Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast

As I pondered the topic for this week's kitchen table episode, the same thing kept coming to mind. An important question I'd like to ask you: What's the bravest thing you've ever done? When I first thought about that question several things immediately came to mind. Quitting my job as an architectural draftsman and buying a flower shop with my sister-in-law with neither of us having had any backgr...

Jessica Ronne has endured more heartache than most can even fathom. She found out when she was pregnant with her second son that he'd had a stroke in utero and would be profoundly disabled if she carried him to term. She and her husband made the decision to carry him to full term and let God handle the details. Lucas does have those disabilities, but Jess and her husband never wished they'd made a...

Hey listeners! I'm popping into you podcast feed with a surprise! Starting now, I'll be releasing solo episodes every other week to share some of my life experiences and Jesus moments with you! I'll still be doing interviews but thought it would be fun to be able to talk directly to you about my struggles and triumphs. And I'm calling these episodes The Kitchen Table. So why the kitchen table? I'm...

Melissa Huray lived a life of hopelessness as a former alcoholic who struggled with addiction from the time she was a child. First it was sugar and junk food. Then, because her father was an alcoholic and she saw him go to alcohol to diffuse many situations, she believed alcohol was the magic cure for all of her troubles. But instead of finding healing in the bottle, she found herself in a hopeles...

Does God care about the little decisions you have to make every day? The Bible is full of spiritual wisdom. But does God provide specific direction for real-world questions? Questions like Is this the right job? and Which college should my child attend? The answer is a resounding yes. And in this episode, you will discover how to access God's divine wisdom in any situation. Jane Glenchur had no co...

Hi listeners! Welcome back to the podcast! This is season 5 (can you believe it?) and episode 117! I took a few weeks off to enjoy my family over the holidays and to spend some time on a few exciting things I have in the works, so I appreciate your patience as I took a break from putting out the podcast. But now we're back and there are a lot of exciting episodes coming up in this season and I can...

Merry Christmas Y'all! I know as this episode drops it Thanksgiving week but since Thanksgiving is so late this year, I wanted to get a head start on Christmas! I've got my tree up already so I can enjoy it longer and I'm not sad about that at all! Haha. Another reason I wanted to go ahead and release this episode is because I'm sharing some Christmas traditions, and you may want to implement some...

If you listened to my podcast episode this past June, Fear is a Liar , you heard me talk about a couple in our church whose testimony made me decide to keep going with this podcast. When I was ready to shut it all down their story made me want to keep going so that others will have a place to share their own amazing God stories so together, we can help others to keep building strong. You wouldn't...

Have you ever had a life changing moment? A tragedy, unexpected diagnosis or sudden loss that left you feeling alone, confused or in despair, wondering what to do next? When Wendy Rickard's husband fell into a utility area, dropping twenty feet on his head, she began to question God. He survived, but his brain injury meant her family lost the father and husband they depended on for everything. The...

Y'all, I've had Sophie Hudson on my bucket list of guests since before I started the podcast! She's the co-host, along with Melanie Shankle, of the Big Boo Cast podcast as well as the voice of the Boo Mama blog (she shares in this episode how that name came to be!) and author of several of my favorite books. She's a southern girl from Alabama who loves her family and her football but mostly she lo...

You wouldn't expect a bout with breast cancer and a heart transplant would lead to a better marriage, but that's exactly what happened for Anthony and Mary Mabry. In 2018, before Mary's breast cancer diagnosis, their marriage was difficult. But Anthony was there for Mary through six rounds of chemo, losing her hair, a double mastectomy and 20 rounds of radiation. Finally, she was cancer free, and...

Hey listeners, I just wanted to take a few minutes to address some things I've been hearing about and thought I'd share a few thoughts that I hope are encouraging to you through this little bonus episode. Right now, our country is one of the most divisive states we've been in since before the civil war. Our world has been turned upside-down where good is bad and bad is good and no one seems to kno...

