Christian Parenting Handbook (2013) Launch- winners announced

Launch week for the Christian Parent Handbook 29 April - 5 May. Plus win some amazing prizes from the publisher including an $100 amazon giftcard!

The psychology perspective

I was very excited to be part of the Christian Parenting Handbook (2013) launch. The Christian Parenting Handbook hits the shelves 29 April. While preparing to start full time work in private practice as a psychologist, I was interested in equipping myself with powerful tools. This is when I stumbled on the Christian Parenting Handbook. The authors don't try to reinvent the wheel. Instead, they have put some pretty basic principles of parenting in an easy to digest form filled with examples and tips. While it's not evidence based practice, each parent can carefully monitor the use of ideas in this book to determine if it will work for your family. 

My Christian perspective

While parents don't want their kids to run wild and be disobedient, very few parents would want kids who are robotic and can't think for themselves. The authors have balanced this well by promoting what they call "Heart parenting". To me, it was all about Honor based parenting. Teaching kids to honor parents just as God told us in the old (Exodus 20:12) and new testaments (Ephesians 6:2). 

My overall rating: 

Excellent

Not a book you can digest in 2 hours, but certainly a book to occasionally draw ideas from. 

There is sooo much going on in Launch week. 

Buy The Christian Parenting Handbook between April 29 and May 5 and get a package of free resources valued at more than $400.00. To claim your premium, simply forward your purchase confirmation to Gift@biblicalparenting.org and we will email you your special product code for the $400.00 package.

Dr. Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller will be hosting a Google Hangout on Tuesday evening April 30 starting at 7:30 pm EDT. This will be an on-air hangout where anyone can listen in. You can watch the video by going to the Biblical Parenting Facebook Group. You can also comment there and ask questions of Scott and Joanne.

Join the Twitter Party on Wednesday, May 1, 8:00 pm Eastern Time and have a chance to win one of several prizes. The party is being managed by @biblicalparent and the hashtag is #heartparenting.

WINNERS from #1 Giveaway

Congrats to Mandy, Nikki H, Karen W, Candace C, Lois C, you will win a share in the following:

 Biblical Parenting University Online Parenting Course (U$99.95 value).

Set of 5 Parenting Shifts eBooks (U$49.95).

Honor Multi-media package (U$59.95 Value).

The Christian Parenting Handbook + Companion Guide ebook (U$49.95).

Disciple making at home ebook (U$16.99 value)

Didn't win? Don't worry, there are more giveaways!

The publisher has a bunch of prizes lined up including an iPad mini ($400), $200 Amazon gift card, wii with sports game ($200), $100 amazon gift card Kodak digital picture frame ($90). Enter below!

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Book Review: CPH- Part II. Win an online parenting course!

This is the second review on this book. PLUS- WIN an online parenting course or other parenting resources.

Book Summary: The Christian Parenting Handbook (2013)- PART II of V

The Christian Parenting Handbook: 50 Heart-Based Strategies for All the Stages of Your Child's Life

The authors have put together 50 strategies for Christian parenting. The suggestions here are quite logical. Chapters 11 to 20 look at some pretty broad issues. The family as a team. Making God and the bible part of family life. Bookmark good days.United parenting. Teaching kids to honor the family. Targeting conflict, not problems by recognizing the difference, stopping escalation traps, isolating the process. Affirm right behaviour. Being wise. 

My psychological perspective:

Family of origin, religion, etc all play a role in the way parents do parenting. Some of my clients come from cultures where it's all about community and family, so they try to raise their children to spend time together, do things for each other, etc. Others come from families where they are mostly interested in individual pursuits. In reality, each family functions a little differently and parents may have different influences on their parenting.

It's important for parents to be on the same page. And this requires good communication between parents and other caregivers. When kids receive the same consequences for behaviour, etc they are less likely to get confused or play the good/bad parent card.


