Let's Parent On Purpose

No relationship has more impact on the spiritual direction of a child or teen than mom and dad. But every parent needs a community to raise a disciple. Today Jay is joined once again by Pastor Josh Luecht. Between the two of them they have over 40 years of student ministry experience. Jay and Josh share the best ways parents can engage with their church youth pastors and youth volunteers to minister to their children. In this episode, Jay and Josh discus:  The importance of knowing and communicating directly with youth workers How to give the inside scoop to youth leaders to help them have better conversations with your children Ways you can be involved in youth ministry even if you don’t want to be a small group leader What to do if you are frustrated with a certain aspect of your youth pastor or youth leader The importance of showing appreciation so your youth leaders stay for many years Discerning the times when you might need to directly speak to a youth pastor about a problem and the times wh

Dr. Tim McKnight, a missions and evangelism expert, reveals the potential for Gen Z to make a kingdom impact if parents can shepherd them well. You will learn: 1. How is Generation Z different from previous generations, and what unique potential do they have to make a kingdom impact?  2. What is the role of technology in shaping and influencing Generation Z? 3. How can parents help their children develop a biblical understanding of identity and the gospel of Jesus Christ? Dr. McKnight is the Director of the Global Center for Youth Ministry and Associate Professor of Missions and Youth Ministry at Anderson University and Lead Pastor/Planter of Mosaic Church of Anderson. He is the author of Engaging Generation Z (Kregel) and editor of Navigating Student Ministry (B&H Acaemic).    Dr. McKnight has pastored churches throughout West Virginia, Kentucky, Alabama, North Carolina, and South Carolina. He's served as an infantry chaplain in the United States Army Kentucky Army National Guard, deploying on Operat

When Jeremy Pryor discovers that God designed families to be teams on mission, not nests for individual success, he embarks on a journey to challenge the idol of individualism and bring his family closer together. You will learn how to strengthen family identity through everyday responsibilities with Jeremy Pryor's unique approach. In this episode, you will learn the following: 1. What does it mean to be part of a multi-generational family? 2. How do identities shape and limit freedom? 3. What does it look like to embrace fatherhood/motherhood as an identity? 4. How can we use everyday responsibilities to help shape our children's understanding of identity, value, and worth? "When we're in a multi generational family, the father or mother is always thinking about their grandkids, how am I raising my kids to be really good parents to my grandchildren someday? And so of course you have to be really thoughtful about how to parent." -Jeremy Pryor Jeremy Pryor is a family identity expert and au

Discover how to unlock spiritual growth and maturity through the power of relationship and identity. "Relationship inspires behavior, and gives us motivation for obedience.” Pastor Jon Price has been in ministry for 35 years and is a speaker, trainer, author and coach. He lives in north Georgia with his wife of 26 years and has two grown children also in the Atlanta area. He is the Pastor of Missions and Connections at Peachtree Corners Baptist Church in Peachtree Corners, GA.  Through Alan Shore's research on brain science, Jim Wilder's books and Marcus Warner's teachings, Jon learned that the right side of the brain, filled with relationship and identity, is the key to spiritual maturity and growth. With this knowledge, Jon realized that the joy of God is the strength that helps us through our trials and the importance of remaining relational with those around us. In this episode, you will learn the following: 1. The power of identity and group identity in spiritual growth and maturity. 2. T

Generation Z is the most unchurched and unreached generation alive today. At the same time, research shows that the vast majority of people who put their faith in Jesus do so before the age of 18. Pastor Josh Leucht joins Jay for a conversation on the difference approach we need to take in sharing the gospel with Generation Z. Their discussion includes: Understanding how many in Gen Z find it offensive for you to share your moral standards. The pressure Christian students feel for having absolute truth claims and believing Jesus is the only way. How many older methods of sharing the gospel don’t work as readily.  The difference in law/punishment cultures and honor/shame cultures How the gospel speaks into honor/shame cultures and reaches Gen Z The effectiveness of story The effectiveness of pointing out brokenness as an entry point to the gospel   Pastor Josh Luecht is a teaching pastor at Calvary Chapel Palm City, FL. He holds a M.A. in Biblical Leadership from Calvary Chapel University and l

