“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6
There are few things in this world as amazing, rewarding, and, let’s be honest, confusing as parenting a teenager. As Christians, we know that we have to turn to the Bible first and foremost for all wisdom in life, including how we raise our kids. But sometimes we’re faced with a situation that calls for specific, topical advice. There are so many wonderful Christian resources out there offering advice on how to guide our teens that it can be a little overwhelming, so we’ve compiled a list of 7 of our favorites to get you started.
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
Between getting our kids to school, sports, friends’ houses, church, and anywhere else they need to go, as well as making sure they’re fed, clothed, and at least kind of well-rested, it can be easy to get so caught up in getting things done that we lose sight of what parenting is really about. This vision-centered book offers parents more than just a to-do list. He presents us a big-picture view of parenting with Gospel-based wisdom to help us understand how to disciple our children for Christ.
Parenting Teens with Love and Logic: Preparing Adolescents for Responsible Adulthood by Foster Cline MD and Jim Fay
We all want our teens to be prepared for the challenges of the real world, but it can be hard to figure out exactly how. This book empowers parents to raise responsible tweens, teens, and young adults without anger, nagging, or power struggles. It gives practical ways to teach our kids how to set healthy boundaries, learn important skills, and practice effective decision-making with empathy and grace.
A Parent’s Guide to Teen FOMO by Axis in Cooperation with Tyndale Publishing
Everybody wants deep and meaningful relationships with friends and family, but FOMO (fear of missing out) can become a stressful burden that robs us of the joy of living in the moment. Especially for teens already prone to feeling left out, social media can make everything harder by creating the illusion that everyone else is living a better life than them, making space for depression and anxiety to creep in. This pocket-sized guide is packed with explanations, tips, and discussion questions to help parents guide our teens to live FOMO-free.
Love Her Well: 10 Ways to Find Joy and Connection with Your Teenage Daughter by Kari Kampakis
Our culture has a lot of things to say to young women, and parenting in the midst of that can sometimes be a challenge. Love Her Well isn’t intended to help mothers “fix” our daughters or try and make them behave. Rather, it’s designed to help us do the heart-work necessary to love a teenage girl while still being a steady, supportive mom. The book offers wisdom to mothers on listening and empathizing with our daughter’s world, seeing the good in her, and loving her for who she is.
Habits of the Household: Practicing the Story of God in Everyday Family Rhythms by Justin Whitmel Early
Daily habits are powerful ways to shape the heart and you want to parent with purpose, but do you know how to start? There is always going to be tension between how you desire to parent and what your daily life actually looks like, but Habits of the Household helps bring the two things closer together by sharing some tools that can enable us to create structure–from mealtimes to bedtimes–and free us to parent toddlers, kids, and teens with purpose.
Family Discipleship: Leading Your Home through Time, Moments, and Milestones by Matt Chandler and Adam Griffin
We’ve all heard that discipleship is a key part of parenthood, but what does that practically look like? Family Discipleship offers us sustainable rhythms of gospel discipleship centered around specific aspects of our children’s journey to adulthood. The book includes suggestions, Scriptures, and activities to help us lead our families to be more Christ-like and God-fearing people.
Engaging Your Teen’s World: Understanding What Today’s Youth Are Thinking, Doing, and Watching by David Eaton and Jeremiah Callihan
If you have heard your teen say things like “sus” or “Netflix and chill” or “His rizz is goated fr” and felt like they were speaking another language, you are not alone. The linguistic landscape of teenagers is ever changing and difficult to navigate, and sometimes requires a guide. Engaging Your Teen’s World is a guide to deciphering teen culture and unlocking the doors to an ongoing conversation about faith and life with your kids.
While it’s essential to cling to the Word of God when it comes to the principles of parenting, sometimes we need some extra help with the ins and outs of raising a teen in the 21st century. We hope you find some of these resources useful, and want to encourage you that whatever you’re going through, you’re not alone. Not only can all of us parents look to each other for reassurance and wisdom about how to handle the challenges that only raising a teen can present, but we know that the Holy Spirit enables us to conquer those challenges and parent our kids to the glory of God.
If you’re interested in more resources about parenting teens through a gospel lens, check out the Books page on our website!