Rarely do I get parents coming to the clinic because kids don't do the chores. They come in because getting the kids to do the chores has become a conflict in the household. The authors made the distinction between problems and conflicts quite clear. They highlight a way to stop escalation traps - "It takes two to argue, but only one to stop". (I will discuss escalation traps in a subsequent blog post). The authors also talk about the importance of wise parenting as opposed to being right (more on wise parenting in a subsequent blog post).

My Christian Perspective:

The bible is a vital way we can understand the will of God in our lives. For the longest time, I have made it a core interest to instill on my Sunday school kids a desire to know God and to read his word everyday. I tell them that the bible is not cake- that we eat for special occasions, but it's daily bread, we need it every single day. The authors spend some time emphasizing the importance of helping kids to grow a love of God's word.

My overall rating: 

Excellent

I believe Part II (Chapter 11-20) of The Christian Parenting Handbook (2013) gives some pretty good insights into Christ-centered parenting. Instead of just vaguely telling parents to instill the word of God in a child's life, the authors give some pretty clear examples of HOW we can do it. The concept of honoring your kids and teaching your kids to honor the family is precious. We don't want to train dogs or make robots who do what we say. We want to build up kids to WANT to do good. 

"Obedience gets the job done, but honor addresses the way people relate in that process." I really like this phrase and may use it with my clients. It's not just doing what you are told. It's doing things because you want to honor the family. 

The Christian Parenting Handbook is on sale now on Amazon. 

Buy The Christian Parenting Handbook between April 29 and May 5 and get a package of free resources valued at more than $400.00. To claim your premium, simply forward your purchase confirmation to Gift@biblicalparenting.org and we will email you your special product code for the $400.00 package.

#1 GIVEAWAY

As part of the upcoming Launch Week for the brand new Christian Parenting Handbook, the launch team bloggers are having giveaways this week. Winners will be advertised on this site and will win one of the following prizes. 

 Biblical Parenting University Online Parenting Course (U$99.95 value).

Set of 5 Parenting Shifts eBooks (U$49.95).

Honor Multi-media package (U$59.95 Value).

The Christian Parenting Handbook + Companion Guide ebook (U$49.95).

Disciple making at home ebook (U$16.99 value)

HOW TO ENTER. 

Simply tell me in 100 words or less in the comment section below: a parenting topic that you would like to see addressed on this blog and why. Then fill in the competition entry to win!

You can enter once a day.

This giveaway is open to Residents of the United States, Australia (QLD, NT, TAS, VIC, SA), Hong Kong only.  Void where prohibited. Must be at least 18 years of age.    

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Book Review: The Christian Parenting Handbook (2013)- PART 1

This is the first review on this book. 

Book Summary: The Christian Parenting Handbook (2013)- PART I of V

The Christian Parenting Handbook: 50 Heart-Based Strategies for All the Stages of Your Child's Life

The authors have put together 50 strategies for Christian parenting. The suggestions here are quite logical. The first 10 chapters look at some pretty broad issues. They suggest that consistency is overrated. Instead they suggest that you should focus on broader themes to develop the heart of the child. Focus on building internal motivation to do right. Consequences aren't the only answer. Identify character qualities (obedience, honor, perseverance, attentiveness, etc) to address problems. Transfer responsibility for change to the child. Focus on the relational side of parenting. Seeing a positive future. Look for heart moments. Make parenting shifts. Thinking long term. 

My psychological perspective:

There is no harm in testing the strategies suggested in this parenting manual. To read all 50 strategies in one go is exhausting. I can tell you from the outset that not every strategy is research based, but authors never claim that the strategies are research based. I recommend going through a few of these strategies at a time with your "team" (partner, grandparent, everyone else who is looking after your child). The book is filled with real world examples that makes the strategies relevant and clear. The book focuses on building confidence in parenting and general guidelines parents can tailor to their life.

