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Don and Christy are good parents who are doing all they can for their kids. Their daughter and son have struggled as teenagers, and this is happening with millions of other families as well. But Don and Christy found out about STEPS Proactive Parenting, and this is their story …

One Thursday a year, there are people all over the country who go through a mild moment of torture. It may have happened at one of your Thanksgiving dinners. The food is on the table, and everyone is starving. Then, the host utters those dreaded words: “Let’s all say one

Simply from observation, it seems that some people are rarely thankful, or at least they don’t act like they are. Why would that be so? Perhaps they think they deserve the good things that happen to them. They may feel they have earned everything on their own, so there’s no

Listen to the 7-minute podcast version Watch a 1-minute overview video Do you consider yourself courageous? Do you aspire to be? Because reading this article may be one of the bravest things you have ever done. Or, perhaps, sending it—with love, grace, and compassion rather than judgment—to someone you care

Listen to the 7-minute podcast version Watch a 1-minute summary video Since founding a nonprofit ministry focused on helping people improve their lives and prevent issues such as addiction, the reasons for doing what I now do have been profoundly validated. Over and over and over, both factually and through

Listen to the 9-minute podcast version Watch a 1-minute introductory video It’s important for parents to talk to their kids. But have you thought much about what to say? Research validates that parents positively impact their kids by talking to them. And there are some things that desperately need to

Listen to the podcast version Watch a 1-minute summary video If your spouse is struggling with addiction, their life—and yours—will never be what it was before. The good news is it can be better! But it will take some work to get there. In Part 1 of this article, we

Listen to the podcast version Watch a 1-minute summary video Whether I’ve spoken at a church, civic club, or business gathering, it often starts the same way: “Steve, can we talk for a minute?” These conversations normally happen after most other people have left, and often off to the side.

Listen to the podcast version. Watch a 1-minute summary video. [Note from Steve Ward: Carter is our oldest son. He is doing great now, but his journey included issues with drugs and alcohol when he was a teenager, so I asked him if he had any advice to parents.] Hi,

Listen to the podcast version. Watch a 1-minute summary video. All parents want to protect their kids from harm and for them to have happy lives. The question is: “How?” As they grow up, most teenagers make at least some bad decisions, and it’s hard for parents to know what to

Listen to the 6-minute podcast version Watch a 1-minute introductory video Many parents want to control their kids. That’s understandable, and I was that way at times. But there are a few problems with that approach: it’s not what’s good for them, it’s not what’s good for us, and it

Listen to the 7-minute podcast version  Watch the 1-minute introductory video  I hadn’t expected to be moved so much at a medical conference. I was at the UAB Medicine Addiction Symposium, run by the Addiction Recovery Program. There were some great speakers, which I expected. But the part

Listen to the 5-minute podcast version.  Watch a 1.5 minute introductory video. Many parents worry how their kids will do during their teen years. Unfortunately, research shows they have reason to be concerned. Because young people’s brains work differently than those of adults. In addition, they are bombarded by

Listen to the 5-minute podcast version Watch a 1.5-minute video It was the darkest time of our lives. Our son was doing things that were becoming increasingly dangerous. What we knew about frightened us greatly, but it was what we didn’t know that kept us awake at night. He told

In the last 10 weeks, STEPS Ministries has distributed over one third of a million digital ads to every household with kids in Walker County, Alabama. Why did we do that?  Because of Ben, Debbie, Dylan, Gary, Molly, Chad, Larry, Crystal, Asa, Chris, Sam, Tanya, Larry, Ashley, Alex, Lance, Shane,

No parent likes to see their kids struggle. The good news is there are things we can do to help them. Parenting is hard, and it’s harder when our kids are getting into trouble. But too often, we procrastinate on tough issues like substance abuse. We need to realize doing

I know a lot about how to communicate with teenagers. Because when our older son was in his teens, I did much of it wrong. When kids become teenagers, it’s normally harder to talk to them than when they were younger. They’re not around as much and are often more

If you had reasons to believe one of your kids might have cancer, what would you do about it? Would you put off checking it out because you were too busy or work hard to find out what was really going on with them? Would you leap to conclusions on

Parenting is hard. And when kids become teenagers, it gets even harder, because things change. Which means parents need to change too. There’s a lot riding on how Moms and Dads make that transition. Sometimes, the safety of their kids. Because there are many things to worry about during the

Parenting is hard. When our kids become teenagers, it gets even harder. When they keep moving in a dangerous direction and repeatedly refuse to honor healthy boundaries or act in a safe and responsible manner, it can be downright frightening.   This article is about a situation I hope you never