Episodes

A huge step in being successful in business is to envision. So, why not use this tool in parenting? When you envision what can and will be, it helps you create an action plan for success. Envision you and your children’s future 25 from now. Start by making a detailed list of questions you can discuss with your child. Here are some example questions you can use to help build your list: Are they married? Do they have children? What are the roles of other family members in their life? What is your ...

“God is close to the broken-hearted; he is a suffering savior who has been through the worst of it, and he understands what you are going through and is with you!” -Tina Yeager. Award-winning author, speaker, licensed mental health counselor, and life coach Tina Yeager encourages audiences to fulfill their potential and guides them on a new journey toward the life of their dreams. She is the author of multiple books, including Upcycled: Crafted for a Purpose and Beautiful Warrior: Finding Victor...

“If you can get the support and if you can get the resources, homeschooling is actually the best choice for struggling learners because it can be uniquely catered to them.” -Peggy Ployhar. After working as a special needs consultant, Peggy Ployhar founded SPED Homeschool, an organization that empowers families across the globe to home-educate children with specialized educational needs.SPED (abbreviation for special education) aims to equip and empower parents to home-educate struggling learners...

Everyone gets a spiritual formation, but to ensure our children get a Christian spiritual formation, they must form a relationship with God the father, God the son, and the Holy Spirit. Lacy Finn Borgo holds a Doctor of Ministry Degree and is the spiritual director at Haven House. Her ministry for adults, Good Dirt Ministries, provides spiritual direction for children at Haven House. Lacy is the author of many books, including Spiritual Conversations with Children: Listening to God Together and ...

Teaching children the true meaning of Christmas and Hanukkah can be challenging. Children sometimes think the only reason for the season is to give and receive gifts. During this episode, Lee Ann shares two resources that can help you guide your children to understand the true meaning of Christmas. Her Christmas book, God’s Gift, can teach children that it’s not about who gets more gifts on Christmas or Hanukkah; it’s about the gift of God and his son, Jesus, for Christians, and it’s about the g...

“Instead of teaching children to follow their hearts, parents should teach them to guard their hearts and follow the truth.” -Dr. Frank Turek Dr. Frank Turek is passionate about helping the world know that Jesus is the one true superhero, and He can be seen in a lot of superhero movies today! He is a dynamic speaker and award-winning author and coauthor of many books, including Hollywood Heroes How Your Favorite Movies Reveal God, Stealing from God: Why Atheists Need God to make their Case, I Do...

“I really want to show people the beauty of the multicultural family that God crafted for Jesus.” -Dorena Williamson Dorena Williamson is the bestselling author of multiple children’s books, including ColorFull, Thoughtfull, Gracefull, The Celebration Place, Crowned with Glory, and Brown Baby Jesus. A veteran of cross-cultural ministry, Dorena is passionate about shaping perspectives with biblical truth and diverse representation. She is the co-planter of the multicultural multiracial Strong Tow...

“I want children to be trained from a very young age that their gender is a gift from God, and it can NEVER change.” -Marty Machowski. Marty Machowski is a Family Life Pastor at Covenant Fellowship Church and leads Promise Kingdom, a gospel-centered children’s ministry. He is passionate about helping children understand their gender and help restore hope in weary parents. He is the author of several books, family devotionals, and curriculums, including Parenting First Aid, God Made Boys and Girl...

"Don't give into the stigma of being a self-publishing author and if that's the route God wants you to take, take it because it's better to have the gospel message out there and into the world and hit a few lives than have it sitting on a desktop because you only want this one particular deal with this one particular publisher." - Michelle Lazurek Crystal Bowman is an award-winning, bestselling author of more than 100 books for children and families. She enjoys teaching at writers' conferences, ...

"82% of children whose parents talk about and practice their faith in the home go on to follow Jesus as adults." -Sarah Cowan Johnson. Sarah Cowan Johnson is a ministry trainer, consultant, coach, and author of Teach Your Children Well: A Step-by-Step Guide for Family Discipleship. She leads seminars for parents on family discipleship to help their children walk in the way of Jesus, and she is the cohost of The People of the Way podcast. Sarah served with the Evangelical Covenant Church as the e...

It is important that we teach our children about the historical, geographical, and cultural context of the Bible! Eric and Meredith Schrotenboer are both storytellers at heart, hoping that their books can teach children the true context of the stories and events throughout the Bible! Eric is an award-winning filmmaker and music composer, and Meredith is an award-winning journalist and news anchor. They are the creators of the award-winning Christmas resource, The Wandering Wise Men activity set,...

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” -John 1:1 Jesus is not mentioned by name in the Old Testament, but he is a central figure throughout. He is first seen in the Old Testament as the person who appeared as “the Angel of the Lord” (Gen 16:7). He came temporally in the form of a human, much before his final incarnation as a baby in Bethlehem. Yet this same “Angel of the Lord” is called and addressed often as “the Lord” himself (Gen 12:7, 17:1, and 19:1...

