Forming Kids Who Understand Their Worth with Amy and Rob Dixon

What is the ultimate goal that we are seeking for our kids’ lives?

As parents, it’s easy to fall into the trap of valuing our children’s performance, grades, goals, and awards more than our children themselves. But when our kids start to believe that their worth depends on what they produce, they begin to perceive both themselves and God in ways he never intended.

In this episode of The Teach Your Children Well Podcast, host Sarah Cowan Johnson talks with Rob and Amy Dixon, parents of four and coauthors of the children’s book Penny Preaches. Rob is also the author of Together in Ministry and teaches at Fuller Seminary and Fresno Pacific University. Amy is a professional writer, editor, and the author of multiple children’s books. Together, they reflect on raising kids in an achievement-obsessed culture, and how they’ve learned to resist that pressure, centering their parenting on God’s purposes instead.

Sarah, Rob, and Amy talk candidly about parenting regrets, identity formation, and what it looks like to help our kids discover their God-given gifts without crushing them under the weight of performance expectations. Through this conversation, we discover that good parenting is not about doing more. It’s about remembering who your kids are and to whom they ultimately belong.

Tune in now to learn how to help your kids pursue their calling, not just achievement, and how to walk with them like Jesus would.

This episode highlights the following themes:

✅Where and how does achievement culture show up in everyday family life
✅How to parent with a posture of blessing our kids, not just praising their deeds
✅Acknowledging that children are more than what they produce and accomplish

Links from the episode:

✅Learn more about Rob Dixon (www.drrobdixon.com/)
✅Learn more about Amy Dixon (www.amydixonbooks.com/)
✅Read their book: Penny Preaches (www.ivpress.com/penny-preaches)
✅Read Rob’s book: Together in Ministry (www.ivpress.com/together-in-ministry)
✅Read Amy’s books: Annie B., Made for TV (amzn.to/4eKeRth); Maurice the Unbeastly (amzn.to/44G3GgR); Sophie’s Animal Parade (amzn.to/3ImEjcg); and Marathon Mouse (amzn.to/4eKf0wP)
✅Learn more about Sarah Cowan Johnson (www.ivpress.com/sarah-cowan-johnson)
✅Read Teach Your Children Well by Sarah Cowan Johnson (ivpress.com/teach-your-children-well)
✅Read the transcript here (drive.google.com/file/d/1zXTTxFW7BPEDgyfy2XJZ5k4Y8LqF3p1w/view)
✅Take the survey here (forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx)

Credits

✅Special offer: Visit ivpress.com (ivpress.com) and use the code IVPTEACH25 for 25% off and free US shipping on any IVP resource mentioned in this episode.
✅Producers: Helen Lee, Kaitlin Borek, and Travis Albritton
✅Sound Engineering: Honest Podcasts (honestpodcasts.com/)
✅Social Media Manager: Makayla Payne
✅Podcast Art: Kate Lillard
✅Theme Song: "Childlike Wonder" by Reveille

=== Time Stamps ===

00:00 – Introduction
03:09 – About Rob and Amy Dixon
04:18 – Where Achievement Culture Shows Up
07:27 – The Pressure Beneath the Push
10:22 – What Culture Says the Goal of Parenting Is
12:40 – When Kids Believe Their Worth Comes From What They Do
15:13 – A Better Story: Calling, Gifts, and Belovedness
19:11 – The Parents’ Role in Launching a Child
22:55 – About Penny Preaches
24:47 – A Biblical Picture of Gifts and Calling
26:16– The Parent as Discernment Partner
31:13 – Parenting Question: How Can I Show My Kids Women Can Lead If They Rarely See It at Church?
36:17 – Steal This Idea: Building Identity Through Words, Not Achievements

Disclaimer: The comments, views, and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and/or the guests featured on the podcast and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of InterVarsity Press or InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.