License to Parent with Trace Embry

Even if your favorite private school allows smartphones on campus—whether it’s a Christian school or not—again, the chance of your child viewing pornography dramatically increases. Is there any way to assure that our kids won’t be tainted by today’s Sodom and Gomorrah world?

Kristen A. Jenson is the author of the Good Pictures Bad Pictures series of read-aloud books, including the best-selling Good Pictures Bad Pictures: Porn-Proofing Today’s Young Kids. She is the founder of ProtectYoungMinds.org, a website dedicated to helping parents empower their kids to reject pornography. Recently, she was invited to testify before the Washington State Senate Law and Justice Committee on the public health crisis of pornography. Kristen is a frequent speaker and guest on podcasts, webinars, and radio broadcasts, and she is a leader in the Prevention Task Force of the National Coalition to End Sexual Exploitation. Kristen is the mother of two daughters and a son who is waiting for her in heaven. She lives with her husband in the beautiful state of Washington. Kristen earned a B.A. in English Literature and an M.A. in Organizational Communication.

How Kids are Being Exposed to the Dangers of Pornography

Pornography is definitely not new. It has been around ever since man could draw pictures, form clay, or carve wood and stone. What is new are all the different ways that man can create it and all the different vehicles that can proliferate it. Add to this all the different audiences that can be exposed to it 24/7 and all the private places they can watch it. Unfortunately, many of those audiences are now our kids—and I’m talking our young kids. We are getting calls at Shepherds Hill Academy about 6-year-olds with porn addictions!

The private places in which kids are viewing pornography are too often right under our noses. If we are naive enough to allow it, our kid's own bedrooms can not only be portals for pornography, but also dens for all kinds of pimps, perverts, predators, and prostitutes to prey on our kids anytime day or night—all while we are feeling relieved that Junior isn’t out running the streets.

We have to realize that if we are going to give our kids access to the Internet in the privacy of their own bedrooms, then we have virtually invited every seedy activity of those same mean streets into the comfort of our own homes with virtually no accountability.

For those who aren’t naive enough to allow Junior to have Internet access in his/her own bedroom, just know that if your home isn’t properly filtered or equipped with other accountability measures, he/she could be viewing or engaging something or someone while you are in the very same room and you might never know it. Kristen A. Jenson and I discuss how to protect children from pornography as we cover the following topics:

What led Kristen to begin her resources.

What is the difference between art and pornography?

How can parents begin talking about pornography in age appropriate conversations.

Why it may be important to discuss pornography before having your first sex talk with your kids.

What happens to the brain when watching porn.

Why pornography contributes to narcissism.

Picture provided by: National Institute on Aging [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Even if your favorite private school allows smartphones on campus—whether it’s a Christian school or not—again, the chance of your child viewing pornography dramatically increases. Is there any way to assure that our kids won’t be tainted by today’s Sodom and Gomorrah world? Kristen A. Jenson is the author of the Good Pictures Bad Pictures […]

Unfortunately—even as well-meaning God-fearing parents—our daily lives can often betray what our mouths have claimed concerning God and the biblical Christ. This can fuel the doubts and suspicions in our kids. For many kids today, God just doesn’t make sense.

Our guest, Timothy Keller is Pastor Emeritus of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City. The “Influentials” issue of New York magazine featured Keller as “the most successful Christian evangelist in the city” for his engagement with the young professional and artist demographics. He is the author of such New York Times bestselling books as The Reason for God and The Meaning of Marriage. Keller is also chairman of Redeemer City to City, which has helped start over 380 churches in global cities worldwide. He lives in New York City with his wife Kathy.

How Postmodern Thought can Make it Difficult for Teens to Make Sense of God

I’m not so sure our kids are walking away from the concept of God as much as they are walking away from the church. I just want to say that I believe there is as much unjustification for our kids abandoning their faith as there is justification.

As culpable as the church might be for this, what better alternatives are our kids turning to really? Where is it written that kids have to be exhilarated by every aspect of life, truth, and reality? Not Scripture! I think today’s culture—largely through the media, the Internet, movies, TV, music, entertainment in general, public education, today’s mental health field and pharmaceutical industry, our government, and yes, even the church—has successfully marginalized God and His Word.

Our entire infrastructure today is loaded with hippie-era, postmodern thinkers. If it feels good, do it. Truth is relative. There are no absolutes. My truth is as good as yours. Your truth isn’t true for me. I should do whatever I want to do when I want to do it. That’s just your opinion mom/dad. Who are you to tell me what to do? Kids are saying these very things to their parents, and too many parents buy it. To postmodern-thinking kids, it all makes sense to them. Children are taking the postmodern thought of their parents and grandparents to it’s logical end, and parents are allowing it because they have bought into it.

