License to Parent with Trace Embry

Ask Trace Delve into issues concerning bullying, discernment, and the starvation experienced by children—though not related to hunger. Reach out to radio@licensetoparent.org to seek solutions to your parenting challenges. Discussing Parenting with Trace Embry Trace Embry is the Founder of Shepherd’s Hill Academy , a Christ-centered, outdoor-focused, year-long, therapeutic boarding academy for trou...

Ask Trace Ever wished for a chance to glean wisdom from an expert specializing in troubled teens? I ask your questions to Trace Embry, a leading authority in working with challenging teens. Periodically, we engage Trace Embry in discussing parenting difficulties, drawing from his vast experience as the Founder of Shepherd’s Hill Academy. This institution has successfully redirected numerous teens...

Feelings Pt. 2 Last time on License to Parent we talked with John Rosemond about the mental health crisis and how it is affecting our teens. Mr. Rosemond said, “My contention is that it all goes back to the fact that we followed the herd in the early 1970s and we radically overhauled our parenting practices and we “fixed” something that wasn’t broken and we are paying a terrible price for that.” T...

Feelings It used to be that when a parent needed advice for parenting they would go to a trusted and seasoned family member like a grandparent, an aunt, or an uncle – even if the child had behavioral problems. And if that didn’t help, then the parent usually went to their pastor or clergy. But today we see that behavioral issues are viewed many times as clinical issues and this has given birth to...

Prodigal You may have read a myriad of books about raising godly kids and you are truly following the principles, but one of your own kids walks away from God. You could be a Sunday school teacher who taught other parents how to bring up godly kids and yet your child still leaves the fold. Or you are actually the author of a preeminent parenting book and still one of your kids abandons the Lord. A...

Walk Away Let’s say that you have read the myriad of books that have been written about raising godly kids and you are truly following the principles in those books to a “t.” Still one of your own kids walks away from God as a teenager. Maybe as a Sunday school teacher, you taught other parents how to bring up godly kids from what you have read in those same books, and yet your Bible Quiz winner h...

Daily Hope No one would disagree that it is difficult to raise teenagers today. However, some would argue- when have parents not found the times unprecedented and the task of raising teenagers difficult? On the surface, this argument might sound plausible, but when we really peel back the onion to see all of the moving parts it seems apples are being compared to oranges. Perhaps a better analogy i...

Digital Madness If you haven’t noticed we are living in a time where parents have to raise their kids in a society that itself has become mentally ill. If you have listened in before you may have wondered if we are just being extreme or if our culture really has descended into an emotional, psychological, and spiritual abyss. Unfortunately, the data would suggest the later. Many times we suggest t...

Ask Trace It’s another installment of Ask Trace where I ask Trace questions that are on your hearts. Today’s topic is kind of sensitive. It is around the topic of LGBTQ youth. Over the last couple of weeks, I have had several conversations about pronouns and how to adjust your thinking around that. In some of those eye-opening conversations, I am seeing parents, teachers, and leaders in the Christ...

Moms Raising Men Family values today are being challenged and even marginalized. Traditional gender roles have also been challenged and even redefined. Our boys are receiving distorted information about what it means to be a man; while more single moms are raising sons without a good male role model to help live out what it really means to be a man. This is becoming generational. Almost to the poi...

Resilient Kids The American culture is full of adults who are ideologically divided, emotionally fragile, addicted, mentally ill, and devoid of God. Sadly many of these adults are also averse to logic, objective truth, common sense, and even science. As responsible parents, we need to foster resilience in our kids like never before. But how do we do this when our kids seem to have lost so much con...

The Blessing Let me tell you about this gift. There is very little investment involved.  The gift is so much more valuable than the latest gadget your child may want. It’s a gift that can improve their lives now and in their future. It’s unlike most any other gift you know of.  This gift is The Blessing . So, what is the blessing?  You can find out today on License to Parent. Discussing Blessing Y...

