Let the Education Begin

Motherhood. We tend to think of this as a season for teaching. We bear the responsibility for a tiny life and for the next 18 years – or more accurately for the rest of our lives – it is our responsibility to guide, correct, and teach these God-given blessings. That’s what I thought anyway. It didn’t take me very long after giving birth to my first son to realize that the one who was going to do most of the learning was ME! One of my favorite sayings when coming upon a new challenge quickly became, “No one tells you …

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The Voice, The MOM Initiative & Titus 2

“These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children, to live wisely and be pure, to work in their homes, to do good, and to be submissive to their husbands. Then they will not bring shame on the word of God.” Titus 2:4-5 (NLT) Have you seen The Voice. It’s one of the number one shows in the country. Each season they begin the show with blind auditions. The judges face the audience while the signers give it all they’ve got in hopes that at least judge will turn around and pick them to be on …

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Brave Moms Raise Wildly Brave Kids

It’s no secret my siblings and I were raised by wolves. Being the product of a desert-raised dweller growing up in the 80’s, my mom’s philosophy to mothering was this, “Outside!” My five siblings and I spent hours on end out of eyesight, playing in the gullies and washes of our Arizona home. We only came home at dusk or to be fed or when someone needed stitches; and we didn’t return to the house until our wildly concocted stories matched of why Child A hit her head on a pipe. Besides, mom didn’t really need to know the reason why …

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Heroes at Easter

When Easter comes around some of us struggle with the dilemma of how to approach Easter with our children.  Christmas is pretty easy.  It’s the time Jesus was born as a baby. Children understand that.   But Easter? How do we explain the significance of Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection, so a child can understand it?  And then to compound these issues, how do we handle the Easter bunny, which is the part of Easter that children do relate to, but which has nothing to do with the true meaning of Easter?  How do we explain the …

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Because You Mother…

This is for you today, sweet mom. As you cradle your baby, read to your toddler, play games with your preschooler, take your twelve-year-old to soccer practice, hurry to cook dinner, pray for safety when your teenager drives to a friend’s house, start the laundry, fold the laundry, start more laundry, help everyone with their homework, clean the kitchen, give the little ones a bath, and finally sink down on the couch to catch your breath, remember…  Being a mom is no ordinary job.  You are mighty. And it is worth it. Take a minute to watch this video by JourneyBox Media (based …

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Do We Really NEED Women’s Ministries? (An open letter to women’s ministry leaders)

Dear Women’s Ministry Leader, I’m not really sure where to start. I have so much I want to say.  I was 24 when I became a Christian and up until that point I had never heard of you. I didn’t know about women’s ministries and I had no idea there were women like you in the world. But then I met you right after I started going to church – and you embraced me in a beautiful and unusual way – like I was a long lost child who needed your quiet strength – yet like I was a long …

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A Mom’s Job is Obedience, Not Results

  Motherhood is wonderful, but it can also feel like a lot of pressure. I remember the first time the magnitude of my role fully hit me. I had left my shoes at the door like I always did. (We had white carpeting at that time –a pre-kids decision we regretted-oh-so bitterly). But this time when I went to put them back on, my shoes were already occupied. My firstborn, two-years-old at the time, had carefully placed her little shoes neatly inside mine. All these years later, it’s still a vivid memory. I had the responsibility of modeling for another little …

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5 Ways for Moms to Enjoy Time

Lately, I’ve been thinking about how I spend my time.  I’ve been married to my sweet guy for almost eight years now. When we aren’t working, we are remodeling our country home. Or, we are taking the kids to soccer. Or, doing laundry (and more laundry!). We’ve gotten to the point where date nights need to be scheduled…while I’m thankful for this time together, I sometimes miss the spontaneous dinner and a movie nights we had before children. I’m a mom to three kids under the age of five. Which means I drive a minivan that is constantly littered with …

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It Hurts Because I Love You

  I dreaded this appointment for weeks. On the surface it was a routine wellness visit—height, weight, heartbeat, pick a sticker from the bucket. My kids have been through the doctor drill before. But this was a special rite of passage—the five-year checkup. Which meant kindergarten immunizations. Heaven help me. Shots are never fun. It’s hard enough to spring them on my babes when they’re tiny and oblivious, but dragging a 5-year-old to the doctor’s office for pre-K vaccines felt like walking the plank. She knew what was coming. And I was a conspirator in her misery. Whether you’re an …

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