Series Overview: Jay will be discussing the unique challenges of parenting Gen Z and the struggles they face due to the world they live in.  Today's Topic:  Jay shares how the gospel speaks into the topic of gender identity and sexuality.  This includes a Theology of the Body: Jay will be sharing a piece of a sermon he recently preached in the church on how the incarnation of Jesus helps bring clarity where there is confusion over gender, identity and sexuality. He encourages listeners to have their kids listen along and discuss the content with them. Resources Referenced: Talking to Your Children about Gender Identity and Sexuality with Dr. Sean McDowell Equipping our Children for Conversations on Gender identity and Sexuality with Dr. Sean McDowell  What if Your Children Identify as a different Gender identity or Sexuailty with Dan Seaborn Pointing to a Deeper Orientation in Jesus with Dan Seaborn Genesis 1:27, passages on homosexuality, adultery, coveting your wife and your neighbor's stuff. S

Snow Plow Parenting. You might have never heard of the term, but you have definitely witnessed method in families. Are you a snow plow parent?    Today I finish my Boundaries to Help Your Family Thrive series with my guests Nathan and Amy Oliver. They explain Snow Plow Parenting, share signs to recognize if you might be a snow plow parent, and give healthy boundaries to allow your children to grow resiliency.    In Snow Plow Parenting you pave the path of least resistance for your children so they don’t encounter difficulty or failure in life. The hard things of life are inevitable. You’re not always going to win. It’s important we teach our children how to deal with the hard emotions that come with life.    It’s essential for children to experience loss and suffering and failure more than they feel comfort and ease. Questions to help you evaluate your parenting: How do I feel when my chid fails or is rejected? Is my interaction helping them become more capable and competent or incapable and incompetent? What

Counselors Nathan and Amy Oliver are back to help us navigate healthy boundaries in the realms of Social Media, Sleepovers, and Curfew. This is part three of our four part Boundaries to Help Your Family Thrive series. Remember, we want to insulate our children, not isolate them. Each child is different, and you need to be a student of your children. Therefore, each boundary flows out of the question: What does love look like? And what does love look like for each individual child? We also talk about the challenges of boundaries when you are a single parent or blended home. Resources Mentioned:  The Innovation of Loneliness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6Bkr_udado www.olivercounseling.com Sign up for my Things for Thursday Email: https://tinyurl.com/292kv68y Support Let’s Parent on Purpose! https://letsparentonpurpose.com/support/

The very best way to love your children well is to have an amazing marriage. If there’s not a oneness in your marriage, children will see that and exploit it. Today my guests Nathan and Amy Oliver help us set boundaries to protect time and relationships in our marriage. Listen as we discuss the following healthy boundaries:  Regular date night  Evenings  The Bedroom  Bedtime In a marriage there has to be unity in what you say yes to and what you say no to. Step back and define - what is your goal and mission and mission of you your household?   It’s not just good decisions, it’s good, better, and best.    Nathan and Amy Oliver are both licensed professional therapists and members of Covenant Fellowship Baptist Church in Stuart, Florida. They specialize in marriage/family therapy, teens/young adults, substance addiction, depression, and anxiety. The Olivers are individually available for virtual counseling sessions. To find out more visit www.olivercounselling.com   Resources Mentioned:  Sign up for my Things

Marriage and family therapist Nathan and Amy Oliver join me today for a new series on Boundaries that will Help Your Family Thrive. Today we lay the foundation that’s critical before we can expect boundaries to work: healthy connection between parents and children. Nathan and Amy share multiple ways we can pour in to our children throughout the day and week. We discuss creative ways to involve your children in your regular tasks, as well as the need daily debriefing and special times of adventure.    Ideas discussed include:  - Connecting around the table - The importance of dates with your children - Family adventures - Bedtime routines   Nathan and Amy Oliver are both licensed professional therapists and members of Covenant Fellowship Baptist Church in Stuart, Florida. They specialize in marriage/family therapy, teens/young adults, substance addiction, depression, and anxiety. The Olivers are individually available for virtual counseling sessions. To find out more visit www.olivercounselling.com   Don’t for