Please be aware that this content is not suitable for young children. George Carneal grew up in the '70s, raised by a Southern Baptist minister in the ultra-conservative Bible Belt where his world revolved around the church, country fried chicken and trying to fit in with other boys. As disco music pulsated through the speakers in his bedroom, he plotted his escape from the misery and boredom of S...

What a pleasure it was to interview Mart Green, son of Hobby Lobby founder David Green, to talk about his family's philosophy of faith and generosity. Mart is such a down-to-earth guy who happily shares the secret to Hobby Lobby's success. I loved hearing the fun and practical ways Mart and his family celebrate each other and minister to those around them. Money isn't the only way to bless people...

Hey friends! I'm back from my summer hiatus and have some awesome guests lined up for you this fall, starting this week with Stephen Kendrick of the Kendrick Brothers. Alex and Stephen Kendrick have brought us some great movies like Facing the Giants, Fireproof, Courageous and War Room and their newest movie, The Forge, will release in theaters nationwide on August 23 and he's here to tell us abou...

One of the reasons I felt called to start this podcast was because of stories like Donovan and Lavonna Garrett's. If you don't believe God can make a difference in your marriage and family then you need to listen to the testimony of how Donovan's alcohol abuse almost destroyed him, his marriage and his entire family. As I look at the photos of their beautiful family today, I'm in tears, knowing th...

One year ago I had the pleasure of interviewing Kara Stott, author of one of my favorite books, An Intentional Life, for the podcast. It was great meeting Kara on Zoom and hearing her story from her own voice. But this past spring my friend, Julie Bagwell, and I were able to meet her in person at her Pursuit Retreat outside of Nashville, Tennessee! She has such a heart for Jesus and ministering to...

Summer Throwback! My guests for the first episode of this podcast were my two very best friends, Julie Bagwell and Frieda Younts. We've been friends for over 30 years now! Over time we've experienced lots of ups and downs but have remained close through it all. How did we do it? By being honest and real with each other, for one thing, but mostly by building our friendship on the foundation of Jesu...

I've really struggled to put into words all that I wanted to say to you today because the last few months have been difficult for me as I've been seeking what God wants me to do with the podcast. I've been doing this for 3-1/2 years now and have recently been in a deep season of discouragement. As I prayed and continually asked God what my next steps should be, I only sensed silence from Him. I've...

"Mothers are a sleeping giant and when the giant awakens, take cover--things are going to change! I believe the giant is slowly stirring and beginning to wipe the sleep from its eyes." - excerpt from Your Girl by Vicki Courtney Over 15 years ago this quote stirred my soul to the point where I decided I wanted to be one of those mothers who stood up to make a difference and began a ministry for you...

You can't go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending. This is a quote from C.S. Lewis my guest, Jennifer Sakata, shares that fits her own life story. Having grown up with an alcoholic mother and stepdad she didn't understand that her family life was dysfunctional. Not until she began to notice that her friends' families functioned much differently than...

Welcome to the 100th episode of the Building Strong Homes Podcast! What an amazing ride it has been to get this far, and I want to thank all of my listeners for showing up each episode! So, I thought it would be fun to introduce you to my husband, John, and our children, Elise and Jacob, and have them share some of their stories from growing up on the farm. I ask each of them share their thoughts...

"Faith is the refusal to panic." This quote by Dennis Rainey had a profound impact on Lori Margo as she walked through her difficult journey with cancer. Because her own mother had been diagnosed with cancer at the same age Lori received her first diagnosis and passed away two short years later, she had every reason to panic. But as she walked her own path, she realized that if you're going to bel...

Have you ever wondered if God had something specific for you to do? That maybe you missed your calling, or you don't know what your purpose is? I think all of us at least once in our lives have questioned, "What am I here for?" or "Is there an assignment you have for me God?" Mandy Hood, a self-described introvert, felt God calling her to become involved in helping at a crisis pregnancy center yea...