The biblical God—the God who dares to tell exalted humans how to live life—does not make sense to kids. I’m anxious to hear how today’s guest can help us help our kids through the process of making sense of God. Timothy Keller and I discuss his book Making Sense of God, our kids and our culture.  We cover the following subjects:

What are the dangers of postmodern thinking.

Who is Timothy Keller?

The importance of teaching vs. mere discipline.

Where do teens get their moral basis from.

Understanding the dichotomy of kids being moralistic and relativistic at the same time.

How to address your teen’s cultural perspective on Christianity.

Picture provided by: pixnio.com

Unfortunately—even as well-meaning God-fearing parents—our daily lives can often betray what our mouths have claimed concerning God and the biblical Christ. This can fuel the doubts and suspicions in our kids. For many kids today, God just doesn’t make sense. Our guest, Timothy Keller is Pastor Emeritus of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City. […]

But, in the real world, family dysfunction is no laughing matter. It is actually a highly toxic impediment to the heart and soul of any human being. Even more than that, it is a toxic impediment to the very heart and soul of any civilized society.

Our guest, June Hunt, is one of the world’s leading biblical counselors. She is an author, speaker, singer, and the founder of Hope For The Heart, a worldwide biblical counseling ministry. June hosts an award-winning radio broadcast, also called Hope For The Heart, heard daily across America, and June’s live 2-hour call-in counseling program, Hope In The Night, helps people untangle their problems with biblical hope and practical help.

June has served as a guest professor at colleges and seminaries, both nationally and internationally, teaching on topics such as crisis counseling, marriage and parenting, child abuse, domestic violence, depression, alcohol and drug abuse, forgiveness, singleness, and self-worth.

June’s books have sold more than a million copies, and include: Bonding with Your Teen through Boundaries, Counseling Through Your Bible Handbook, The Answer to Anger, Seeing Yourself Through God’s Eyes, How to Forgive…When You Don’t Feel Like It, How to Handle Your Emotions, How to Rise Above Abuse, and How to Deal with Difficult Relationships. Her biblical Counseling Keys have also been adapted into a popular mini-book series featuring 42 titles.

Is the Dysfunctional Family as Old as Adam and Eve

I have heard it said, since the days of Adam and Eve and Cain and Abel, that every family has at least a degree of dysfunction in it. I am not exactly sure how true that statement really is, but it does seem to be true, if you look hard enough, you can always find something that needs improvement in any family.

Whether the statement is true or not, I think, as parents, we would be wise to ask ourselves these questions:

Despite my family’s imperfections, can we function in a way that allows us to openly share our love for one another, for others, and for God?

Can we function in a way that draws one another to one another and to God, rather than driving one another from one another and away from God?”

I’d say, if the answers to those questions are in the affirmative, you’re doing much better than most families these days. I think our guest is going to help us get all this sorted out in a way that will be a great encouragement to our listeners. This week, June Hunt and I discuss families, as we cover the following topics:

What is a dysfunctional family.

Are single-parent homes considered dysfunctional?

4 types of dysfunctional roles.

June’s childhood experience with dysfunction.

What role should grace play in the parent-child relationship.

Picture provided by: publicdomainpictures.net

But, in the real world, family dysfunction is no laughing matter. It is actually a highly toxic impediment to the heart and soul of any human being. Even more than that, it is a toxic impediment to the very heart and soul of any civilized society. Our guest, June Hunt, is one of the world’s […]

It is becoming more and more evident that the same parenting principles that have been taught in Scripture for centuries are now being supported with modern science. Not only has the Bible always been a wonderful training manual for raising kids, it also has been around a whole lot longer than modern psychology; its veracity is time tested. When it comes to parenting, maybe it’s time we learn the science behind heeding the Word.

Our guest, Dr. Caroline Leaf is a cognitive neuroscientist with a PhD in Communication Pathology and a BSc in Logopedics and Audiology, specializing in metacognitive and cognitive neuropsychology.  She is a bestselling author and TV show host who helps her audience discover their God-wired uniqueness.

There are a lot of personality and intelligence tests designed to label people and put them in a particular box, but Dr. Caroline Leaf says there is much more to a person than a personality profile can capture. In her new book, The Perfect You: A Blueprint for Identity, Dr. Leaf tackles this concept from theological, philosophical, and scientific angles, challenging readers to think deeply about their identity and enabling them to apply these insights to their daily lives.

