In this episode, I’m talking with Janel Breitenstein, author of Emotionally Strongish Parenting: Seven Shifts for a More Resilient and Jesus-Centered Home, about why raising emotionally healthy kids often starts with paying attention to our own hearts.

Janel explains what happens in our brains when fear, anxiety, or anger takes over and why sometimes the best parenting decision we can make is to pause before responding. We talk about creating space for our kids’ doubts and questions, moving from behavior management toward heart change, and the important difference between guilt and shame.

We also talk about something every parent needs to hear: perfect parenting isn’t the goal. Our mistakes can actually become opportunities to model repentance, forgiveness, grace, and repair.

Janel ends with a simple three-step process to help us handle emotions with our kids: identify, manage, and shepherd.

If you’ve ever lost your temper, parented out of fear, or wondered how your own emotional health is affecting your kids, this conversation will give you practical tools and a lot of encouragement.

Resources Mentioned

Janel’s website

Substack

Instagram

Emotionally Strong(ish) Parenting book

Christmas Gift guide

Beyond Fit

NiRV Question & Answer Bible for Kids

Operation Christmas Child

Faith in Action: Prayers from James for the Next Generation

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Prefer video? Find this and other episodes on YouTube!

The Christian Parenting Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

Have you ever wondered what happens to an Operation Christmas Child shoebox after your family packs it?

In this episode, Dania Andraos shares her incredible story of growing up in the Middle East, where her family faced persecution for their Christian faith, and how receiving a shoebox gift became a powerful reminder that God saw her and heard her prayers.

We talk about how that simple gift opened doors for the gospel in her community, how Dania eventually became involved with Operation Christmas Child herself, and practical ways families can participate in this ministry together.

If you've ever packed a shoebox or wondered how to help your kids develop a heart for serving others, this conversation will remind you that God can use even the smallest gifts to make an eternal impact.

Resources Mentioned

Operation Christmas Child

Learn how to pack a shoebox

Find a drop-off location

Build a shoebox online.

Christmas Gift guide

Carpool Conversations with WinShape Camps

NiRV Question & Answer Bible for Kids

Midnight Mom Devotional Bible

Faith in Action: Prayers from James for the Next Generation

Sign up for Morning Minute

Prefer video? Find this and other episodes on YouTube!

The Christian Parenting Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

In this episode, Steph talks with Dana K. White, author of Procrastinators Get Stuff Done, about why procrastination isn't always laziness. Often, it comes from overwhelm, decision fatigue, perfectionism, and the feeling that we need to have everything figured out before we begin.

Dana shares her practical process for getting unstuck, starting with one surprisingly simple step: just look. They talk about why small wins matter, how “noncommittal experimentation” can help us move forward, and why making a big plan too early can actually become another form of procrastination.

Steph and Dana also talk about understanding your personal “commitment threshold,” resisting comparison, and helping kids who procrastinate without labeling them as lazy.

If there’s something you’ve been putting off, this conversation will help you stop overthinking it and take one small, doable step forward today.

Resources Mentioned

Procrastinators Get Stuff Done book

Dana’s website

Christmas Gift guide

Carpool Conversations with WinShape Camps

NiRV Question & Answer Bible for Kids

Midnight Mom Devotional Bible

Faith in Action: Prayers from James for the Next Generation

Sign up for Morning Minute

Prefer video? Find this and other episodes on YouTube!

The Christian Parenting Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

In this episode, Steph talks with psychologist, author, and Love and Logic expert Dr. Charles Fay about raising kids whose faith goes deeper than simply knowing how to behave like a Christian.

Charles shares why spiritually strong kids aren't perfect kids, why faith is ultimately a gift from God, and how parents can nurture faith without trying to control the outcome. They talk about allowing kids to make mistakes while the stakes are still small, holding boundaries with empathy, modeling repentance when we get it wrong, and helping kids learn to depend on God through life's struggles.

They also unpack the temptation to believe in a kind of "parenting prosperity gospel": that if we read the right books, follow the right strategies, and work hard enough, our kids are guaranteed to become faithful adults. Instead, Charles encourages parents to focus on what God has actually called us to do and trust him with the results.

