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Taboo Series

Being a parent is one of life’s greatest blessings, but it can also be one of its most challenging roles, especially as children grow into their own identities. Many parents feel anxious about initiating difficult conversations with their teens. These topics are often labeled “taboo,” creating the misconception that they should be avoided or discussed only in private, if at all. As a result, parents are frequently left unsure of how, or when, to begin these important conversations.

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Mount Paran Christian School’s latest From The Mount podcast series called Taboo, addresses this very challenge. Designed to equip parents with practical guidance, the series encourages honest, age-appropriate dialogue with children while they are still under their family’s influence. Led by host Steve Kyle and New York Times best-selling author and mom of four, Mo Isom Aiken, each episode reinforces a central truth in parenting that waiting for discomfort to pass is not a strategy.

Children do not need perfect parents, but they do need present ones. Many of those uncomfortable conversations tend to be avoided by parents due to the discomfort and unsureness of how to have the tough conversations that cause discomfort. By sitting in silence, Aiken explains that parents may avoid these conversations due to fear, shame, or unresolved struggle. The world is already speaking loudly to children every day, and parents have a critical opportunity to lead those conversations with clarity and purpose. Kyle explains, “If parents do not engage, someone else will shape the conversation for them.” This encouragement is intended to inform, convict, teach, and counsel parents as they begin to navigate these fundamental years of development.

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Instead of allowing taboo subjects to cause discomfort, these intimate conversations with children are intended to become relational. By bridging the gap between parent and child and building a relationship of trust and openness, correction and grace may be formed. When parents speak early, calmly and consistently, children learn that hard topics can be discussed without panic or secrecy.

Uncomfortable conversations are part of raising children in a Christian home. Rather than pretend difficult subjects do not exist, parents are called to guide their children through them with truth and tenderness, helping them form a biblical worldview before culture defines one for them. Kyle explains, “We’ve got to get to the place where we feel and we are empowered by the spirit of God to have the conversations… Something is discipling our kids and if it’s not us or rooted in the word of God, it’s our culture.”


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The home should be the first place children learn how to handle hard things. Under their parents’ roof, they should hear truth spoken with love, not only warnings spoken with fear. That means starting small, staying age-appropriate and being willing to revisit topics as children grow. It also means admitting when a subject is uncomfortable and choosing honesty anyway, because silence often teaches more than words do.

To join the conversation, tune in for future podcast episodes from the Taboo series as well as summaries through our WingTips blog.

 
Diana La is the Assistant Director of Communications at Mount Paran Christian School. 
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