30. Should stepparents WANT authority with their step-kids?

Authority — it's a tough subject in blended families. Who has it…who doesn't? Who should have it…and who shouldn’t? There's so much conflicting advice out there about this it can make your head spin! And one big "message" that seems to have made its way into the mainstream is that authority should NOT belong to a stepparent. But, is it that simple? I (Mike) used to talk a lot about Authority Vs. Influence, but as I've come through 19 years now of rai...