One of the most significant challenges that parents have today is getting face-to-face with their kids and teens. The frantic pace of life and ever-increasing digital focus we all have can prevent us from engaging each other in ways that help us grow closer to the people we love. We all struggle in some way with having the healthy conversations we need to have. Our growing tendencies to isolate and communicate via screens are leading us away from the healthy relationships we all need and the conversations that help build and strengthen those relationships.

On this month’s M2P podcast, you’ll join Sass, Amy, and Kerry as they bring you an interview they recorded while at the 2024 D6 Conference in Orlando, FL. The M2P team talks with Patti Pilkington Reed about the importance of having what she calls “smart conversations” with ourselves, our teenagers, and our young adults. Patti is an entrepreneur, author, certified coach, and a growth-oriented leader. The M2P team will dive into a conversation with Patti and discuss some of the key principles found in her new book Face to Face: Smart Conversations with Yourself, Your Teenager, and Your Young Adult. This book is a great encouragement and resource for parents and ministry leaders alike. There are lots of practical nuggets in this episode that will help you both evaluate how you deal with conflict through conversations and how you can help the parents in your church do the same.

In order to grow as disciples, families need to develop a culture of discipleship in their homes. However, the simple truth of the matter is that a lot of parents are intimidated by the notion of being the primary spiritual leaders for their kids and teenagers. As ministry leaders, we have the opportunity to encourage them to embrace their role, and we can paint a picture of discipleship at home that is actually attainable. As parents, we need to own our God-given role as lead discipler and maybe even consider developing a different picture of what it means to disciple kids and teens. Parents and ministry leaders don’t have to have all the answers or be professors of theology. We simply need to be authentically walking with Jesus and invite our kids and teens to join us in doing the same. That’s what discipleship looks like.

On this episode of the M2P podcast, the team sits down with Heather Quiroz to discuss a different way to lead ourselves, our kids, and our teenagers—the way in which Jesus led His own disciples. Heather is a gifted author, teacher, and speaker with over fifteen years of ministry experience. She turned her passion for teaching and sharing the Jewish roots of the Christian faith into founding First Century Youth Ministry with the goal of inspiring youth workers, leaders, and families to become grounded in the Jewish roots of the Christian faith and, in doing so, have a deeper love for the whole Bible. When she’s not writing, speaking, or leading trips to Israel, Heather stays busy sharing about her book (First-Century Youth Ministry: A Look Back For The Way Forward In Youth Ministry Discipleship), leading coaching cohorts, hosting episodes of The First-Century Youth Ministry Podcast, working at a staff consultant with Ministry Architects, or pouring herself into her first and greatest ministry of wife to Rodrigo and mom to their daughter, Adah.

Join us as Heather talks to us about the ways Jesus walked with His followers in the first century, how authentic discipleship happened then, and as she shares about some great, but simple practices we can implement in our lives and ministry. Take a listen and share the podcast with your friends.

Are you, as a ministry leader or parent (or both), looking for relief from the daily demands of leading? Are you worn down, near empty, or feel like you are being held captive to a schedule that offers no mercy? The daily weight of leading in ministry or at home is heavy and draining. And as our guest this month so wisely puts it, “Adapting to an empty tank is not only dangerous, but arrogant. It’s not just that you lead on an empty tank; you willfully acknowledge you are empty and depleted, and you push through and lead anyway.”

On this episode of the M2P podcast, the team is live at the D6 Conference in Orlando, where we welcome our friend, author, speaker, and disciple-maker Marianne Howard to pull up a chair and have a refreshing conversation about rest. The concept and the importance of rest are often looked down upon in our culture, which celebrates busyness as success in leadership. But, as Marianne reminds us, “To lead from a place of rest, we must live from the daily practice of intimacy. God’s primary call on our life is not ministry; it’s intimacy. Intimacy is remaining in that close, dependent relationship with Jesus Christ. Abiding is the most important aspect of a leader’s life because authentic leadership is an overflow of satisfaction in God.” Through our conversation with Marianne, we discuss her new book Rest: Overcoming Spiritual Fatigue and how we can all learn to step into experiencing the rest that God offers and that we so desperately need. Don’t miss this conversation as we spend some time talking about the concepts in the book and encouraging you to make spending intentional, restful time with the Lord a normal part of your rhythm of life.