How Scientific Parenting Principles Often Confirm Biblical Ones

Way back in the infancy of Shepherds Hill Academy, we actually did not know a lot about the science behind what we were doing. I’m not sure many people did. All we knew is that when we interacted with these kids, according to their own particular bent, using the principles of Scripture, free from the toxic influences of our de-civilizing culture in a safe, authoritative, community environment, incredible things happened. Though I hesitate to throw around the word “miracle” too cavalierly, the parents of most of these kids certainly would not. The results started making more sense when we started seeing scientific support for what God said we should simply take by faith in Scripture.

We know that even a lot of Christian parents these days seem to put more stock in science than they do in the Bible. Doctors, rather than grandparents or pastors, are the new “go to” sages for parenting advice and assistance—many of whom have never even had kids of their own! But really: “How’s it been working for us?” While doctors are too often too quick to medicate kids, kids who come to Shepherds Hill Academy on a pharmacy’s worth of medications are most often leaving medication-free—about 70% of the time to be exact.

Of course, this doesn’t happen overnight, but it is still valid evidence for much of what today’s guest is going to share with us today. I’m really looking forward to hearing more of the science behind God’s Word with her in the course of our discussion today. Dr. Caroline Leaf and I discuss science, Scripture, and parenting as we cover the following topics:

How do we correctly use science?

Are false premises a root problem in parenting today’s kids?

The power of our thought process.

Understanding the truth about medications.

How to appropriately challenge your doctor if he/she is quick to suggest medications.

Why nondigital interaction with your teen is vital.

Is negativity affecting the brain?

Why you should avoid saying, “Because I said so. I’m the parent.”

Picture provided by: mnplatypus

It is becoming more and more evident that the same parenting principles that have been taught in Scripture for centuries are now being supported with modern science. Not only has the Bible always been a wonderful training manual for raising kids, it also has been around a whole lot longer than modern psychology; its veracity […]

Poor learning environments, indifferent teachers, liberal and evolutionary thought, gang influence, easy access to drugs, lack of respect and discipline, bullying, the proliferation of unhealthy sexual propagandas, political correctness, and a marginalization of just about anything Christian are just some of the reasons why many parents are keeping their kids out of the public education system. With other educational options now becoming more viable, Christian parents are faced with in-house debates with other Christian parents as to which education option really is the best.

Our guest, Dr. Kevin Leman is an internationally known psychologist, radio and television personality, educator, and speaker who has taught and entertained audiences worldwide with his wit and common sense psychology. He has made house calls through hundreds of radio and television programs such as Fox & Friends, The View, Good Morning America, Today, CBS’s The Early Show, The 700 Club, and CNN. A New York Times bestselling and award-winning author, Dr. Leman has written more than 50 books about marriage and family issues, including The Birth Order Book, Sex Begins in the Kitchen, and Have a New Kid by Friday. Dr. Leman and his wife, Sande, live in Tucson, Arizona. They have five children and four grandchildren.

How Different Educational Options Provide for Different Needs

You might be surprised to hear all the different educational options that some of the Shepherds Hill Academy (SHA) families are using for their kids. It’s not uncommon at all for a family with three or four kids to have each of those kids in different kinds of schools—with Shepherds Hill Academy being one of them, of course. These options include homeschooling as well—which, as you may know, is often my first suggestion for parents. I know that homeschooling may not be the best option for every family for any number of reasons, if it is an option at all.

Whatever else you want to say about homeschooling—pro or con—it certainly keeps parents abreast of their kids’ educational progress and “up to speed” on the process as well. I think the process is arguably more important than the progress in many cases. There is more to education than mere academics. I happen to believe that a well-rounded and quality education should have a moral and/or spiritual component to it. And discipline too. These are two things that academics, alone, do not always provide and are sorely missing today.

I’m not downing academics. I run a therapeutic school, but I’m the farthest thing from a pedagogue myself. I just make sure that the real teachers are doing what’s best for each of the kids we are serving. That’s what any good and responsible parent wants for their kids when determining how they want them to be educated. So, I’m looking forward to today’s guest helping us get some of this stuff sorted out. Dr. Kevin Leman and I discuss education as we cover the following topics:

What’s changed in society that makes public education not as trustworthy?

One problem teachers face: they do not always have authority over kids in their classroom.

Kids want to accomplish high standards. Adults just need to require it of them.

Why it is ok for your kid to be unhappy.

How a parent can determine their child's learning style.

How SHA helps teens grow in their education.

Picture provided by: pexels.com

Poor learning environments, indifferent teachers, liberal and evolutionary thought, gang influence, easy access to drugs, lack of respect and discipline, bullying, the proliferation of unhealthy sexual propagandas, political correctness, and a marginalization of just about anything Christian are just some of the reasons why many parents are keeping their kids out of the public education […]