Parenting

Parenting offers biblically grounded guidance for raising children with wisdom, grace, and intentional discipleship. Explore practical articles on nurturing faith at home, teaching Scripture, shaping character, setting healthy boundaries, and building strong family rhythms. You’ll find encouragement for navigating different ages and stages, supporting kids through cultural pressures, and partnering with the church to help children and teens follow Jesus. Whether you’re a new parent or leading through complex seasons, these resources help you parent with hope and Christ-centered purpose.

August 25, 2011

Christian Standard

Tutorials Help Kids Drum Up Better Grades

By Jennifer Taylor   As the school year ended, Wendy Bennett“s fourth-grade daughter, Lily, began feeling nervous about her final math tests. Bennett, pastor of family life ministry and community connections at Everyday Christian Church (New York, NY), asked Chris Travis for help. “Chris is not only our lead pastor, but has also worked as a math teacher in Harlem the last two years,” Bennett says. “Lily”s best friend soon wanted to join the sessions; then more students expressed interest. Eventually we asked the school if we could organize group tutoring.” The team worked with the administration to coordinate the

June 19, 2011

Christian Standard

The Dad Who”s Not There

By Mark A. Taylor   Life without Dad can be lethal. That”s the conclusion of Anthony Bradley, posting at WORLDmag.com last year*. According to his research, “¢ 60 percent of rapists . . . “¢ 63 percent of youth suicides . . . “¢ 70 percent of long-term prison inmates . . . “¢ 71 percent of high school dropouts . . . “¢ 72 percent of adolescent murderers . . . “¢ 85 percent of youths in prison, and . . . “¢ 90 percent of homeless and runaway children come from homes without dads. He”s talking about the

January 2, 2011

Christian Standard

The Essential About Opinions

by Mark A. Taylor Any parent of young adults knows two things: First, you”ll always be a parent. Just because they”re out of the house, you don”t stop worrying about their health and their choices and their future. Just because they”re earning a living, you don”t stop wondering if they have enough money. Second, and more important, the parent of young adults must keep his opinions to himself””or at least state them in a gentle way that earns a hearing. Grown children don”t respond well to lectures from their parents, especially when they passionately disagree about the issue at hand.

May 9, 2010

Christian Standard

Enrolling Our Kids in the Jesus Mission

By Janet McMahon A look of disappointment, frustration, and surprise came over his face. He cried. We had just told our 13-year-old son we were leaving the only town he had ever known to move to another city and begin a brand-new church. The days and weeks that followed were full of questions, not just from our 13-year-old, but all three of our children. “Why?” “When?” “How?” “Are you sure?” At the time our kids were 16, 13, and 7, and moving kids attending high school and middle school seemed less than ideal. No doubt my children are the No.

May 9, 2010

Christian Standard

How Churches Can Help Families

By Paul Alexander I”ve heard hundreds of sermons on marriage and family living. But one stands above the rest. Thirteen years ago the pastor of the largest Christian church in our area came to Hope International University and spoke at our chapel service. He had been asked to speak on the most important thing he could think of to prepare people to go out and serve the church and impact the world for Christ. He told us he had considered talking about ministry, trials, devotion to God, and other topics. But ultimately, he said, the most important thing he could

January 6, 2010

Christian Standard

All Work and No Play?

By Mark A. Taylor “The brain in its relaxed state is more creative, makes more nuanced connections and is ripe for eureka moments.” In other words, according to author Carl Honoré, boredom can be good, especially for children. That”s one of many golden points in Time magazine”s November 30 cover feature, “The Case Against Over-Parenting,” by Nancy Gibbs. Honoré, who wrote Under Pressure: Rescuing Our Children from the Culture of Hyper-Parenting, says boredom gives children “space to think deeply, invent their own game, create their own distraction.” That usually takes the form of play, the kind of play not stimulated

February 7, 2007

Mark A. Taylor

work from home

Now More Than Ever

As work shifts from offices to phones and kitchen tables, families face new pressures and new freedoms. This reflection urges Christian parents and leaders to keep biblical priorities, resist materialism, and protect godly parenting in any era.

November 1, 2006

Christian Standard

Keeping Kids When They Become Young Adults

By Mark A. Taylor When teenagers are active in church but then graduate from high school and disappear, unfortunately most of us aren’t surprised. In fact, at least one youth ministry expert thinks it may even be normal. “It’s the rubber band syndrome,” says Les Christie, youth ministry professor at William Jessup University in Rocklin, California. “College students are stretching away from home. They’re testing their independence. But they usually come back, especially after they’re married and have kids.” Christie quotes the familiar Proverbs 22:6, emphasizing one word: “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he

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