Let's Parent on Purpose: Christian Marriage, Parenting, and Discipleship

Snow Plow Parenting. You might have never heard of the term, but you have definitely witnessed method in families. Are you a snow plow parent?    Today I finish my Boundaries to Help Your Family Thrive series with my guests Nathan and Amy Oliver. They explain Snow Plow Parenting, share signs to recognize if you might be a snow plow parent, and give healthy boundaries to allow your children to grow resiliency.    In Snow Plow Parenting you pave the path of least resistance for your children so they don’t encounter difficulty or failure in life. The hard things of life are inevitable. You’re not always going to win. It’s important we teach our children how to deal with the hard emotions that come with life.    It’s essential for children to experience loss and suffering and failure more than they feel comfort and ease. Questions to help you evaluate your parenting: How do I feel when my chid fails or is rejected? Is my interaction helping them become more capable and competent or incapable and incompetent? What does love look like?   Bio: Nathan and Amy Oliver are both licensed professional therapists and members of Covenant Fellowship Baptist Church in Stuart, Florida. They specialize in marriage/family therapy, teens/young adults, substance addiction, depression, and anxiety. The Olivers are individually available for virtual counseling sessions. To find out more visit www.olivercounselling.com   Resources Mentioned:  www.olivercounseling.com   Sign up for my Things for Thursday Email: https://tinyurl.com/292kv68y Support Let’s Parent on Purpose through the 127 Project: https://letsparentonpurpose.com/support/ Let's Parent on Purpose is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. To find practical and spiritual advice to help you grow into the parent you want to be visit www.ChristianParenting.org

Counselors Nathan and Amy Oliver are back to help us navigate healthy boundaries in the realms of Social Media, Sleepovers, and Curfew. This is part three of our four part Boundaries to Help Your Family Thrive series. Remember, we want to insulate our children, not isolate them. Each child is different, and you need to be a student of your children. Therefore, each boundary flows out of the question: What does love look like? And what does love look like for each individual child? We also talk about the challenges of boundaries when you are a single parent or blended home. Resources Mentioned:  The Innovation of Loneliness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6Bkr_udado www.olivercounseling.com Sign up for my Things for Thursday Email: https://tinyurl.com/292kv68y Support Let’s Parent on Purpose! https://letsparentonpurpose.com/support/

Nathan and Amy Oliver, licensed professional therapists, dive into the art of setting boundaries to foster healthier marriages and effective parenting. They underscore that a unified, strong marriage nurtures children’s development. Key discussions include the necessity of regular date nights and creating evening routines to protect couple time. The Olivers share strategies for establishing boundaries that enhance family communication and well-being while emphasizing the importance of clarity in commitments for a cohesive family environment.

Marriage and family therapist Nathan and Amy Oliver join me today for a new series on Boundaries that will Help Your Family Thrive. Today we lay the foundation that’s critical before we can expect boundaries to work: healthy connection between parents and children. Nathan and Amy share multiple ways we can pour in to our children throughout the day and week. We discuss creative ways to involve your children in your regular tasks, as well as the need daily debriefing and special times of adventure.    Ideas discussed include:  - Connecting around the table - The importance of dates with your children - Family adventures - Bedtime routines   Nathan and Amy Oliver are both licensed professional therapists and members of Covenant Fellowship Baptist Church in Stuart, Florida. They specialize in marriage/family therapy, teens/young adults, substance addiction, depression, and anxiety. The Olivers are individually available for virtual counseling sessions. To find out more visit www.olivercounselling.com   Don’t forget to check out this week’s sponsor, the She is Confident Courses from Christian Parenting at www.cpguides.org   Resources Mentioned:  LPOP 290 How to Have Healthier Conflict with Nathan and Amy Oliver: https://letsparentonpurpose.com/how-to-have-healthier-conflict-with-nathan-and-amy-oliver/ LPOP 291 Skills to Communicate with Your Spouse with Nathan and Amy Oliver https://letsparentonpurpose.com/skills-to-communicate-with-your-spouse-with-nathan-and-amy-oliver/ LPOP 292 Five Healthy Marriage Habits with Nathan and Amy Oliver https://letsparentonpurpose.com/five-healthy-marriage-habits-with-nathan-and-amy-oliver/ www.olivercounseling.com Telestrations - https://amzn.to/3HIpJJH The Things Game - https://amzn.to/3PvzT2p Sign up for my Things for Thursday Email: https://tinyurl.com/292kv68y Support Let’s Parent on Purpose! https://letsparentonpurpose.com/support/

This episode is a crossover podcast from Stories of Hope with Dr. Samuel Thomas of Hopegivers International. Hear Dr. Sam share about arranged marriages, dowries, and a horrible custom that still happens today in some homes when the money runs out. Listen to how the love of Jesus Christ rescues the most hopeless, and pray about how your family could get involved to help.  Dr. Samuel Thomas is the president and CEO of Hopegivers International. He is a pastor, speaker, and humanitarian who has given his life to help the least of the earth find the love of Christ. You can learn more about the ministry of Hopegivers at www.hopegivers.org   Resources Mentioned:  You can learn more about the 127 Project and support Let’s Parent on Purpose here: https://letsparentonpurpose.com/support/   Listen to Stories of Hope with Dr. Samuel Thomas on Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stories-of-hope-with-dr-samuel-thomas/id1545599796

