Capability as Spiritual Formation

How Can We Raise Capable Kids Without Rescuing Them?

David Thomas, co-executive director of Daystar Counseling and co-author of Capable, joins Curtis Chang for a timely conversation on Christian parenting, kids' mental health, and raising resilient children in an age of anxiety. They explore why today's parenting culture can accidentally make kids less capable—and how faith, courage, and emotional resilience can help families face struggle without fear. If you're raising kids in this world shaped by stress, screens, and social pressure, this episode offers grounded, practical wisdom.

02:32 - It's Been a Decade of Youth Mental Health Crisis and Parental Stress

06:10 - Distinctively Christian Parenting vs. Secular Approaches

11:06 - Parenting as Spiritual Formation

16:31 - Has Language Inflation Made Parental Modeling More Important?

19:26 - How Do Some Parental Practices Undermine Capability?

25:39 - Managing Parental Discomfort and Allowing Growth

30:59 - Parenting as a Context for Parental Growth

32:02 - Death to Self and Parenting Young Adults

34:34 - Empathy and Questions: A Parental Script

36:43 - How Do Empathy and Agency Image God in Parenting?

38:17- Encouragement for Exhausted and Stuck Parents

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Mentioned In This Episode:

• David Thomas & Sissy Goff's Capable: How to Teach Your Kids the Strengths, Skills, and Strategies to Build Resilience
• David's co-author Sissy Goff
• Jonathan Haidt's The Anxious Generation
• Jonathan Haidt's substack After Babel
• Katherine and Jay Wolf's Hope Heals

Scriptures Referenced:

• John 16:33 (ESV)
• 2 Corinthians 3:18 (ESV)
• Romans 8:29 (ESV)
• Genesis 4:26 (ESV)

More from David Thomas:

• Listen to David's podcast: Raising Boys & Girls (with Sissy Goff, David Thomas, and Melissa Trevathan)
• Explore Daystar Counseling in Nashville, Tennessee
• Follow David on instagram: Raising Boys and Girls
• Other books by David Thomas

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The Good Faith Podcast is a production of a 501(c)(3) nonpartisan organization that does not engage in any political campaign activity to support or oppose any candidate for public office. Any views and opinions expressed by any guests on this program are solely those of the individuals and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Good Faith.