Whether you're parenting biological, foster, or adoptive children or navigating your own healing journey from when you were a child, this conversation is for you.

In this episode with Meredith Brock, Jim Cress, and Bethany Hall, you'll learn how to:

• Recognize your personal triggers and how they affect your parenting style.
• Understand the importance of healing past relational trauma.
• Identify signs of fear or shame responses in your children.
• Use practical ways to bring calm into your parenting.
• Balance structure and nurture with connected, grace-filled parenting.

Links we mentioned in this episode:

• Download "Is This Normal? 15 Red Flags You May Be Missing in Your Relationships" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Sign up for a $10 webinar on September 4 at 7: p.m. ET with the Chosen team to learn about attachment styles and foster better communication with your children — no matter their age. 
• Have a question for Lysa, Jim, or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Go deeper: 

• Listen to "Red Flags We Shouldn’t Ignore in Relationships."
• Listen to "Here Is Your Permission To Set Boundaries" With Jim Cress.
• Watch "Difficult vs. Destructive Relationships."

It's one thing to recognize red flags in your relationships. It's another thing to know what to do after that.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Five spectrums to consider when determining how serious a red flag is.
• Guidelines for determining if a particular red flag is something that needs to be confronted or self-managed.
• How to grow in awareness of red flags without getting overwhelmed or scared to get close to others.

Links we mentioned in this episode:

• Download "Is This Normal? 15 Red Flags You May Be Missing in Your Relationships" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Sign up for a $10 webinar on September 4 at 7 p.m. ET with the Chosen team to learn about attachment styles and foster better communication with your children — no matter their age. 
• Have a question for Lysa, Jim, or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Go deeper: 

• Listen to "Red Flags We Shouldn’t Ignore in Relationships."
• Listen to "Here Is Your Permission To Set Boundaries" With Jim Cress.
• Watch "Difficult vs. Destructive Relationships."

Noticing red flags doesn’t make you critical — it makes you wise.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Six red flags to be aware of — whether you're building new relationships or evaluating existing ones.
• How to talk to someone about behavior that concerns you.
• How to best utilize godly discernment as you grow in self-awareness.

Links we mentioned in this episode:

• Download "Is This Normal? 15 Red Flags You May Be Missing in Your Relationships" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Sign up for a $10 webinar on September 4 at 7 p.m. ET with the Chosen team to learn about attachment styles and foster better communication with your children — no matter their age. 
• Have a question for Lysa, Jim, or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Go deeper: 

• Listen to "Red Flags We Shouldn’t Ignore in Relationships."
• Listen to "Here Is Your Permission To Set Boundaries" With Jim Cress.
• Watch "Difficult vs. Destructive Relationships."

Have you been interacting with someone and concern rises up within you? An unsettledness bubbles up? Your guard goes up, and you start thinking things like: I don’t know if I can trust them. I don’t know if I can believe what they’re saying. Am I safe to share with them?

If so, this first episode in our new season, "Red Flags in Relationships," is for you.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• What a red flag is and what it isn't.
• How to recognize areas of concern for ourselves without shaming or blaming another person.
• Two crucial ingredients that must be present for a relationship not to just survive but flourish.

Links we mentioned in this episode:

• Download "Is This Normal? 15 Red Flags You May Be Missing in Your Relationships" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Sign up for a $10 webinar on September 4 at 7 p.m. ET with the Chosen team to learn about attachment styles and fostering better communication with your children — no matter their age. 
• Have a question for Lysa, Jim, or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Go deeper: 

• Listen to "Red Flags We Shouldn’t Ignore in Relationships."
• Listen to "Here Is Your Permission To Set Boundaries" With Jim Cress.
• Watch "Difficult vs. Destructive Relationships."

Summertime is a season for sunshine, long days, and making memories with the people closest to us.

But let’s be honest — more time together doesn’t always mean more connection. It could create more tension. And sometimes that’s because we can no longer ignore red flags that are now staring us in the face.

Whether you’re single, dating, married, or navigating complicated family dynamics — we're diving into it all this summer.

In Season 9, Lysa, Jim, and Joel will help you learn:

• What is a red flag?
• What are some red flags to be aware of?
• Is every red flag a big deal?
• How to respond to red flags you may notice in yourself.
• How to navigate red flags in family relationships.

Helpful Links for This Season:

• Download "Is This Normal? 15 Red Flags You May Be Missing in Your Relationships" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Sign up for a $10 webinar on September 4 at 7 p.m. ET with the Chosen team to learn about attachment styles and foster better communication with your children — no matter their age. 
• Have a question for Lysa, Jim, or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Want More on This Topic? 

• Listen to "Red Flags We Shouldn’t Ignore in Relationships."
• Listen to "Here Is Your Permission To Set Boundaries" With Jim Cress.
• Watch "Difficult vs. Destructive Relationships."

The (sometimes secret) struggle with pornography takes an emotional and spiritual toll on individuals, marriages, and families. It's a multifaceted issue that requires a multifaceted healing plan.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How pornography affects intimacy, identity, and trust.
• Tools and tactics for having conversations around this topic without fear.
• What to do (and not to do) the moment you discover something.
• Scriptural passages to turn to on pornography.

Helpful Links

• Have a question for Lysa, Jim, or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Download “Trust Is a Track Record: 5 Scriptural Truths To Remember God’s Faithfulness" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Purchase "The Trust Journey Bundle" that includes I Want to Trust You, but I Don't by Lysa TerKeurst as well as The Trust Journey (a guided journal to use alongside I Want to Trust You, but I Don’t) here.
• We'd like to extend a special thank-you to our sponsor for this season, Compassion International. When you sponsor a child, you'll receive the “Proverbs: The Beginning of All Wisdom” study guide as our gift to you! Go to compassion.com/proverbs31 to get started!
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Want More on This Topic?