This episode is a crossover podcast from Stories of Hope with Dr. Samuel Thomas of Hopegivers International. Hear Dr. Sam share about arranged marriages, dowries, and a horrible custom that still happens today in some homes when the money runs out. Listen to how the love of Jesus Christ rescues the most hopeless, and pray about how your family could get involved to help.  Dr. Samuel Thomas is the president and CEO of Hopegivers International. He is a pastor, speaker, and humanitarian who has given his life to help the least of the earth find the love of Christ. You can learn more about the ministry of Hopegivers at www.hopegivers.org   Resources Mentioned:  You can learn more about the 127 Project and support Let’s Parent on Purpose here: https://letsparentonpurpose.com/support/   Listen to Stories of Hope with Dr. Samuel Thomas on Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stories-of-hope-with-dr-samuel-thomas/id1545599796

Today I share an exciting update as Let’s Parent on Purpose is now a ministry of The 127 Project. All of your giving is now tax deductible. In addition to supporting Let’s Parent on Purpose, your giving will help build a Hope Home for Dowry Castaway children in India.  I also share a set of questions to help you evaluate the discipleship growth of yourself and your children. Listen as I discuss how the following questions can help you grow in discipleship:  For an initial believer: Head Do I understand the gospel?   Do I believe the gospel?   Heart Am I convicted of sin? Am I drawn to Jesus?   Hands Have I surrendered my life to Jesus? Have I received His forgiveness and grace?   For an ongoing disciple (compared to past self, not to other people): Head How Am I growing in understanding God and His Word? What do I now know how to teach or share to another?   Heart Am I tender to the things of Jesus? How would I describe my joy in the things of God?   Hands What am I releasing to God? How am I serving Jesus?  

In this last week of the year, many of us make goals for how we are going to be different. Most of our goal don’t make it much further than February. Today I share one of the great revelations of my life: goals don’t matter that much. It’s our systems that determine everything. I’ll share with you how to think through creating a system that will help you start and end your day well. You’ll learn the secret of habit stacking. And I’ll encourage you to learn to love the process rather than obsessing on the final goal.  Resources Mentioned:    Free to Focus: A Total Productivity System to Achieve More By Doing Less - https://amzn.to/3Ejz8oU   Episode 210 Focus on Your Systems, Not Your Goals: https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2021/01/24/focus-on-your-systems-not-your-goals/

Every year is filled with thousands of decisions. Some of them are inconsequential, while others have life long impact. As I reflect on this past year, today I share with you the three new decisions that greatest impact on my life and family.   Listen as I discuss my top three decisions: Learning how to measure a great day Praying the Psalms with my children Starting a weekly Family Sabbath Dinner   As you hear me describe the impact, you’ll see that these are also choices you can make in your household! Resources Mentioned:   Episode 278 How to Measure a Good Day https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2022/05/22/how-to-measure-a-good-day/   Episode 279 A Walkthrough of a Family Sabbath Dinner https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2022/05/29/a-walkthrough-of-a-family-sabbath-dinner/  

As we close out 2022 I share with you five questions that can help you process your year and lead you into an intentional 2023. For each of the questions I share with you my answers as I process my year. Listen as we discuss the following questions: - What are the 2-3 ways you experienced the goodness of God most deeply?   - What are the 3-4 decisions you made that have had the most impact on your life this year? (2 Good, 2 Bad)   - Which relationships had the greatest impact on you this year?  Were they good or bad?   - What is something you really wanted to do that did not happen this past year? Why didn’t it happen?   - If money were no object and you could do anything with your life to serve the Lord, what would you do?   - Walk through these questions personally. Write down your answers. Then prayerful take the questions to the Lord and process them with your spouse.     Resources Mentioned: Episode 300 Beating Leukemia Together with Elijah and Micah Holland https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2022/10/24/ep

