Few things can keep you stuck in life the way that a victim mentality can.

This episode is not directed to people who have actually been a victim of the actions of others, but to those who are playing the role of the victim in life unnecessarily.

Join Brian and Katie as they discuss how to identify a victim mentality, the pitfalls of developing one, and how Jesus can be looked to as a model of living victoriously in all circumstances.

Want to connect? Use the links below to find us on social media, send us an email, buy our books, or subscribe to our weekly email updates!

Order our children’s book: https://mailchi.mp/makinghesstory/8lk1lhsrxa

Order Brian’s book: https://a.co/d/bO34iAU

Send us an email: [email protected]

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Responsibility is best understood as response-ability.

When we develop responsibility and work towards managing our own behavior and emotions, we develop the ability to formulate thoughtful and intentional responses to the unforeseen events, problems, circumstances, and undesirable behavior from the people around us.

When we lack responsibility, we lack the ability to respond, leaving us with only the ability to react.

Reactions lack thoughtfulness, intentionality, and vision. They relegate our behavior to serve as a reflection of our immediate surroundings and circumstances, and we'll end up being a slave to the emotions that those circumstances produce in us.

Join Brian and Katie as they discuss the role and necessity of responsibility, and what they consider to be absolutely essential questions to routinely ask your kids in an effort to help them become more responsible.

Want to connect? Use the links below to find us on social media, send us an email, buy our books, or subscribe to our weekly email updates!

Order our children’s book: https://mailchi.mp/makinghesstory/8lk1lhsrxa

Order Brian’s book: https://a.co/d/bO34iAU

Send us an email: [email protected]

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makinghesstory/

Website: http://www.makinghesstory.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550195135910

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MakingHesstory

Learn more about our church's Company Emphases (as mentioned in the episode): https://beloveco.org/1319-2/

This week we're back on the topic of finding ways to implement new habits and routine in a way that works. When we try to do too much too quickly and fail after a short period, the byproduct is that we may end up teaching ourselves that we can't be trusted when it comes to making changes and implementing new habits and disciplines.

Join Brian and Katie as they talk about how our lives are changed not just by the big events of life, but by what we choose to cultivate in the mundane of daily life.

Want to connect? Use the links below to find us on social media, send us an email, buy our books, or subscribe to our weekly email updates!

Order our children’s book: https://mailchi.mp/makinghesstory/8lk1lhsrxa

Order Brian’s book: https://a.co/d/bO34iAU

Send us an email: [email protected]

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makinghesstory/

Website: http://www.makinghesstory.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550195135910

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MakingHesstory

Bad news - we've been really sick this week!

We should be back up and running next week, but in the mean time here is one of our earlier episodes.

On this episode we explored what makes kids so good at being kids, and what they need from their parents in order to grow up and mature out of their childish ways.

Unfortunately, there are many parents who hold their kids to a higher standard of maturity than they're willing or capable of modeling themselves.

For the sake of our kids, we need to become as whole and healthy as we possibly can so that, rather than demanding unrealistic expectations, we are prepared to model the very behavior we wish to see in them.

We thought this episode would be a good time to share an unpopular opinion - we don't love the idea of New Year's resolutions.

We do, however, believe in discipline, habit forming, and creating rhythms, all of which have a more profound impact on who we are and who we become than the switching of the calendar from December to January.

Join us as we discuss some practical ways to think about changing and implementing new ways of living without being overwhelmed by the pressure to revolutionize your life every January.

Do you believe that God exists?

If so, what do you believe He thinks about you?

Do you believe that He thinks you're unlovable? Disappointing? A failure? Or do you believe that He loves you unconditionally, and that He's proud do call you a friend?

Throughout our lives we're presented with innumerable opportunities to learn to believe things about God, and unfortunately not everything we learn to believe about Him is true.

It can be easy to develop belief about God's character and nature that is based on unvalidated assumptions, but the truth is that the only way to know for sure what He's like is to get to know Him personally.

Want to connect? Use the links below to find us on social media, send us an email, or subscribe to our weekly email updates!

Order our children’s book: https://a.co/d/2ruBRiD

Order Brian’s book: https://a.co/d/bO34iAU

Send us an email: [email protected]

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makinghesstory/

Website: http://www.makinghesstory.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MakingHesstory

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550195135910

Kids generally have their core beliefs about their identity formed by the time they're seven years old.

For this reason, we need to be intentional in choosing how we speak to and about our kids.

In this episode, Brian and Katie talked about their newly published children's book titled What Does God Say About Me?: Declarations For Kids, from A-Z, and their motivation behind writing it.

Speaking declarations like those found in this book with your children is an easy and practical way to help them learn to believe the truth about who God says they are.

Buy it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/95i5jOn

Want to connect? Use the links below to find us on social media, send us an email, or subscribe to our weekly email updates!

Send us an email: [email protected]

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makinghesstory/

Website: http://www.makinghesstory.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MakingHesstory

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550195135910

Most parents have two things in common...

First, they want obedient kids who listen and respond well.

Second, they keep a few "hammers" in their parenting tool belt with which they can intimidate and coerce their kids into compliance when faced with resistance.

The problem with this method is that it pursues instant results at the expense of long-term teaching and equipping.

As our kids grow up, the tools that they have and use to manage their relationships, handle difficulty, solve problems, and respond to the unforeseen events and circumstances of life are the very tools that we equip them with.

Join us on this week's episode as we continued the conversation on the importance of choosing discipline over punishment for the sake of equipping our kids with self-control and responsibility.

Want to connect? Use the links below to find us on social media, send us an email, or subscribe to our weekly email updates!

Send us an email: [email protected]

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makinghesstory/

Website: http://www.makinghesstory.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MakingHesstory

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550195135910

Too often parents make the mistake of assuming that punishment and discipline are the same thing.

But in the interest of developing healthy relationships and connections with our kids (and, honestly, everybody else around us), it is absolutely necessary that we draw a distinction between them.

Punishment is a tool of the world. Its motivation is fear and its goal is compliance.

Discipline, on the other hand, is a tool of God's Kingdom. Its motivation is love, and its goal is connection.

Kids need proper discipline if they are to grow up, mature, and develop a value for personal responsibility and self-control.

Unfortunately, kids who are punished typically don't learn how to think critically, take responsibility, and make good choices. Rather, they learn how to hide and avoid punishment.

In this episode we begin to break down the difference between punishment and discipline in the interest of helping parents everywhere think about the long-term ramifications of their reactions to their child's poor behavior and mistakes.

By the time our kids are around four years old they'll be able to begin differentiating between socially desirable and undesirable behavior. At this point they'll start recognizing which kids they like (or don't like) to be around.

This doesn’t mean that we begin teaching them when they turn four. Rather it means that the behavior that we either confront or condone up until that point will play a role in their long-term socialization.

Believe it or not, kids will respect parents who are both loving and firm. Kids will respect parents who understand their authority and use it to set limits and standards. By default kids are selfish and immature, and they'll need our help growing out of those childish tendencies.

In this episode we discussed the importance of intentionally helping our kids sort out the difference between socially desirable and undesirable behavior, and how to use our authority lead and serve them well.