• Listen to "Can We Talk About the Porn-demic?" here.
• Listen to "Addiction: Signs, Symptoms, and How To Get Help" here.
• Watch "Red Flags We Shouldn’t Ignore in Relationships" here.

Addiction is a heartbreaking reality that weighs heavy on loved ones who are affected. But when you're navigating something this complex, how can you know the best way forward?

In this episode, you will learn:

• What is considered an addiction and what the Bible says about the root of addiction.
• How to respond to the longings and desires you have without turning to substances.
• The complicated dynamics addiction creates within relationships.
• The hope and healing God has for you and how to allow Him to work in and through you.

Helpful Links

• Have a question for Lysa, Jim, or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Download “Trust Is a Track Record: 5 Scriptural Truths To Remember God’s Faithfulness" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Purchase "The Trust Journey Bundle" that includes I Want to Trust You, but I Don't by Lysa TerKeurst as well as The Trust Journey (a guided journal to use alongside I Want to Trust You, but I Don’t) here.
• We'd like to extend a special thank-you to our sponsor for this season, Compassion International. When you sponsor a child, you'll receive the “Proverbs: The Beginning of All Wisdom” study guide as our gift to you! Go to compassion.com/proverbs31 to get started!
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Want More on This Topic?

• Listen to "Is This Relationship Toxic?"
• Listen to "Difficult vs. Destructive Relationships with Leslie Vernick."
• Watch "When You Discover Someone Has Broken Your Trust."

While we don't want to put labels on people, it is important to be aware of certain patterns of behavior. Because the more awareness we have, the better we'll be able to navigate situations we find ourselves in.

In this episode, you will learn:

• The characteristics, signs, and symptoms of narcissism and borderline personality disorder.
• How to draw boundaries and protect yourself from dysfunctional or even dangerous relationships.
• The truth behind the age-old question, "Can people really change?"

Helpful Links

• Have a question for Lysa, Jim, or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Download “Trust Is a Track Record: 5 Scriptural Truths To Remember God’s Faithfulness" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Purchase "The Trust Journey Bundle" that includes I Want to Trust You, but I Don't by Lysa TerKeurst as well as The Trust Journey (a guided journal to use alongside I Want to Trust You, but I Don’t) here.
• We'd like to extend a special thank-you to our sponsor for this season, Compassion International. When you sponsor a child, you'll receive the “Proverbs: The Beginning of All Wisdom” study guide as our gift to you! Go to compassion.com/proverbs31 to get started!
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Want More on This Topic?

• Listen to "Narcissism ... What It Is and What It Isn’t."
• Listen to "Good Boundaries Lead to Better Relationships."
• Listen to Season 4 of Therapy & Theology called "Boundaries Boot Camp" with Jim Cress. Start by listening to "Here Is Your Permission To Set Boundaries."
• Watch "Realities of Life With a Narcissist."
• Read Good Boundaries and Goodbyes by Lysa TerKeurst.

Have you ever wondered why you have different reactions with different people in your life? Maybe it's easy to respond to a friend with love and patience but difficult to respond to your spouse without getting angry.

The truth is our character is revealed in how we react. Lysa TerKeurst puts it this way: "Our feelings are indicators, not dictators."

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What the four kinds of reaction types are and which one you are.
• How to work toward balance with your mind (thoughts), body and soul (feelings).

Helpful Links

• Have a question for Lysa, Jim or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Download “Trust Is a Track Record: 5 Scriptural Truths To Remember God’s Faithfulness" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Purchase "The Trust Journey Bundle" that includes I Want to Trust You, but I Don't by Lysa TerKeurst as well as The Trust Journey (a guided journal to use alongside I Want to Trust You, but I Don’t) here.
• We'd like to extend a special thank-you to our sponsor for this season, Compassion International. When you sponsor a child, you'll receive the “Proverbs: The Beginning of All Wisdom” study guide as our gift to you! Go to compassion.com/proverbs31 to get started!
• Download the "What's Your Reaction Type" Chart by Lysa TerKeurst.
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Want more on this topic? 

• Listen to "Why Do I Feel So Angry?" here.
• Listen to "The Daily Cure for a Heavy Heart."
• Watch "I Don't Want To Be an Angry Person."

Lysa TerKeurst says "emotional abuse is sometimes both the most overused and underused term" ... and we couldn't agree more.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The hidden tactics of emotional abuse: gaslighting and love bombing.
• Why living in extremes in relationships are unhealthy and unsustainable.
• How to "take agency" in yourself and escape dysfunction.

Helpful Links

• Have a question for Lysa, Jim or Joel? Leave us a message, and it could be answered on one of our future podcast episodes! Start here.
• Download “Trust Is a Track Record: 5 Scriptural Truths To Remember God’s Faithfulness" by Lysa TerKeurst here.
• Purchase "The Trust Journey Bundle" that includes I Want to Trust You, but I Don't by Lysa TerKeurst as well as The Trust Journey (a guided journal to use alongside I Want to Trust You, but I Don’t) here.
• We'd like to extend a special thank-you to our sponsor for this season, Compassion International. When you sponsor a child, you'll receive the “Proverbs: The Beginning of All Wisdom” study guide as our gift to you! Go to compassion.com/proverbs31 to get started!
• Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Want more on this topic? 

• Listen to "Good Boundaries Lead to Better Relationships."
• Listen to "The Part Emotional Abuse Plays in Silencing Women."
• Watch "Realities of Life With a Narcissist."