, and the Round
(04:07):
Table, uh, sir Lancelot and allof that, you're gonna find some
great stories that the deal withthis issue of the strenuous life
and the ultimate triumphs.
I wanted to share a couple thatI will point out today.
One is called the Snow Queen byHans Christian Anderson.
If you've seen the movie Frozen,she borrows from this.
(04:27):
As does CS Lewis's Lion witch inthe wardrobe.
There's a snow witch I believein that story.
But this is a great story aboutevil infecting a young man and
he's captured by a snow queen,and his rescue and restoration
comes from his prayerful friend,Gerda.
It's an incredible.
Explanation of how sin and evilkind of come into the world.
(04:50):
It talks about a demon thatbuilds a mirror that's trying to
play tricks on the angels.
It shatters into a millionpieces and little shards get
into our eyes and into ourhearts, and it poisons the way
this boy, Kay starts to seelife.
He gets captured by this snowqueen on her false promises.
And then the rescue of this boyis by his friend Gerda, she has
(05:12):
to overcome many obstacles toreach him, and it's, it's just a
wonderful redemption story, uh,of love.
Another is Treasure Island byRobert Lewis Stevenson.
I think this is a particularlygood story for, for young men.
It's something that's probablygonna have to be read over a
number of days.
But it's a coming of age bookabout a young man who's in a
(05:35):
town of courageous men, and nowit's his turn to sort of stand
up to the bullies.
And of course it also haspirates and adventures and
treasures and all of that in thestory.
But it's a great story of whatit means to strive and to take
risk and to not fear danger.
And I think these are the kindsof stories when are, that are
(05:57):
outside the scripture, that helpform a worldview.
And inform the moral imaginationof kids inside the Bible.
We could look at Joseph.
We could look at Daniel.
The lion's den as well as Shaddrag Meshach and ab Bendigo in
their, in their captivity inBabylon.
We could look at the stressbetween the David's facing as
(06:18):
Saul is trying to attack him.
These are classic stories ofdifficulty that God uses to
shape men, and, and there's alsoEsther and others that shape men
and women in the Bible, and, andthe key in our scripture has to
be though, that how they do it.
Where the power comes to strivefor something that's dangerous
(06:41):
or risky, that's the ultimatevictory, is by trusting the
promise of God.
That thread has to be sewn intothat story.
So, so the stories of the snowqueen and others are, are
excellent, but we need to alsohave that, that thread in which
this courage and the power comesfrom the promise of God to shape
(07:03):
us.
I thought this, this speech andthis concept was, was something
that was important to share, uh,particularly in a, in a time and
days where we, we often overaffirm, we overpraise, we run
out to remove the obstacles.
That's the temptation that, thatevery parent has.
(07:26):
No one wants a hard road fortheir child.
But we've gotta see there's abalance to this and the praise
of the strenuous life.
You can see that I'm sure onlinethrough Theodore Roosevelt's
speech has something to say tous.
And I think what it says to usis we've gotta have stories and
explanations and a worldviewthat have been informed by this
(07:49):
concept.
Paul (07:52):
The ultimate battle for the heart and soul is a fight
for identity.
Our king invites our kids toknow who they are, what to
believe, and where they belong.
Paul (2) (08:04):
Until next time, let's remember the words for theirs is
the Kingdom of Heaven.
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