Raising Kids Who Walk by Faith

On this episode of the On The Rise Podcast’s Faith Driven Leaders series, host Nick Stromwall sits down with Christina, who with her husband Brian coaches families to discover their God-given purpose and lead well at home. Christina shares the parenting philosophy behind raising three kids now serving in the military, working with orphans in the Philippines, and preparing for a gap year with the World Race. She explains how to discern which doors to walk through, why faith grows in waiting seasons, how hosting neighbors led her family into ministry with Apartment Life, and what faith-driven families often miss about legacy. Practical encouragement for leaders who want to lead their families on purpose.

1. Your kids are His, not yours.
Christina sees parenting as a season of stewardship. God entrusts children to us to prepare them for the purpose He already has in mind.

2. Raise adults who happen to be children.
Her kids loaded the dishwasher at three and did laundry at four. Chores were simply part of the family, while reading and grades were rewarded to build good thinking.

3. Small decisions build big ones.
Letting kids pick their own outfits and live with the results taught them to own their choices, preparing them for major decisions later.

4. Walk through the open door.
When you earnestly seek God’s direction, He will close the doors that aren’t for you. Her daughter stepped out in faith and found a ministry that had been praying for her.

5. Faith grows in the waiting season.
Like a peach tree that takes years of tending before it bears fruit, a God-given vision needs patience. Keep doing the next thing in front of you while you wait.

6. Community can happen anywhere.
Weekly Monday night dinners with neighbors turned an apartment complex into a church family. Apartment Life now places teams in communities to care for residents.

7. Legacy needs a shared family purpose.
Families often focus only on each child’s individual purpose. Children are gifted to enrich the family’s purpose too, giving wealth and legacy a lasting direction.

8. Know yourself to find your filter.
Understanding your identity and strengths gives you a filter for what to say yes and no to. What you see as weaknesses are often someone else’s strengths.

LINKS

blendwithoutbreaking.com

5. YouTube Chapters

00:00 Welcome Christina
01:58 A Gap Year With the World Race
04:05 Their Kids Belong to God
05:30 Raising Adults Who Happen to Be Kids
08:12 Supporting Each Child's Unique Path
16:52 Knowing Which Door to Walk Through
21:32 Faith in the Waiting Season
23:13 Building Community Through Apartment Life
30:26 Legacy and Family Purpose
35:39 Know Yourself & Where to Find Christina