This month, we dive into an issue that we all know is at the forefront of child and adolescent development: the question of identity. Kids, teens, and even parents often struggle to embrace an identity that is rooted in their relationship with God. Instead, we frequently feel like we need to perform, achieve, or earn any love or acceptance, and we have great difficulty settling into an identity rooted in our relationship with God. In this episode, Sass, Kerry, and Amy discuss this struggle for identity and how we can help the kids, teens, and parents in our ministry embrace an authentic identity that will sustain them for a lifetime.

Our digital world can be complicated, frustrating, and even incredibly dangerous. But one thing is certain: it’s not going away anytime soon. The constant innovation, proliferation, and saturation of technology in the lives of our kids and teens is why ministry leaders must know how to better lead and equip parents to navigate this ever-changing space. On this episode of the M2P podcast, the team is joined by our friend and parent ministry expert, Brian Housman, to discuss some of the specific issues that arise in parents navigating technology alongside their kids and teenagers.

Brian is an influential voice in helping ministry leaders and parents discern how to guide their kids and teens to have a good perspective and healthy habits. He has traveled the world to teach and equip families since 1993 and currently serves as the Director of 360Family in Memphis, TN. Brian is also the founder of Screen Smarts, which is a revolutionary tool designed to help encourage and equip parents each week in just six minutes. Brian is a prolific writer for parenting magazines, most notably Parenting Teenagers, Homeschooling Today, and Parent Life. He has written four books: How You Always Meant to Parent, Engaging Your Teen’s World, Tech Savvy Parenting, and Raising Responsible Teens in a Digital World. Brian has been featured as a “parenting expert” (whatever that is) on more than sixty radio shows and TV programs, including FOX, ABC, and NBC affiliates. You can keep up with Brian and all he has going on through Instagram (@brianhousman) or Twitter (@BWHousman).

In this episode of the Ministry to Parents Podcast, the M2P team has a great conversation with youth ministry veteran of 35+ years, Jaymes Curran. Jaymes currently serves as the Director of High School Ministry at St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Austin, TX, and uses MinistryToParents in some truly inspiring ways. Our discussion with Jaymes centers around how he is utilizing M2P’s resources to equip the parents of his parish and, specifically, his creative use of M2P’s grade-specific family experiences on the church’s website. Jaymes has a great story and some great ideas about how we can equip and encourage parents as they seek to lead their kids and teens.

Let’s be honest: there’s a lot to manage when navigating daily ministry or family life (or both simultaneously). To say we are “busy” is sometimes an understatement. The frantic pace of life we often live leads us to a place of exhaustion where we simply cannot operate at our best. In our families and in our ministries, we tend to move from event to event and have so much to do that we have little time for rest, reflection, and genuine relational connection. The world will always push us to do more, be more, and accomplish more. But God encourages us to be still and focus on Him. He wants us to rest in His presence and learn to seek His kingdom above all else. In this month’s podcast, Sass, Amy, and Kerry discuss the importance of slowing down and learning how to rest. Let’s be real; we desperately need to do this as ministry leaders, and it’s our responsibility to lead the families in our churches to have a different mindset when it comes to moving through life. So pour yourself another cup of coffee, kick up your feet, and rest for just a few moments while you listen in as we both try to convince you that slowing down is essential, and we give you some ideas on how to do it.

This month on the M2P podcast, the team interviews Youth Pastor and author of the 12-Month Student Discipleship Journal, Joel Lusz. Joel holds a B.A. from Taylor University, an M.A. in Counseling Psychology from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. But more impressive than any of the degrees is the fact that Joel is a 40-year youth ministry veteran who is still serving in full-time ministry! This longevity is fueled by Joel’s passion to equip kids and students to grow in their faith and deepen their relationship with God. That’s why your M2P team wanted to get Joel the mic to share his thoughts on the importance of encouraging our kids and teenagers to spend dedicated time each day in God’s Word, equipping them with practical tools they can use to step into a life of consistent discipleship, and creative ways to help them build habits of reading, reflection, and prayer. Joel also shares with us some thoughts on how we can help families move beyond “checklist Christianity,” where they simply go through the motions of faith and live a life where Christ truly dwells in them. Finally, Joel will give us some great insight into what is happening with teens today and encourages us to help them overcome the distractions of life and learn how to follow Jesus truly. This is an episode that you will not want to miss!