Irene Sun was born in Malaysia to parents who gave their lives to the Lord. For the sake of the gospel, they moved across cultures and continents many times. She studied literature at Yale University, where she holds a master’s degree in religion, and she also studied the Old Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, where she holds a master’s degree in theology. She is a Bible teacher and the author of the children’s books God Counts: Numbers in His Word and His World and Taste and See:...

“I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.” -Psalm 86:12 There is a strong connection between the words thankful, grateful, grace, and mercy. However, even though the words thankful and grateful are used interchangeably, to be thankful is to feel an emotion, and to be grateful is to take it a step further and express that emotion in action. Thanksgiving is a holiday to be thankful for our many blessings. We should encourage our kids to be tha...

“We started coming together as a family for a few minutes of prayer and a few minutes of spending time in God’s word, and that family worship time has transformed our family and generations of our family.” Rob Rienow Rob Rienow has partnered with his loving wife, Amy, to help their seven children follow Jesus. Together they founded Visionary Family Ministries, an organization that encourages families and trains church leaders to impress the hearts of children to love and serve God. Rob is the au...

James 1:5 states, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.” Sometimes kids can figure things out on their own. Other times, if they can’t, they become frustrated and overwhelmed, and can't seem to resolve problems on their own. As parents, we can exhibit effective problem-solving for our children to mirror. We should strive to be wise like Solomon and peaceful like Jesus! During this episode, Lee Ann elaborat...

“We want kids to know that their home is a warm place, a fun place, a fair place, a safe place; we want to free families up to have fun with the Bible.” -Frank Trimble Frank Trimble serves as the Director of Training and Consulting for Family Time Training, an organization that offers programs to help families pass down the Christian faith, in the home. Frank is honored to be Kristin's husband and blessed to be Ava and Olivia's father. He hopes to see home discipleship become the norm, instead o...

Did you know that we are hardwired for spirituality? In a previous episode, we learned from Dr. Lisa Miller that 21% of our DNA is spiritual. This means we are hardwired for spirituality! We should know the best ways to connect spiritually with our children and how to help them engage in meaningful, spiritual conversations. During this episode, Lee Ann elaborates on the following suggestions: Purchase or create a mood flip book, a “how do I feel” spinning wheel, or emotion flash cards. Make a ho...

“Marriage is a byproduct of our relationship with Jesus, and at the same time, the way we parent is foundational to understanding what it means to have a relationship with God.” Dr. Dewey Wilson Dewey Wilson, Ph.D., is the founder and CEO of Strong Marriages. Dr. Wilson Co-Authored The Relationally Intelligent Child and contributed to Focus on the Family's book, The Best Advice on Marriage. He has also written many books and workbooks for his organization, including Devoted, I Promise, and the s...

Did you know that the sin of idolatry is the most detestable sin in God's eyes? God makes it known many times in the Bible, especially in Ezekiel chapters 8 and 9, that the sin of idolatry is the most detestable sin. It's also God's number one commandment to not have any other Gods besides Him, the one true God. In Ezekiel chapters 8 and 9, the Lord addresses the four components of idolatry and describes the result of committing this sin. Four components of idolatry: Worshipping false idols. Fal...

"We are giving our kids so much more than what we are taking away from them when we do this detox." – Molly DeFrank Stay-at-home mom and foster mom of six, Molly DeFrank helps free families from their addictions to electronic devices. She holds a degree in international relations and worked as a press aide for former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Molly's book, Digital Detox, offers guidance on setting the right technology boundaries for you and your family and how to effectively det...

When teenagers don’t experience connection and consistency, they have a hard time developing self-control and responsibility. The last episode detailed ideas and ways to improve communication with teens. During this episode, Lee Ann continues to share her wisdom from her research to help you and your parenting partner, or just you if you’re a single parent, discipline your teenagers more effectively! Lee Ann elaborates on the following suggestions to help you discipline your teens more effective...

The terrible twos… more like the terrible teens! In the first part of the two-part episode series on parenting teenagers, Lee Ann elaborates on the following topics to help improve communication and hopefully better your relationship with your teenager: Using "neutral ground communication" when trying to improve communication. The best and worst time to try and talk to your teens. How to empathize with them instead of judging them. The importance of following through with consequences for misbeh...

Does your son sometimes have trouble expressing his emotions or he doesn't like to share how he's feeling? If so, this episode is for you! David Thomas is the director of counseling for boys and men at Daystar Counseling Ministries in Nashville, TN. He is the author of several influential books including his latest, Raising Emotionally Strong Boys: Tools Your Son Can Build on For Life, and a companion workbook for boys ages 6-12, Strong and Smart: A Boy's Guide to Building Healthy Emotions. Key ...