Timeless Parenting

In this crossover episode with Al James from the Effective Ministry podcast we spoke about how Christian parenting is a balancing act. It involves balancing—or holding in tension—a number of different truths about the context in which we are raising our children. We need to view our family life through the different 'lenses' or layers of where we are in God's plan of salvation.  We are raising our...

In this episode we discussed how to think Christianly about technology from a variety of perspectives. Our guests were James Boswell, a 'technologist' and long-time consultant in the tech industry and his wife, Simone, who home schooled their six children as well as supporting many other young families in their parenting. Ann contributed her expertise in neurology and her experiences running paren...

This episode was recorded live at the Mothers Union Sydney Seminar on February 27, 2026 at St Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney. In the final session of the day, Harriet Connor hosted a panel of three guests about finding contentment when life is tough. Our guests were Kate Morris, who is raising two neurodivergent children, Jess Habib, who lives with a chronic illness and Mary O'Brien, who has seen adul...

In this summer edition of Timeless Parenting, we spoke with our guest, Christine Jensen, about setting goals and priorities for ourselves and our families. We reflected on questions like: What worldly priorities can influence our parenting? Why isn't happiness a good aim for our children? How can we set goals for our family when so much is out of our control? What is a better aim for our children...

In this episode we talked with the host of HerTheology podcast, Cass Backhouse, about the value of parents, especially mums, reading and studying the Bible. We spent some time reflecting on why it's worth investing in our relationship with God by reading his word. But then we turned to the problem: it can be so hard! We talked through some questions like: How can I adjust my expectations for Bible...

In this episode we got practical about prayer with our guest, author and mother-of-three, Wendy Lin. We spoke about how we experienced (or didn't experience) Christian prayer in our families of origin and how we decided to approach it with our own children. We discussed questions like:  What is prayer? Why should we pray if God already knows everything? How can practise both routine and spontaneou...

In this episode we chatted with father of four, Anthony Penn, about the issue of extracurricular activities (things like sport, music, dance and drama) that our kids might want to get involved in outside of school. We talked about the good things these activities can teach our children and the benefits of our whole family getting involved in the community organisations that run them. We talked abo...

In this episode Ann talks with Nicole Martin, Head of Foster Care, Adoption & Family Support at Anglicare, as well and two current foster mums: Robyn and Kate. Together they share a compelling vision of how churches and Christian families can show the love of God to some of the most vulnerable people in our society. Ann asked our guests a number of questions including: - Why do some children n...

In this conversation we speak with Dr Sarah Allen, a GP with a special interest in anxiety disorders, about the feelings we call anxiety, worry or fear, especially as experienced by our children. Sarah helps us to understand the difference between 'everyday' kinds of worry and clinical anxiety disorders - and what we should do if we think we or our children are suffering from the latter. We talk a...

In this episode we talk with Kate Morris and Dave Whittingham, who both have first hand experience of living with neurodivergence and/or supporting neurodivergent children. Kate Morris also brings a wealth of knowledge from her studies and research in this field. Our guests' insights are enlightening, educational and very encouraging. We cover questions like: - What do the terms 'neurodiversity' a...

In this episode we talk with Jocelyn Loane about the thorny topic of discipline. We explore what biblical discipline really means - it's not just punishment for a past wrong, but rather the loving, intentional, wholistic, long-term process of modelling, encouraging, training and correcting our children to help them mature towards godliness. We talk about: - What is discipline? - Why do parents nee...

In this episode we talk with Jane Gibb, an experienced life and conflict coach, about the many aspects of personal conflict, especially within marriages and families, and how it can help us grow. We had an insightful, practical and wide-ranging conversation about: - What is conflict? - Should Christians expect conflict? - What are the different ways people naturally respond to conflict and why? -...

In this episode we speak with guests Kat Ashton Israel and Al James about the heavy topic of when children wander from the Christian faith. We explore the reasons why Christians can be uncomfortable discussing this topic; the impact it has on parents (and their faith) when a child 'wanders' and how the church can best support families in that situation. We also take an in depth look at the tension...

This episode was recorded live at the Mothers Union Sydney Seminar on February 28, 2025 at St Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney. In the final session of the day, Al James and Beth Braga had a conversation about why teens and young adults are dropping out of church and the Christian faith, and what parents can do about it. They spoke about the key factors that, under the sovereignty of God, have been show...

In this 'summer edition' we spoke with Sam Hudson from Youthworks' Getaways program about holidaying well as a family. We talked about why we can find it hard to prioritise family holidays, what God's word has to say on the topic and how holidays can strengthen Christian families in their faith and relationships. Finally, we explored some practical tips for holidaying well, even if our budget is t...

We spoke with author and podcaster Daniel Sih about why Christian discipleship should include being intentional in our family's use of technology. We talked about the effects of tech overuse on children and their learning, the importance of creating 'tech-healthy' rhythms and 'going slow' with introducing new tech to kids. We finished with an encouraging reminder that no matter what, we can always...

In this episode we chat with our guests Mary O'Brien and Jocelyn Loane about what the Bible says about family traditions, how repeated rhythms can benefit our families, and how we can keep our focus on relationships rather than 'rules' amidst it all. We then share some practical ideas and examples of the kind of daily, weekly and yearly rhythms that can draw Christian families closer to God and cl...

In this episode, we chat with Kat Ashton Israel, preschool educator and mother-of-five, about: how to decide whether our child is ready to start school, how to prepare them for their first day, how to build a positive partnership with our child's educators, and how to navigate conflicts and concerns that may arise. Links: Parenting in God's Family: Biblical Wisdom for Everyday Issues , which conta...

In this episode, Christian sexologist Patricia Weerakoon and her son, theologian Kamal Weerakoon, spoke with Harriet Connor and Al James from the Effective Ministry Podcast. We spoke about the changes in our society that have given rise to transgender ideology, about the many factors that can contribute to children experiencing gender-related distress, about the most effective ways of managing gen...

In this episode, Christian sexologist Patricia Weerakoon and her son, theologian Kamal Weerakoon, spoke with Ann Cunningham and Al James from the Effective Ministry Podcast. We spoke about the secular, hyper-sexualised world our children are growing up in, how the Bible offers a much more positive message about sex, and how parents can start talking to their children about sex in a healthy and nat...

In this episode, we talk with Al James from Youthworks about what the research tells us about how to help our children stick with Jesus and his church. While there are no guarantees or 'silver bullets', these three things could be called the 'silver shavings' that Christian parents ought to prioritise. Links: Growing Faith Mothers Union Sydney . Listen to past Mothers Union Christian seminars on S...

Episode 2 - Doing church well, even when it's hard. With Al James In this episode of the Timeless Parenting podcast, hosts Harriet Connor ( Growing Faith ) and Anne Cunningham ( Mothers Union Sydney ) discuss the importance of prioritising church as a family and share practical tips for making it a positive experience, even when it's challenging. Joined by Al James ( Youthworks Ministry Support ),...

In our very first episode, you will meet co-hosts Harriet Connor from Growing Faith and Ann Cunningham from Mothers Union Sydney and find out why they have started the Timeless Parenting podcast. Together with their guest Christine Jensen, Ann and Harriet explore whether parenting has become harder over time. They talk about the challenges of modern parenting, such as technology, information overl...