Healthy Teens If you have ever thought that we now live in a time and place where it has never been harder to raise healthy teenagers, you’ll get no argument from most parents. However, could it be that today’s dystopian-like society might be making it impossible? Frequent listeners to License to Parent know the answer. There is a possibility of raising healthy teenagers. Teaching you how to equip...

Words of Love How many of us have ever had a deep discussion with our kids about love? About what it is and what it is not? Love is a multifaceted term and the English language only has one word for it, but other languages, like Greek,  have many. Greek’s uses of its other terms for love can be for describing a parent, or the love of a spouse. An entirely different word for love is used for the lo...

Hard Questions Last week we spoke with Dr. Don Williams about his book “The Young Christian’s Survival Guide.” In this podcast, he told us that his Grandfather was an illiterate country farmer from central Georgia and yet he had a tradition that marked Dr. Williams’ life forever. He required the youngest of his nine children (who was literate) to read the Bible aloud for him each evening when he c...

Lasting Impact In our nation’s past most people would have found it safe to say that kids who were submitted to the Lordship of Jesus Christ were more likely to bring joy to themselves and to their families than the kids who chose to pursue the sinful pleasures of the world. Yet in today’s information age the truth of Scripture, and the virtues of faith, family, and common sense are often belied a...

Empty Nesting Many parents invest 18 years into the lives of their kids before sending them out into this great big world. Maybe that’s you right now and your child is leaving the nest and that is something you excitedly anticipate. Or maybe it is a time of apprehension and sorrow and possibly even dread. Either way, it is a time of significant change and there is a certain sense of loss that is p...

Ask Trace If you could sit down and get some free advice from a 20+ year expert on troubled teens, what would you ask? Here I ask questions on behalf of you, our listening friends. Every once in a while we sit Trace Embry down and ask him questions about parenting difficult teens. As you know Trace is the Founder and Executive Director of Shepherd’s Hill Academy. Shepherd’s Hill has turned around...

Rebel Parenting The cultural revolution in the 1960’s changed the face of America. Sex, drugs, and rock and roll led the way to much of what we still see today in rebellion and immorality. After all it’s the youth of that generation that are the grandmas and grandpas of today. Now many parents, the children of the rebel generation, are having to navigate this new cultural norm and they’re finding...

God in Tech Just before the advent of the smartphone, it was reported that former US Education Secretary Bill Bennet said, “America is rapidly becoming the kind of nation that civilized nations send missionaries to.” For those who heard Mr. Bennett’s comment, it would have been hard for them to believe the kind of changes that would occur in America over the next 15 years. Smartphones have become...

The Blessing If I said that I knew what the perfect gift was that you could give your child for their next birthday you would want to know what it was, right? This gift does cost a little bit of money, and it has a little investment involved, but it is more valuable than the latest technology. The one that they probably want. This is a gift that can improve their lives now and in the future. It is...

Ask Trace If you could sit down and get some free advice from a 20+ year expert on troubled teens, what would you ask him? Find answers to questions about bullying, discernment, and starving children- but not from hunger. Email asktrace@licensetoparent.org to ask your tough questions. Discussing Parenting with Trace Embry Trace Embry is the Founder and Executive Director of Shepherd’s Hill Academy...

Battle Plan We all know the story of the prodigal son. In fact, it seems we all know a family that actually has a prodigal child. This is true for the President of the United States down to the average American Smith or Jones family. As believers in God and his Word, we understand that there are spiritual forces battling among us vying for our loyalty. A spiritual battle is also going on for our c...

Wisephone It has been long overdue, but in recent years a handful of visionaries and a growing contingent of parents are beginning to wake up to a vital need that can effect positive change not just in families, but in our culture. If you have happened to lookover ways to restore righteousness, peace, and joy to your child-rearing experience in your home then stay tuned. Find out how your family c...

Ask Trace Parent’s in today’s culture are facing some really hard choices. Raising their kids in a way that honors God means that their kids probably won’t be allowed to do things and activities that their friends get to do. When I was young it meant that I didn’t get to go to a movie theater. That was tough and caused lots of arguments in our household. Navigating culture and parenting leads to s...