COURAGEOUS PARENTING

Loss, suffering, and earthly death are an inevitable reality for everyone, but faith in Jesus Christ changes the experience for the believer! In this very special episode, Angie shares some intimate realities of walking through grief and mourning at the recent passing of her Dad! If you have ever experienced loss, are walking through loss, or even if you haven't yet, this episode will certainly equip you with a Biblical perspective on death, mourning, the comfort we have in Jesus, and the promise of eternal life! And in traditional Courageous Parenting style we will share scriptures that are essential for equipping your children in how to grieve in a godly way! All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

Marriage strength largely determines the strength of your family and your ability to influence and lead your children. Isaac and Angie give four things you can do today and onward to tend to the heart of your marriage. If you do these four tips for the next thirty days you will dramatically improve the strength of your relationship and ability to work as a team too. Don't let communication breakdown slowly over time in your marriage. If it's not proactively worked on that's exactly what happens. We are living in unprecedented times and it's more important than ever to be proactive in strengthening your team. The world won't get easier, but your marriage team can always get better. Take on this as a marriage challenge for the next thirty days, perhaps listen with your spouse too and do it together. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

If you want a more peaceful home don't take the normal parenting short-term approach. Correcting your children's behavior is important and it's vital to be consistent, but if you don't tend to their hearts while doing so, it will lead to frustration over time. It also misses an important opportunity for getting to the heart level of the issue with your children that should end by pointing them to Jesus. A biblically based approach to correcting your children. Remember, if you don't have their heart in this season, you will likely lose it in the next. Just think about it, most Christian parents don't have their children's hearts in a strong enough way in today's society, but it's essential. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

We all must ask this question and be willing to be honest about it. With about 80% of the children raised in Christian homes leaving the church by age 18, we must do things differently than most Christian parents. So who is spiritually leading your family? As parents, I hope we all would want to say “We are”, but the truth is most aren't. Not with the intentionality and frequency the bible talks about in Deuteronomy 6:6-9. While a church's influence is good and needed, if that's where they get most of their Spiritual nourishment, then parents are failing in this area. Isaac and Angie Tolpin dive into what the Bible says about gender roles in the family and the importance of both mom and dad having influence while respecting God's plan for the family. They even go into what if your husband isn't a Christian, and direction for single moms and dads too.

We give four tips to helping Christian parents with this universal challenge of having to handle disrespect. Whether it's a rolling of the eyes, not following through, leaving messes, or blatant defiance it's probably safe to say all parents have experienced these things. The good news is you have massive influence and so does your spouse towards influencing change in this area. One of the biggest challenges though is when spouses disrespect each other in front of their children, and sometimes even sarcasm can confuse children in how to relate with you. Get four practical things you can do to make a difference. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

If your marriage isn't unified on parenting, your family will struggle or worse. Unfortunately, most houses fall in one way or another. Sometimes it's a big tragedy, but often it's a small slow division that grows over a long period of time amongst good people who are married. Isaac and Angie Tolpin give biblically sound advice in four areas that most Christian marriages have some level of struggle with. Tune in to see where your marriage is at with these four areas and get the encouragement you need. Your marriage team makes a profound impact on generations to come. Use this episode to identify where work needs to be done and do the hard work it takes to be a stronger unified team in marriage. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

There is an attack on the food supply that aligns with some of the nefarious goals of powerful people and organizations. It's not a lack of trust in the Lord to take action when there are pending challenges coming, it's wisdom. Regardless of your situation, there are things you can do. Isaac and Angie Tolpin talk about simple steps toward preserving the quality of your family's food supply regardless of the growing corruption of food. We live in a world where there are valid concerns parents should think about with lab-grown meat that has been approved in the US, GMOs, and of course the dangers of the future meat supply. We can't get caught off-guard but instead, do what we can do now. We believe it's essential for children to grow up learning how to supply their own families in the future with safe food too. Watching and participating with you is the best training. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