Today I share an exciting update as Let’s Parent on Purpose is now a ministry of The 127 Project. All of your giving is now tax deductible. In addition to supporting Let’s Parent on Purpose, your giving will help build a Hope Home for Dowry Castaway children in India.  I also share a set of questions to help you evaluate the discipleship growth of yourself and your children. Listen as I discuss how the following questions can help you grow in discipleship:  For an initial believer: Head Do I understand the gospel?   Do I believe the gospel?   Heart Am I convicted of sin? Am I drawn to Jesus?   Hands Have I surrendered my life to Jesus? Have I received His forgiveness and grace?   For an ongoing disciple (compared to past self, not to other people): Head How Am I growing in understanding God and His Word? What do I now know how to teach or share to another?   Heart Am I tender to the things of Jesus? How would I describe my joy in the things of God?   Hands What am I releasing to God? How am I serving Jesus?   To be intentional about your discipleship walking forward: Head What habit am I going to pursue to grow in knowing God and His Word?   Heart What habit am I going to pursue to grow my love and joy in Jesus and not just fall into religious duty?   Hands In what ways am I going to be consistently generous with my money and service this year?   Resources Mentioned:    You can learn more about the 127 Project and support Let’s Parent on Purpose here: https://letsparentonpurpose.com/support/  

In this last week of the year, many of us make goals for how we are going to be different. Most of our goal don’t make it much further than February. Today I share one of the great revelations of my life: goals don’t matter that much. It’s our systems that determine everything. I’ll share with you how to think through creating a system that will help you start and end your day well. You’ll learn the secret of habit stacking. And I’ll encourage you to learn to love the process rather than obsessing on the final goal.  Resources Mentioned:    Free to Focus: A Total Productivity System to Achieve More By Doing Less - https://amzn.to/3Ejz8oU   Episode 210 Focus on Your Systems, Not Your Goals: https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2021/01/24/focus-on-your-systems-not-your-goals/

Every year is filled with thousands of decisions. Some of them are inconsequential, while others have life long impact. As I reflect on this past year, today I share with you the three new decisions that greatest impact on my life and family.   Listen as I discuss my top three decisions: Learning how to measure a great day Praying the Psalms with my children Starting a weekly Family Sabbath Dinner   As you hear me describe the impact, you’ll see that these are also choices you can make in your household! Resources Mentioned:   Episode 278 How to Measure a Good Day https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2022/05/22/how-to-measure-a-good-day/   Episode 279 A Walkthrough of a Family Sabbath Dinner https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2022/05/29/a-walkthrough-of-a-family-sabbath-dinner/  

As we close out 2022 I share with you five questions that can help you process your year and lead you into an intentional 2023. For each of the questions I share with you my answers as I process my year. Listen as we discuss the following questions: - What are the 2-3 ways you experienced the goodness of God most deeply?   - What are the 3-4 decisions you made that have had the most impact on your life this year? (2 Good, 2 Bad)   - Which relationships had the greatest impact on you this year?  Were they good or bad?   - What is something you really wanted to do that did not happen this past year? Why didn’t it happen?   - If money were no object and you could do anything with your life to serve the Lord, what would you do?   - Walk through these questions personally. Write down your answers. Then prayerful take the questions to the Lord and process them with your spouse.     Resources Mentioned: Episode 300 Beating Leukemia Together with Elijah and Micah Holland https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2022/10/24/episode-300-beating-leukemia-together-with-elijah-and-micah-holland/   Episode 278 How to Measure a Good Day https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2022/05/22/how-to-measure-a-good-day/   Episode 279 A Walkthrough of a Family Sabbath Dinner https://letsparentonpurpose.com/2022/05/29/a-walkthrough-of-a-family-sabbath-dinner/   Get a copy of my Measuring a Great Day checklist and Family Sabbath Liturgy - https://bit.ly/3EDH56y   Consider a year end gift to Cpgive.org

At some point, one or more members of our family will likely need the help of a professional counselor. How can you make sure you are getting the most out of your time with a counselor?  Eliza Huie joins me once again to walk through the differences between counselors, therapists, psychologist, and psychiatrists. She gives her top three tips for how to maximize the time and value you get out of counseling. Eliza also shares her recommendations for where to search for solid, biblical counseling.   The Christian Counseling and Education Foundation: https://www.ccef.org Association of Biblical Counselors: https://christiancounseling.com Fieldstone Counseling: https://fieldstonecounseling.org The Gospel Care Collective: https://www.gospelcarecollective.com Bio Eliza is a counselor, author, speaker, and trainer committed to providing care and resources for the whole person. Trained both biblically and clinically, she understands the complexities people face in their spiritual, emotional, and physical lives.   She holds a Master of Arts in Counseling and has advanced certificates in biblical counseling from The Christian Counseling Educational Foundation (CCEF) and The Association of Biblical Counselors (ABC). She is also a licensed clinical professional counselor.    Eliza is the director of counseling at McLean Bible Church located in the Washington D.C. metro area. She is the Dean of Biblical Counseling for Metro Baltimore Seminary in Maryland. She and her husband Ken have been married for almost 30 years and they have 3 grown children and a lovely daughter-in-law.   Resources Mentioned:   How to Get the Most Out of Counseling: https://us.10ofthose.com/how-to-get-the-most-out-of-your-counseling-tract-booklet/   Raising Emotionally Healthy Kids - https://us.10ofthose.com/raising-emotionally-healthy-kids-help-for-parents-paperback/   Eliza’s other books - https://us.10ofthose.com/search.php?search_query=eliza   Sign Up for My Things For Thursday Email - https://bit.ly/3EDH56y