License to Parent with Trace Embry

As parents have we had an unhealthy need to keep our kids dependent on us? Why shouldn’t the teen years be a time where kids are trained to embrace responsibility rather than be allowed to avoid it. And, finally, what do most teens REALLY think about being overly-indulged, ill-equipped and pampered into an existence that’s bound up with the strings of dependency anyway? Their answers might surprise you. Giving our kids Wings, not Strings.

Dennis Trittin is President and CEO of LifeSmart Publishing and author of “Wings Not Strings: Parenting Strategies to Let Go with Confidence.” His mission is to inspire and equip the next generation with the leadership and life skills they need to flourish and fulfill their purpose.

Proactively Preparing Our Kids for the Future

Episode Highlights:

What type of strings do we hold on to as parents?

How do these strings impact our children?

As parents have we had an unhealthy need to keep our kids dependent on us? Why shouldn’t the teen years be a time where kids are trained to embrace responsibility rather than be allowed to avoid it. And, finally, what do most teens REALLY think about being overly-indulged, ill-equipped and pampered into an existence that’s […]

As we reach the end of the year, we make decisions about the future path of Shepherd’s Hill Academy and License to Parent. What programs do we keep? What do we cut? What staffing needs and changes need to be met to meet the ever-changing needs of teens in crisis. For the next half-hour, we want to pull back the curtain and share some of those needs with you. That’s next on License to Parent.

Trace Embry is the Founder and Executive Director of Shepherd's Hill Academy (SHA). SHA is a faith-based residential therapeutic boarding school for teens in crisis. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, SHA offers a haven of hope to teens ages 12-17.

The Resources Needed to Offer Hope to Teens in Crisis

Episode Highlights:

The financial impact of a 5:1 student to staff ratio

What is an Outdoor Therapeutic Program?

How is Shepherd’s Hill Academy set up? Why is this successful?

What should SHA “never stop doing?”

How is technology used within the program?

What role does hard work and hands-on learning play at SHA?

Picture via: Pixabay

As we reach the end of the year, we make decisions about the future path of Shepherd’s Hill Academy and License to Parent. What programs do we keep? What do we cut? What staffing needs and changes need to be met to meet the ever-changing needs of teens in crisis. For the next half-hour, we […]

So could movies, music and other tools outside the local church be effective tools of ministry? Could they actually help us be more efficient and effective inside the walls of the church? Today, we speak with someone who is doing just that.

Alex Kendrick has dedicated his life to following Christ and making His truth known among the nations. After serving in church ministry for 20 years, Alex now writes and produces Christian films with his brothers Stephen and Shannon. Alex directed the movies Overcomer, War Room, Courageous, Fireproof, Facing the Giants, and Flywheel. He co-wrote the New York Times Best Selling Books The Love Dare, The Battle Plan for Prayer, and more. Alex and his wife live in Albany, Georgia with their 6 children.

Using Movies and Media to Reach the World

Episode Highlights:

Is Media Used to Effect the Hearts & Minds of Individuals? How-so?

How do Movies Impact our Emotions?

What is the Overall Response to Christian Media?

Do Agendas Trump Money in Movie Decisions?

What Role Does the Hollywood Rating System Play in Parents Determining What to Allow Their Children to View?

Picture via: Pixabay

So could movies, music and other tools outside the local church be effective tools of ministry? Could they actually help us be more efficient and effective inside the walls of the church? Today, we speak with someone who is doing just that. Alex Kendrick has dedicated his life to following Christ and making His truth […]

Our nation’s political climate has become emblematic of what should be our preeminent and most basic form of government. And this government is found under the roofs of virtually every home in America today. It’s traditionally been called the nuclear family. Yet, like our government, it has also become a broken and divided group of people, who actually have more in common than they have differences. But, this doesn’t always quell the heated rhetoric that too often foolishly majors in incidental minors.

Jackie Gingrich Cushman is a syndicated columnist for Creators Syndicate. She is the author of two books, 5 Principles for a Successful Life: From Our Family to Yours, and The Essential American: 25 Documents and Speeches Every American Should Own. For over 16 years, she has served on the board of directors, volunteered and assisted Our House, a homeless shelter for newborns and their families. She also serves on the board of the Trust for Public Land and GEEARS (Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students).

Jackie served as a senior advisor and national media surrogate for Newt Gingrich in the Republican Presidential primary for the 2012 election. She holds the CFA designation and the National Association of Corporate Directors Board Leadership Fellow designation. She lives in Georgia.

Keeping Our Families Intact, in Our Broken America

Episode Highlights:

How to better understand what’s going on in today’s politics and media.

How can American parents help their kids turn back to God without seeming bigoted and intolerant?

Why has our government really seemed to turn virtually every argument into a quarrel?

What are some of the hidden political agendas that we can help our kids to see through?

How do we get our kids past all the emotional rants to the objective truth and logic behind a topic?

Picture via: DonkeyHotey

Our nation’s political climate has become emblematic of what should be our preeminent and most basic form of government. And this government is found under the roofs of virtually every home in America today. It’s traditionally been called the nuclear family. Yet, like our government, it has also become a broken and divided group of […]

One might not expect that scientific data would actually be needed to assert such claims, but in today’s world, anecdotal evidence alone doesn’t fly anymore. And for good reason.

Parenting Teens in a Troubled World

Empirical science is the final arbiter of truth for most people living in today’s digital age; trusted, almost as a religion in and of itself. So, does the claim that religious faith can bring about mental well-being actually stand the test of empirical science?

Dr. Koenig is Director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health at Duke University Medical Center, and has published extensively in the fields of mental health, geriatrics, and religion, with more than 500 scientific peer-reviewed publications, nearly 100 book chapters, and over 50 books in print or preparation. His research on religion, health and ethical issues in medicine has been featured on dozens of national and international TV news programs (including ABC’s World News Tonight, Dr. Oz Show, and several times on The Today Show, Good Morning America, and NBC Nightly News), over a hundred national or international radio programs, and hundreds of newspapers and magazines (including Reader's Digest, Parade Magazine, Newsweek, Time, and Guidepost).

Dr. Koenig has given testimony before the U.S. Senate (1998) and U.S. House of Representatives (2008) concerning the benefits of religion and spirituality on public health, and travels widely to give seminars and workshops on this topic. He is the recipient of the 2012 Oskar Pfister Award from the American Psychiatric Association and the 2013 Gary Collins Award from the American Association of Christian Counselors. His latest books are a series on religion and mental health

How Religion Affects Overall Mental Well-Being

Episode Highlights:

The importance of empirical evidence.

What is the difference between religion and spirituality?

The effects of various religions on overall mental health.

Can parents use science to affirm their Christian faith?

Epigenetics, and how religious faith can affect or change brain chemistry at the cellular level?

Picture via: Max Pixel

One might not expect that scientific data would actually be needed to assert such claims, but in today’s world, anecdotal evidence alone doesn’t fly anymore. And for good reason. Parenting Teens in a Troubled World Empirical science is the final arbiter of truth for most people living in today’s digital age; trusted, almost as a […]