For the last few years, there has been a growing concern of a nationwide blackout in the U.S. and I'm sure those of you from other countries will relate to this episode too. Isaac and Angie share real data points on why they believe there's real potential for this to happen. If it does happen by way of an EMP or HEMP, they give insights into what's important for day one, day three, and one week into the blackout. They also give a biblical perspective on how to look at this potential and encourage believers to not fear this and other possibilities but instead move forward with confidence as they lead their families. It's a thought-provoking episode to help you mentally and practically be prepared for this possibility while seeing the opportunity for the gospel to spread too. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

There could be a lot at stake if you don't move, however, God could also want to use you right where you are. So how do you make this important albeit difficult decision? This episode will help you as Isaac and Angie Tolpin dive into the depths of thought on this beyond the surface. They moved to a foreign place three years ago for highly intentional reasons and it's made a powerful difference already in their family and future legacy. Our toughest decisions we've made usually have been the most fruitful too. Sometimes it takes reorienting your entire life to make a move including how provision comes in, but what if that's the best plan? Be careful not to hold onto your comfort so strongly in the short-run that it prevents the best path for your family to thriving way down the line. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

I am sure you would agree that as the God-ordained leaders of our families, we get the incredible responsibility and privilege of establishing and cultivating a biblical family culture. Easier said than done in a world that is constantly at odds with biblical truth and influences that will tempt you towards passivity and your children towards fleshly ways and perspectives. In this episode, Isaac and Angie tackle the timely and needed conversation that will be like a shot in the arm of encouragement as you step up and take on “unapologetically protecting your family culture.”

It's a rough road for parents that let their children become more self-centered over time. Isaac and Angie give you practical christian parenting tips to help you shape the character of your children. You will get six scriptures you can use with your children and ways to talk to your children when they act like the world should revolve around them. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

Hormones are a big conversation but an important one for parents. Every child is impacted by the changes that occur in their bodies as they grow, but families are also impacted by the hormones of Mom and Dad as well. While this conversation might seem timely in this day and age, it's always been a needed conversation for parents. We must discipline our children to have a healthy and biblical view of the human body, and that requires parental intervention in a culture that is rampantly teaching opposing views. Join Isaac and Angie as they tackle a diverse topic with grace and understanding while also sharing biblical truths and things they have learned along the way. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

It appears that peer influences become stronger than most Christian parenting influences into the teenage years with so many children leaving the church by age 18. It actually shouldn't be the case and there's a lot you can do to equip your children so that they don't go along with waywardness even when peers around them are. It's a different world today and it will be a far different world that they will be launching into requiring greater intentionality. This episode is a must-listen for all parents as they navigate this challenging area of what to do when peers try and influence their children away from Godliness. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

Parenting middle schoolers take more intentionality than ever to prepare them for their teenage years in these unprecedented times. Isaac and Angie give three keys which include communication strategies, discipleship tips, and thoughts on equipping them that keep you as their most important teacher. As parents, we must seize the opportunity before us to do this well as there is a lot at stake as the enemy continues to use culture to sway the next generation away from Godliness. They also give a strong case for children sitting with their parents during church. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

We can all agree that Christian parenting requires more intentionality than ever to equip children to stand firm in their faith in these unprecedented times. Specifically, parents have a unique opportunity they must seize while their children are between the ages of 8-12. This episode goes into why and some practical things you must be doing with them to defy the odds against you as the culture war heats up in society.

Get the encouragement needed to thrive as a family this year by not letting the silent desire for perfection get in the way. Find out if perfection is something that is killing your joy and contentment or even worse, hurting your most important relationships in your home. Get practical insights and encouragement to stay away from the comparison trap and to thrive in the midst of imperfect people and circumstances. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

We share lessons learned from a season our marriage struggled, give a marriage challenge you've likely never heard before, reflect on our favorite bible verses, and share two unique experiences in our lives too. It's a fun behind-the-scenes episode as we celebrate five years of the courageous parenting podcast. This year we feel a stirring to do something far beyond our strength and see a double impact happen through the ministry. If you'd like to be a part of this incredible possibility happening go to becourageousministry.org/newsletter.

