Becoming a Spiritually Healthy Family


Overcoming spiritually dysfunctional parenting

Let God direct your family’s story and show your children a truly abundant life

No one who starts a family plans on falling into patterns of dysfunction, but between the baggage of the past and the pressures of the world today, developing destructive parenting patterns is all too easy. Family ministry leader Dr. Michelle Anthony has now brought hope and practical help to parents in her new book, Becoming a Spiritually Healthy Family: Avoiding the 6 Dysfunctional Parenting Styles (David C Cook/January 1, 2015/ISBN: 978-0781411394/$15.99).

Becoming a Spiritually Healthy Family was made for that “freak-out” moment nearly all parents have when they realize their child’s view of God largely comes from what he or she learns at home. While the task is intimidating, parents can avoid the temptation to ignore, outsource or overcompensate and find balance in letting the Lord become the Director of their family’s story.

Anthony points out that while some dysfunction is simply the reality of living in an imperfect world, truly painful dysfunction comes when we choose to sit in the Director’s chair of our life — pursuing abundant life instead of pursuing Christ. By surrendering the pen and allowing God to write the script as He sees fit, parents can guide their children into the abundant life Jesus offers, even in the midst of day-to-day living. This inspiring guide offers practical ideas to get parents unstuck in their family journey of faith.

Outlining the six most common dysfunctional parenting styles, such as the “I-Can’t-Say-No Parent,” the “Criticizing Parent” and the “Double-Minded Parent”, Anthony offers grace to parents who fall short, while providing practical tips, advice, activities and reflective questions at the end of each chapter that will help parents envision what it looks like for a family to follow Jesus and not the seductive alternatives the world offers.

Many Christian families are pursuing the “abundant life” by trying to achieve more and better. But when families pursue the abundant life in their own strength, their spiritual health suffers. Whether it’s creating rites-of-passage events for your children or writing a family mission statement, Becoming a Spiritually Healthy Family will help families pursue Christ, the only way they will find the truly abundant life — as a family.

If you long to show your children Jesus but don’t know how to do it, you’ll find hope in this practical guide to creating a relentlessly grace-filled home that is focused on God as first in charge.

David C Cook also has a monthly magazine available addressing spiritually healthy parenting. HomeFront is the perfect resource to help equip parents to be the spiritual leaders of their children. Complete with family tradition ideas, recipes, articles for everyone in the family, and more, the magazine can be sent to the subscriber’s inbox or home each month. HomeFront highlights one of the ten environments from the book Spiritual Parenting (also written by Anthony) each month as a practical way to make those truths come alive in each family member’s lives.

About the author

Dr. Michelle Anthony is the vice president of Learning Resources at David C Cook and the author of Spiritual Parenting, Dreaming of More for the Next Generation, A Theology of Family Ministry and The Big God Story. Anthony has graduate degrees in Christian education, theology and leadership and more than 25 years of church ministry experience as a children’s and family pastor. She has written more than a dozen Christian education and family/youth ministry resources, including David C Cook’s TRU Curriculum.

Anthony and her husband, Michael, have two children and currently live in Colorado Springs, where she loves a good book and a cup of coffee.


Learn more about Michelle Anthony and Becoming a Spiritually Healthy Family at www.michelleanthony.org, on Facebook or by following her on Twitter (@truinspiration)

Comments