As a Christian father, should I give my daughter away at the wedding if she’s marrying a non-believer? Over the more than twenty years of our marriage we’ve worked hard to raise her in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Her decision has come as a great disappointment to us. We love our daughter, …
Parenting Q&As
What’s the best way to stop a teenager from using her cell phone to send and receive sexually explicit messages and photos? We recently discovered that our daughter has become involved in “sexting.” When confronted about this, she claimed that this kind of activity is harmless since it doesn’t involve any physical sexual contact. How …
Where can we turn for advice and assistance in dealing with our adolescent son’s drinking problem? Recently things have escalated to the point where I think it would fair to call him a full-blown alcoholic. His behavior is impacting everyone in the family and tearing our household apart. Can you help?
How can I know for sure whether my child has become a target of intimidating text messages or cruel rumors on social media? Are there any tell-tale signs? If it turns out my child is being cyber-bullied, what can I do to help?
How can we stop our four-year-old from stealing? It seems like everywhere we go – church, stores, museums, friends’ houses – he walks out with something that doesn’t belong to him. I have a feeling that he’s just being irresponsible-that he puts things in his pocket and then forgets about them. My husband and I have talked …
Is the quality of time I spend with my family more important than the quantity?
What can we do about a baby who starts screaming uncontrollably the minute we leave the room or put him down for five minutes? Rocking, soothing, noise makers, sleeping with us – nothing seems to help. My wife has been forced to take him to work with her, but she can’t get anything accomplished. What’s the …
As Christian parents, how do we prepare ourselves to give our kids an accurate understanding of God and the kind of solid biblical teaching they’re going to need later on? How can we help them “succeed” in those areas of life that matter to us most – the areas where unseen values take precedence over …
As a parent, how should I deal with my children when mass shootings, natural disasters, and other tragic events involving loss of life occur? Should I do my best to shield them from this information – an almost impossible task in the face of today’s constant news media cycle? Or should I try to talk to …
Is it unhealthy to poke fun at ourselves and tease other family members? We’ve always enjoyed laughing together at our house, and sometimes that includes what some people refer to as “teasing.” Friends of ours have expressed concern that we may be fostering an “unsafe” environment that doesn’t promote respectful relationships. Do you think there’s …
How do I handle 2-year-old who opposes and contradicts me at every turn? says “no” to everything? I’m exasperated! If I offer him a cracker or a cup of water, he says “no!” If I set the cup aside, he cries and begs for it. He acts the same way with other children at the …
What’s your perspective on the safety and advisability of child immunization? Several of our friends, who are also new parents, have very strong feelings against vaccinating children. I want to do what’s best for our baby. Can you give me some guidance in this area?
With everything it takes to work at the office and run a household, how can I find quality time to spend with my children? It seems like there aren’t enough hours in the day to do everything that needs to be done. Do you have any suggestions?
How can I know if my child has Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD)? I’m an adoptive parent of a high-risk child. I’m beginning to think that some aspects of her behavior might be explained by SPD. In particular, it seems that some of her otherwise unexplainable outbursts and meltdowns might be triggered by sensory overload. How …
Would you agree that homeschoolers need to branch out and study subjects other than the Bible? My spouse and I have decided to begin home schooling our children. In researching various curriculum options, we’ve encountered some groups who advocate teaching kids strictly from Scripture to the exclusion of other academic texts or disciplines. We are …
Should we be concerned about our oldest son’s abusive behavior towards his siblings and our household pets? We’re constantly getting on his case about hitting his younger siblings, and lately he’s also been hurting the cat and dog. I used to think he was just aggressive or hyperactive, but now I’m not so sure. Is …
Should a church youth group be social or spiritual in focus? We’re involved in a heated dispute about this at our church. There are two schools of thought. One group thinks that a high school youth group should be primarily spiritual in emphasis, focusing on Bible study, prayer, and outreach or service projects. The rest …
How can we prevent our seven-year-old son from becoming a bully? I’ve noticed that he can be very pushy and often tries to dominate other kids. He always wants to be the “winner” — it’s as if he has a need to prove himself. When provoked, he retaliates fiercely and has hurt other kids in …
How do I handle a kid whose behavior ranges from telling me to “shut up” to slamming a door on her younger sister to trying to steal money from my wallet? My daughter is the classic “defiant child.” She hates school, has trouble getting along with friends, and frequently disobeys her teacher. I’m worried about …
How do we discourage sibling rivalry and introduce a more loving and cooperative atmosphere into our home? I know this behavior is normal up to a point, but I can’t help feeling that there are moments when it verges on becoming seriously destructive. What can my spouse and I do to teach brotherly love?