You want to cultivate a relationship-driven home versus a religious home. I think we would all agree that the Christian faith is all about a real ongoing relationship with Jesus. But too often without even realizing it, in the eyes of growing children, they see a religious home that's more about a couple of weekly events but not enough about a relationship. This starts with our own relationship with Jesus which influences our relationship with our children too. Don't let life be too busy where you're not actually cultivating deep relationships that are growing with your children and a home that daily reflects its inhabitants having a growing relationship with God. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

Here are three things you can do right now to speak to your spouse's heart in a way that grows your relationship. We all must work on our marriages so that despite what the world throws our way our bond and relationship are unbreakable. A thriving marriage means you will have a far more enjoyable life, but it's also a catalyst for your parenting efforts. If you love this episode please share it out there. Together we move closer to impacting 10 million legacies. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

Isaac and Angie Tolpin share the decisions they came to early in their marriage regarding Santa Claus and why they made them. While all Christians likely have the motivation to keep Christ the center of Christmas, we've found it takes a concerted effort to actually do so. Get some tips on how to do this, our opinions on Santa and why we love giving each other gifts at Christmas.

Creating the real lasting change you want to see in your family takes a concerted effort in a focused direction with strong marriage alignment. Isaac and Angie share the five steps to take that they do way before the new year and why that's essential. They even share some of their areas of focus for change. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

The Tolpins have a lively discussion with actor, producer, and author Kirk Cameron. He shares how he grew up unchurched, his testimony of accepting the Lord at 19, and his recent battles with the woke library system. Get a fresh perspective on not feeling defeated by the times, an exhortation for men, the importance of loving your enemies, and why he believes a revival could be around the corner. Get some unique and biblically sound perspectives from this Christian actor and family man. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

Isaac and Angie Tolpin give a transformative tip to parents that will change their view of the moments their child disobeys them, motivating them to respond in a healthy biblical way that points them to Jesus. There are a lot of opinions amongst Christian parents about how to best discipline their children, but every parent must do these two steps first. Unfortunately without taking these two steps first, which is too common, the long-term relationship could be hurt and they may disdain authority in their life later on, which could include God. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

Get the practical insights and motivation to grow your marriage through prayer. You will be so motivated to grow your marriage after this episode! The Tolpins have an incredible conversation with the authors of Marriage After God; Aaron and Jennifer Smith about why, how, and the obstacles to praying together daily. We are living in unprecedented times and it's vital to strengthen our marriage relationship and one of the best ways to do this is to pray together. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

The Bible speaks about greater division even in nuclear families in the end times. Isaac and Angie dive into practical insights on cultivating strong family bonds, encouraging sibling relationships, and what parents can be doing early to establish loyalty to each other. Division doesn't have to happen in your family but it takes greater intentionality and most importantly ongoing discipleship. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at courageousparenting.com.

You may know Kevin from the movie “God's Not Dead” or the other 50 movies he's been in. He and his wife Sam met as actors on the set of Hercules and have been married for 25 years with three children who are following the Lord. Sam shares thoughts on homeschooling her children, marriage, and keeping the family together despite her husband's busy acting travel schedule. Kevin shares about the cancellation in Hollywood he experienced for standing for truth. They are Courageous parents standing firm and proclaiming the Lord through their family. It's a powerful conversation Isaac and Angie had with the Sorbo's. Be ready to be encouraged!

This is a controversial topic but we believe every Christian parent should think through this holiday and have a clear plan for their family. Some participate like the rest of the culture does and some hide with the lights off ignoring children at their door. Isaac and Angie give insights into how to not be like the world, but how to be in it as a light during this popular holiday. Regardless of where your convictions lie, this will be an insightful and practical episode to help you process your plans. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