At some point, one or more members of our family will likely need the help of a professional counselor. How can you make sure you are getting the most out of your time with a counselor?  Eliza Huie joins me once again to walk through the differences between counselors, therapists, psychologist, and psychiatrists. She gives her top three tips for how to maximize the time and value you get out of counseling. Eliza also shares her recommendations for where to search for solid, biblical counseling.   The Christian Counseling and Education Foundation: https://www.ccef.org Association of Biblical Counselors: https://christiancounseling.com Fieldstone Counseling: https://fieldstonecounseling.org The Gospel Care Collective: https://www.gospelcarecollective.com Bio Eliza is a counselor, author, speaker, and trainer committed to providing care and resources for the whole person. Trained both biblically and clinically, she understands the complexities people face in their spiritual, emotional, and physical lives.   She

Every holiday season we seem to collect more devices connected to the internet. Today I walk you through some amazing parental control features that are already built in to your iPhone. Additionally, I give you my overview and recommendations on three different internet monitoring systems: Bark, Canopy, and Covenant Eyes.   Resources Mentioned: Episode 304 Engaging and Protecting Your Video Gamer with Drew Dixon (Please provide link after show airs) Get to Know Screen Time for Families on the iphone, Ipad, and Itouch:  https://youtube.com/watch?v=ZAXcyGw8Q2Y www.bark.us www.canopy.us Sign up for my Things for Thursday Email: https://tinyurl.com/292kv68y Support Let’s Parent on Purpose! https://letsparentonpurpose.com/support/

Whether you like it or not, your child probably loves video games. When we as parents act like video games are a curse, we often miss a key opportunity with our children. My guest Drew Dixon shares the wonder of video games including creativity, connection, and play. We talk about the gospel opportunities to discuss worldview with your children as they play video games, as well as equipping them to be on mission with their friends and contacts through social gaming. Finally, Drew and I discuss our responsibility to set safeguards and parameters with our children as they engage in gaming. Drew helps us see how important it is for our rules to be clear, collaborative, and written down.   Drew Dixon is a team leader at Lifeway Christian resources, co-founder and Chief Content Nerd of Love Thy Nerd, public speaker, co-host of Humans of Gaming, editor, author, and has traveled all over the world to spread the Gospel at nerd conventions. His new book Know Thy Gamer was released in September 2022.   Resources Mentio

The trend of teenagers engaged in cutting has risen in recent years with the rise in social media and Youtube Influencers. What should a parent do if they find out their child has been cutting? Is this a pathway to suicide or something else? Eliza Huie joins me once again to help parents understand the pressures that lead a child to begin cutting. She offers council on what we can do if we find out our child has behaved in this behavior. Finally, she shares how the hope of the gospel can walk us through even this dark challenge.   Eliza is a counselor, author, speaker, and trainer committed to providing care and resources for the whole person. Trained both biblically and clinically, she understands the complexities people face in their spiritual, emotional, and physical lives. She holds a Master of Arts in Counseling and has advanced certificates in biblical counseling from The Christian Counseling Educational Foundation (CCEF) and The Association of Biblical Counselors (ABC). She is also a licensed clinical

In a culture inflamed by racial tensions, how can parents teach children a healthy perspective on race and culture? Author Michelle Sanchez joins me today for a discussion on the gospel vision of a diverse, multiethnic community. We talk about how backgrounds and personal experiences can form our racial prejudices. Michelle also shares biblical, Christ-honoring ways for a parent or church to pursue healthy, diverse racial relationships.  Michelle T. Sanchez, MDiv, ThM, is the senior discipleship and evangelism leader of the Evangelical Covenant Church, a vibrant multiethnic denomination of more than 900 congregations. Michelle completed seminary degrees at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and spiritual direction training at Boston College. She is a conference speaker and a columnist with Outreach magazine. Michelle has enjoyed engaging with colorful cultures in over thirty countries and territories around the world. She and her husband, Mickey, live with their children in the Chicago area. Michelle has wri