A Parents Greatest Win
The undeniably most important mission of parenting is the faith handoff from one generation to the next. From the parents to the children. At some point, the Faith must become their Faith!
The Teen Years Should Be The Greatest days Of A Child’s Life, Yet, Parents Are Finding That The Teen Years Are Just The Opposite
These should be the greatest days of a teenagers life! I mean, after all the struggles that our country is facing, young people living in America experience the best opportunities than anywhere in the world. And yet, research is showing that parents are increasingly aware of the toll that mental health is having on our children.
There is no pressure to produce at the university level yet, no concern for a life vocation yet, no mortgage or vehicle or health insurance to pay for, and no serious relationship to consider marriage or a family to build. And yet, research is showing that parents are increasingly aware of the toll that mental health is having on our children.
NAMI (The National Alliance on Mental Illness) has done extensive research on the impact of parents and the family on child mental health development.
Teen Mental Health
According to NAMI, 50% of mental health issues begin in the teenage years, so we have an important mandate as parents.
One of the most concerning stories of the year came from a BARNA study on parenting and teen mental health. The research confirmed what many parents already sense: today’s young people are carrying heavy emotional burdens.
“Parents ranked anxiety, depression and loneliness among their top concerns for their teens. Many feel unsure of how to help—and are especially uncertain about when to step in with professional support.”
-From BARNA’s Gen Z and Mental Health research, 2025
It’s not just the holiday blues. It has become the narrative of life.
The Role of Parents
The role of parents to affect positive outcomes in the teenage years is vital.
This BARNA study also highlighted a hopeful reality: a warm, steady parent-child relationship is one of the strongest buffers against mental health struggles.
So what do parents do about the pressures of the culture surrounding our kids? Here are 7 practical principles:
Check in emotionally with your kids weekly
Create space for meaningful conversations at the dinner table 3 times a week
Get to know the friend circle of your teens so that you have a second line of communication to your kids
Understand that your teenager needs clear and consistent expectations
Set healthy schedules with sabbath and social boundaries
Model faith practices at home that further faith practice outside the home - prayer, reading, worship, and speech
Create an atmosphere of grace in the home
Parents who set these kind of principles in the home, will build teenagers who are able to navigate the storms and rough waters of the society around them.
The Role of Pastors
Faith is still one of the most important influences on a teenagers overall development.
Churches can play a pivotal role here too. By helping parents build family communication skills, foster ministries and departments with intergenerational relationships, and addressing mental health concerns from a biblical and theological perspective throughout each faith department.
“2025 is showing a major rebound of Bible reading, along with a surge in usage among younger generations,” commented David Kinnaman, CEO of Barna Group. “This aligns with other signs of spiritual interest and reinforces the finding that Christian faith and practice are experiencing a reset moment.”
And with Millennials and Gen Z making big moves toward the Bible, the theological and spiritual principles will definitely aid young people to deal with the mental health problems around them. Sure, there are times when a more clinical approach to mental health, or disciplined rest and diet, or the circle of friends around our kids, and even resilience training is important. But, the Scriptures bring a depth of practical wisdom when it comes to managing emotions and mindset in the face of difficulty.
At 50%, Millennials jumped an unprecedented 16 points in their reading of scripture. And Gen Z mirrors this pattern, rising from 30 percent to 49 percent in just one year.
BARNA’s 2025 reports show young people are the fuel that is increasing church attendance and discipleship programs. (commitments to Jesus ; church attendance)
The Role of Family
The family really could have an immediate impact on the mental health of our young people.
Our young people are not being raised in simply a fatherless generation anymore. They’re actually being raised in a fatherless, motherless, and sibling-less generation. The family structure has been disintegrated before them, and the family structure that we once enjoyed 50 years ago is gone.
“Family life is being reshaped in real time. From delayed marriage and shifting parenting roles to rising mental health and financial pressures, today’s households are navigating complexities most churches weren’t trained for.”
-From BARNA’s Gen Z and Mental Health research, 2025
The undeniably critical mission of the Church is to transform people's lives and culture through the message of Christ.
How do we see the world won to a relationship with Christ?
Do we start in the marketplace? How about the office? Maybe you think that the school or the university is the place we transform peoples lives and ultimately our culture. How about the media and the World Wide Web phenomenon? Certainly the Internet and Social Media is the fastest way to reach society, right? Do we implement city-wide outreaches? What about Church evangelism and outreach programs?
Let me offer a better option than all of these.
The family. And ultimately, our children.
There are many reasons the family is the key to transforming cultures. History has proven that family is the central system of every culture. There may not be a government, there may not be a school, and there may not be a business or an Internet connection in every corner of the world. But, there is a family in every corner of the world.
And think about it. Who will be the next leaders in government, the next leaders in the corporate world, the next leaders in education, and the next leaders in social media and the arts? It will be our children that we are raising right now and families all across America.
Finally
If the undeniably most important mission of parenting is the faith handoff from one generation to the next, what are we doing about it? Faith is the guide through the tsunami happening around our young people.
The faith handoff from the parents to the children is the critical responsibility of parenting. At some point, the Faith must become their Faith!
A parents greatest win is the development of our children. Total health is the greatest thing that one generation passes on to the next. Focusing on mental, relational, physical, and spiritual health development is the central role of parents, the family, and the church.
Ronald Reagan said 41 years ago in his exit speech from the presidency, “If you want to fundamentally change America, it does not begin in the halls of Congress here in Washington DC. If you want to fundamentally change America, it begins at the dinner table in every home across our great nation.”
President Reagan understood this important principle: The impact of parents during a child’s lifetime is the greatest influence on child development.
Take a look at and practice these seven principles as a parent. A disciplined and consistent effort of applying these seven principles will see a major impact on our children.
Because, these should be the best days of a teenager’s life.