We address the current war Israel is facing as an example of how and when to communicate with your children about the challenges happening in the world. We give several warnings to parents about what they say in front of their children. While we believe in equipping through knowledge of the world at the right age, it must be seasoned with even more saturation of God's truth in the bible. We must tip the scale towards the good news that gives eternal hope over the challenging news of the world; after all, I'm sure you are hopeful your children have children right? We are concerned that this next generation of believers won't want to bring children into this world due to an imbalance of what parents are focusing on in their conversations while they are young. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Other influences can be a huge help in equipping your children, but we must never assume that that's the case. Whoever you point your children to to learn from; whether coaches, friends, youth pastors, teachers, or relatives, it's important to establish a relationship with them and let them know a few important things we discuss in this episode. Unfortunately, too often, these temporary influences in children's lives fail to encourage life-long influence by not pointing children back to communicating with their parents as well. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

This episode will give you practical insights into parenting your children before this season and if you are already in the season too! Perhaps the most important season for open deep communication and a strong relationship with your children is during the middle school years. The middle school years are when you will more clearly see any weaknesses in your relationship with them and your previous parenting efforts too. Be encouraged as the Tolpins share from experience having six children who are or who have already gone through the middle school years, and three littles, so they are preparing for it now too! All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Whining, complaining, and grumbling are issues that all parents deal with because they are human condition issues. However, you can help your children mature in this area if you consistently follow through on a few crucial things well over time. The Tolpins have been parenting children 5 and under for 23 years so far and have a depth of understanding in how to guide your children to overcome these things over time. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Loneliness appears to be a growing issue amongst believers. You will be encouraged in this episode with practical insights to help you cultivate authentic friendships. If you stand for strong biblical conviction and are intentional in your family life, it can feel like you are alone at times. The truth is you're not alone, but it does take some time and effort to find strong friendships you can run the race with. This episode will help! All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Despite homechurch being healthy and despite our preference for homechurch, we had a final church celebration Sunday with the families encouraging everyone to disperse and find a new church. In this episode, we share the two compelling reasons why and then give you the same Biblical insights we gave the eleven families doing Home Church with us on what to look for in a church according to scripture and how to be part of their new church home. Isaac and Angie Tolpin also share what their plans are next. Regardless of your church experience, this is a must-listen episode. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Get insights from our twenty years of homeschooling with three graduates so far. Regardless of your education choices, this episode will help you see if you have bought into myths that alter your choices or are hindering your current Homeschooling efforts. The Tolpins unmask the six myths so you can be encouraged and make your choices devoid of wrong thinking and enter this next season of schooling with greater confidence. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

The Tolpins give their candid insights from their experience raising seven boys and two girls. There certainly are some differences in approach as God made two very different genders. However, they also discuss the many ways their approach is the same too. They give a few warnings that every parent must hear. Another practical episode that should help you right now. This episode will help. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

We all know we aren't perfect parents and perfection isn't the objective. We will make mistakes with our children, but do our children see us walking in humility when we do? Just as we expect them to apologize when they error, do we apologize to them when we make a mistake too? You may not see the ramifications of not doing this while they are young, but it will likely create distance as they get older, which is when they need your wisdom most in navigating the teenage years. This episode will help. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

This is a raw episode that will encourage you to protect and equip your family despite pushback! Parenting takes more intentionality than the previous few generations, especially with the seismic culture shifts increasingly against Christianity in the last few years. We have to get good at standing firm in a loving way even in Christian circles, this episode will help you do so. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Pessimism and optimism can both be problematic. We want to equip our children in being grounded in reality while hopeful about what's ahead. Of course, this episode will help you navigate poor attitudes in your home, but it also helps everyone see the bigger picture of why this is essential in preparing our children for being adults in a future different world. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Church is every bit as much for children as it is for adults and we must regularly check in with our children to see how it's going for them. There could be a myriad of reasons why it's good, but also why there could be challenges too. You want to know of any challenges that may exist. This episode is about helping our children love the bride of Christ. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

We get to disciple our children up in the Lord but also help them with good habits, behavior, and ways to think about things that yield fruitfulness in their future adult lives. We get to help them mature along the way and overcome character flaws. Following through is such an important area we get to help them mature. If you notice a trend in poor behavior, let's dig deeper in conversation to help them understand how to approach that better the next time and the motivation to do so too. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

We believe the balanced life is a myth and the expectation of living a more idyllic balanced life at some point may not be healthy for various reasons we discuss. While having intentions you are working towards for growth and improvement is vital, it's important to be content with the season and circumstances we are in at the same time. If a balanced life is the end goal there's more harm than good that will likely come from it. We need to be raising resilient children, and the pursuit of comfort, ease, and idyllic balance in our lives will likely create weaker adults that enter a world that requires resiliency.