Modern day parenting training largely target the same aspects of parenting as presented in the book, but modern parenting training elements are often misquoted and misunderstood. In therapy with clients, we focus first of all on building parent-child relationships and encouraging prosocial behaviours before we do anything about undesirable behaviours! When I work with clients, I tend to recommend natural reinforcers (e.g. praise, pats on the back) over artificial reinforcers (e.g. tokens, rewards).

Not every parent needs parenting training. For some, they have learned how to parent by viewing good role models, reading books (much like this one)/ watched TV shows. But, trained therapists can help to coach better parenting skills and manage a broader range of individual family problems.

My Christian Perspective:

It's the same way my mother taught me (Deuteronomy 11:18-20). From a young age, my mother would teach us verses of the bible, she would help us apply the wisdom of God in our daily lives. The book highlights the importance of creating a family that loves/honors God and loves/honors each other. In the first 10 chapters, the authors gives ideas about how/why to refocus parenting strategies. Instead of focusing on behaviorally relevant outcomes, the authors suggests that parents should focus on building relationships with the child, and creating in them a heart that wants to do right by God and man.

My overall rating: 

Excellent

I believe Part I (the first 10 chapters) of The Christian Parenting Handbook (2013) gives some pretty good insights into Christ-centered parenting. The authors don't tell me anything I wouldn't have learned in a basic parent-training course (e.g. Triple P) and it's quite lengthy. But it certainly costs a lot less than a parenting course and is jam packed with examples making it really relevant to parents. Compared to other Christian parenting books, it's quite up to date in terms of strategies (without explicitly citing any research). 

The Christian Parenting Handbook is on sale now at Amazon. 

Buy The Christian Parenting Handbook between April 29 and May 5 and get a package of free resources valued at more than $400.00. To claim your premium, simply forward your purchase confirmation to Gift@biblicalparenting.org and we will email you your special product code for the $400.00 package. .

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Movie Review: The odd life of timothy green (2012)

Movie Summary: The Odd life of Timothy Green (2012) 

Two want-to-be parents have difficulty conceiving and together they dream up attributes of their child. Magically, Timothy comes to them as an answer to their prayers, and teaches them (and those around them) more about parenthood and life than you can imagine.

My psychological perspective:

Suitability for children: 

I believe that this movie is suitable for the whole family. Parental guidance is recommended for some scenes as explanations maybe necessary. 

Things to talk to your kids about:

Being unique/different.

Things to talk to your teens about:

Potentially, conversations about evolution, conception, being unique, adoption, death/loss.

My Christian Perspective:

It's a fantastic tale told by two wanna-be parents. Another tear jerker. When I first saw the title of the film, I was uninterested and a bit turned off. It wasn't until I gave the film a chance that I was enchanted by the storyline. The little kid is also a wonderful actor and although it's clearly fantasy, the film touches many important issues. A key problem for me is the suggestion that "human" life can come from alternative means. Sure, I believe in adoption, I believe in assisted methods of conception, but that children grown on trees, well it suggests a whole new debate on evolution. 

On another level though, you have to appreciate that this child essentially lives and gave parts of himself to others so that they could live a full life. Essentially, this Christian's view of Jesus is similar. He came, he taught us by giving up parts of himself as a sacrifice. And even though he doesn't walk among us anymore, his legacy continues. 

My overall rating: 

Excellent

The odd life of timothy green is an excellent way to spend a few hours. It's a feel good movie based on fantasy that is sure to leave you thinking of the gift children are in our lives. 

The odd life of timothy green (2012) is currently available on DVD from Amazon. 

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Preview I: New blog!

My new blog will premier May 2013. It's going to be filled with insights, reviews and clinical experiences from both a christian and psychological perspective.

Before the official launch, I would love to give you a taster of what is to come. I have got a copy of a brand new soon-to-be released ebook!

The Christian Parenting Handbook: 50 Heart-Based Strategies for All the Stages of Your Child's Life

• by
 
• Scott Turansky, 
• Joanne Miller

To kick off launch week, I will post a book review with bonuses and a fantastic giveaway!

Thanks for stopping by and God bless!

Karen Li

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