The realization of our need for help can be humbling—especially when, even after experiencing residential treatment for our kids, our best striving has fallen flat. Though never perfect, effective parenting is intentional parenting; it is not by chance.

Well, in many cases there are certain things that dad is better equipped to handle and others that mom is better equipped to handle. When we neglect the importance of fathers—or mothers—we may start seeing families out of balance.

Pediatrician, mother, grandmother, best-selling author of six books, and host of the podcast Parenting Great Kids, Dr. Meg Meeker is the country’s leading authority on parenting, teens, and children’s health. Her work with countless families over the years served as the inspiration behind her best-selling books: Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters; Strong Mothers, Strong Sons; The 10 Habits of Happy Mothers; and Boys Should be Boys. This week we share her new book: Hero: Being The Strong Father Your Children Need.

Dr. Meg’s popularity as a speaker on key issues confronting American families has created a strong following across the nation and around the world. She has also spoken nationally on parenting issues, including personal appearances on numerous nationally syndicated radio and television programs such as: The Today Show, Today with Kathie-Lee and Hoda, Dateline with Katie Couric, The O’Reilly Factor, Fox and Friends, The Dave Ramsey Show, The Laura Ingraham Show, NPR, Oprah Radio, The World Over with Raymond Arroyo, and more.

Parenting in a day when common and simple terms are so often getting redefined, divisions and communication breaches with our kids are rapidly becoming the norm rather than the exception. When terms like marriage and family are now being changed—and even sanctioned by our government—this can foster confusion and angst in the healthiest among us. And when the obvious lines of demarcation between what it means to be a male or female are now being disputed, it should be no wonder that the traditional roles of mothers and fathers are also being brought into question. The issues now involved in parenting kids are more complex than ever. Today, we’ll start with what used to be called—and still should be called—the institutional head of the family—or fatherhood.

Today’s families seem lost without the guidance of true fatherhood. In this program, we set out to provide evidence that the father still plays a crucial role in the life of a child. Dr. Meg Meeker and I discuss the following topics:

Picture provided by: Gugatchitchinadze (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

The post Why Families Need Fathers with Dr. Meg Meeker [Podcast] appeared first on Trace Embry | License to Parent.

So, if we claim to be children of God ourselves, how we conduct our affairs in the presence of our kids can either attract them toward our Creator and His love or turn them away.

Our special guest, Ainsley Earhardt is a journalist and co-host of FOX News Channel’s (FNC) Fox & Friends. She has also contributed to the Hannity show with her own segment called Ainsley Across America. Additionally, she has co-hosted Outnumbered, Fox & Friends Weekend, FOX’s All-American New Year’s Eve, and America’s News Headquarters. Today, we discuss her New York Times Best Seller Take Heart, My Child: A Mother’s Dream. She will be donating a portion of her proceeds of the book to Folds of Honor, an organization that provides scholarships and assistance to the spouses and children of fallen soldiers in service to America.

I remember trying to describe to my oldest son the incredible transformation that he was about to experience as a human being—right before his first child was born. He admitted to me later that he couldn’t quite grasp what I was actually saying until virtually the moment his daughter was born. But, at that moment, all his priorities changed and his outlook did too. Then a couple of years later, he came to me with concerns that he could never love his second child as much as he did his first. And I guaranteed him—whether it was a boy or a girl—all that would go away the moment his second child was born—and it did. And then he had a third child—and it was the same thing.

Fearing that I could not love unconditionally was my biggest concern and reservation when starting Shepherds Hill Academy (SHA). But, when I finally submitted to God’s will after losing my youngest son, Asa, Beth and I felt a peace about taking students here as residents. God confirmed to me then the very same thing I was trying to confirm to my oldest son about unconditional love when SHA took its first group of kids—and in walked a boy named Asa. Beth and I both knew that it was God confirming His will, calming my fears, and equipping us for this work. You can’t make this stuff up. And we also can’t manufacture, on our own, the intuitive love that we have for our kids the moment they come into the world.

Picture provided by: maxpixel.freegreatpicture.com/

The post The Special Bond Between Parent and Child with Ainsley Earhardt [Podcast] appeared first on Trace Embry | License to Parent.

Security locks, security fences, home security systems, and in some cases, even security guards!

Every year Americans spend millions of dollars keeping their homes and families safe and secure from physical harm. But, how much time, money and energy do Americans invest in their family’s emotional security? Joshua Straub, PhD joins us this week to help us understand the importance of emotional safety.

In our day of iSlavery (when everyone’s preoccupied with their digital gadgets) there seems to be more and more parents and kids disconnecting from one another emotionally. It breaks my heart to see, otherwise very conscientious and responsible parents, allowing themselves and their kids to be victims of our systemic cultural brainwashing by giving their kids carte blanche access to every digital gadget on the market. Joshua and I discuss how this relates to a lack of emotional safety including:

Picture provided by: kris krüg

The post How to Set Your Child Up for Success with Joshua Straub, PhD [Podcast] appeared first on Trace Embry | License to Parent.

This week on License to Parent with Trace Embry… Trace Embry and Rich Roszel welcome Dr. Karl Benzio, a Christian Psychiatrist, writer and conference speaker who specializes in Decision Making Sciences and its application to behavioral health and all of life.  Dr. Benzio is the founder and director of Lighthouse Network which develops faith-based behavioral health resources and connects hurting people with faith-based addiction and mental health treatment options.

Today’s topics include:

You can find out more about Dr. Karl Benzio, his daily devotional called Stepping Stones, and Lighthouse Network online at LighthouseNetwork.org.

Shop SmileAmazon, and .5% of your purchases go to Shepherds Hill Academy.  Share your thoughts on today’s program at our Facebook Fan Page, on Twitter @licensetoparent, or by emailing us at [email protected].  

The post 5 Reasons to Not Let Your Kids Smoke Pot with Dr. Karl Benzio appeared first on Trace Embry | License to Parent.

This week on License to Parent with Trace Embry…  Trace Embry and Rich Roszel welcome Dr. Leonard Sax, a Christian Medical Doctor and Psychologist, who spent 18 years in private practice and most recently has written a number of books including the one we’re discussing today, The Collapse of Parenting, a New York Times Best-Seller.

We have been saying for some time now that today’s teens are becoming iSlaves.  The lure of pop culture has taken them in that the many trappings of our day now control them, rather than the other way around.  And parents are becoming enslaved as well.  No longer do we look to Scripture for answers and guidance. Instead, we turn to Oprah, Dr. Phil, Google and Facebook for our cues.  It’s no wonder we’re rapidly progressing backwards as a culture.

Today’s topics include:

You can find out more about Dr. Leonard Sax and his books online at Amazon.com.

Shop SmileAmazon, and .5% of your purchases go to Shepherds Hill Academy.  Share your thoughts on today’s program at our Facebook Fan Page, on Twitter @licensetoparent, or by emailing us at [email protected].  Subscribe to our blog, Insight for Today’s Culture.  Also, if you’d like to give a gift of support to help families discover more about finding hope and healing through Christ-centered, practical parenting advice, please click on our “Donate” button.

The post Has the Culture Caused a Collapse of Parenting with Dr. Leonard Sax appeared first on Trace Embry | License to Parent.