In this episode, you get six practical steps in becoming a stronger team in your marriage. You will glean communication wisdom, simplified answers to having marriage vision, the dynamics of oneness, the importance of encouraging the gifts and passions of your spouse and so much more. This is a must-listen for every married couple. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

You can thrive in every season, regardless of life circumstances, but to truly thrive we must pursue and choose to grow. Maybe you feel stuck, too busy, or maybe you believe “this is as good as it gets.” We must keep our eyes on what is eternal and when we do, there is always room to grow! Our capacity grows as we lean into the hard times in this life with a teachable heart, ready and willing to make change, but also when we walk in humility in biblical friendships that seek to encourage us and spur us on to good works as well as exhort one another to change and live better. Join Angie as she digs into the Word of God, warning us to watch out for the trap of limited introspection and the freedom that begins with biblical self-examination and points us to the freedom we have in Christ. Let's be the light in this world by truly thriving even in the midst of a fallen world… you never know who will ask you where you find the hope you have. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Are believers growing more divisive with each other following the pattern of the world? Family size is one of many hot points right now, and it shouldn't cause disunity. While the Tolpin's have never been part of the Quiver full movement, they do have nine children. In this episode, they lay out what they see in the Bible regarding having children and how they have lived out their convictions. Get ready to be encouraged, maybe challenged, and a few warnings too as they make a call for unity.

The Amazon docu-series “Shiny Happy People” brings up some important conversations relevant to Christianity today. In this podcast episode, Isaac and Angie discuss concerns regarding the Patriarchy and Quiverfull movements which do need to be talked about. We want to stay on the biblical road and not fall into the ditches of legalism or on the opposite side, moral relativism. It takes continually drawing close to the Lord, reading His Word, and discerning what's true, and what is going to be fruitful for your family. As always, the Tolpin's aren't afraid to discuss the hard topics and give their best to help the Body of Christ. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org

The Tolpin's get raw and real about the challenges and blessings of their homeschooling journey over the last 19 years educating their 9 children! They are first-generation homeschoolers who've learned a lot and even warn others towards the end of the episode about ditches to stay out of. Regardless of how your children are educated, you will likely find this fascinating and helpful. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

There's power in stories; this episode may be one of the most helpful ever, full of practical insights and a full behind-the-scenes look at when and how Isaac and Angie went against the grain with a fresh, intentional, and biblical approach to equipping their children starting 23 years ago to be ready for today and the future world they will be launching into. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

In an age with instant access to so many teachers, it's helpful and important to know the backgrounds of those you learn from. Tune in to hear the Tolpin's raw and real journey being part of the body of Christ over the last 23 years. Isaac and Angie Tolpin are open books! In fact, you can ask them anything during LIVE Q&A's in the Be Courageous app and they will answer candidly. Sometimes hearing stories gleans the most wisdom; you will likely experience that in this special episode. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

Disagreements in your marriage can be healthy as they cause incremental recalibrations along the way versus big blow-ups down the road. If you stay away from them at all costs it will cost far more later than the present inconvenience. Tune in and be encouraged in how to disagree well and why it can bolster a stronger marriage, better teamwork, and more effective parenting too! All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.

As the world changes; the usefulness of a strict academic educational approach is fading, we must balance it with the development of relevant life skills. The right combination of these, along with ongoing spiritual discipleship leads to the outcomes that matter most during uncertain times. Regardless of your homeschooling experience or lack of it; this is a thought-provoking and timely discussion. All show notes, scripture references, and resources mentioned are found at BeCourageousMinistry.org.