Resources Mentioned

About Charles Fay

Love and Logic Institute

Raising Spiritually Strong Kids book

The Word in our Home

Christmas Gift guide

Carpool Conversations with WinShape Camps

NiRV Question & Answer Bible for Kids

Get your copy of our latest prayer journal Faith in Action: Prayers from James for the Next Generation today!

Sign up for Morning Minute

Prefer video? Find this and other episodes on YouTube!

The Christian Parenting Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

For many Christian parents, sending a child to public school can feel intimidating. Questions about faith, culture, religious freedom, and discipleship often create anxiety. In this episode, Steph sits down with Kori Pennypacker, CEO of Bible2School and author of Backpack Faith, to discuss practical ways parents can prepare their children to confidently follow Jesus in public school.

Kori shares why parents remain the primary disciplers of their children regardless of where they attend school, how Christian students can legally live out their faith at school, and why building relationships with teachers and administrators matters. She also explains why biblical literacy benefits children far beyond their spiritual lives and offers simple ways families can build everyday discipleship into their routines.

Resources Mentioned

Website

Backpack Faith book

Bible2School

Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF)

Liberty Counsel

Christian Parenting School Simplified digital download

(with links to school choice series and more!)

Don't Stress Talking Sex

The Word in our Home

Raising Spiritually Strong Kids

GO Bible

Carpool Conversations with WinShape Camps

Prefer video? Find this and other episodes on YouTube!

Get your copy of our latest prayer journal Faith in Action: Prayers from James for the Next Generation today!

The Christian Parenting Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

In this episode, therapist and author Sissy Goff joins Steph to talk about what kids really need when they're experiencing loss and how their grief can look very different from ours.

Sissy explains why grief isn't linear, how kids often revisit loss as they grow and reach new developmental milestones, and why behaviors like anger, anxiety, or even risk-taking can sometimes be signs of sadness underneath. She also talks about secondary losses, why consistency and boundaries still matter during hard seasons, and the importance of surrounding our kids with safe, steady adults.

If your family is walking through grief, or you simply want to know how to support your kids when loss eventually comes, this conversation offers practical wisdom, permission to grieve, and the reminder that God is still faithful even in the hardest moments.

Resources Mentioned

Raising Boys and Girls

Daystar Counseling

Helping Kids Through Grief book

Carpool Conversations with WinShape Camps

GO Bible

Faith in Action: Prayers from James for the Next Generation

Prefer video? Find this and other episodes on YouTube!

The Christian Parenting Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

What will heaven actually be like, and how do we talk to our kids about it?

In this episode, I’m sharing a conversation from the Faith & Clarity podcast with Dr. Mark Turman and author Randy Alcorn about his children’s book, Heaven on Earth, and the biblical promise of a new heaven and new earth.

We talk about resurrection, grief, losing loved ones, miscarriage, disabilities, animals, and some of the big questions kids ask about eternity.

If your family has ever wondered what happens after we die, this conversation will help you move beyond the “clouds and harps” picture of heaven and toward the incredible hope Scripture gives us for what is to come.

Resources Mentioned

Eternal Perspectives Ministry

Heaven on Earth book

Denison Forum

Faith and Clarity Podcast

Hands on Bible

Get your copy of our latest prayer journal Faith in Action: Prayers from James for the Next Generation today!

Prefer video? Find this and other episodes on YouTube!

The Christian Parenting Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

As we wrap up our discipleship series, we're talking about one of the most important—and often overlooked—parts of raising children who continue following Jesus into adulthood: having meaningful spiritual conversations.

In this episode, Steph talks with Katheryn Saunders, author of Having Spiritual Conversations with Your Kids, about how parents can create safe spaces where children ask honest questions, wrestle with their faith, and ultimately build a relationship with Jesus that becomes their own.

This conversation beautifully ties together everything we've explored throughout the discipleship series. Reading Scripture, praying together, worshiping through music, serving others, and practicing everyday discipleship all become even more powerful when they're accompanied by genuine conversations that help our kids process what they believe and why.

Resources Mentioned:

Having Spiritual Conversations With Your Kids book

Hands on Bible

Thanks-Living: Embracing the Power of Gratitude Every Day

Prefer video? Find this and other episodes on YouTube!

The Christian Parenting Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org