Imperfect Parenting with a Perfect God

Relationships are investments. Which ones are your priority? Do you tend to make the kids the center of your world? I encourage you today to keep God as your utmost priority because He is the only One who will will be by your side always. Abide, my friend. Abide.

When you look back on your childhood, I hope that you have great memories. I have a lot of great memories. Most of them were just temporary moments though. I will hold onto them forever because they were special. But my everyday life was not a catalog and certainly wasn't very pleasant. A daughter of a divorced couple, raised by a low-income single mother, living in a difficult neighborhood, movin...

Have you found your kids to be a little bit too relaxed this summer? I mean to a point of being unwilling to be helpful or even get off the couch? I have and here is what I decided to do about it. I hope it inspires you to make the lost of the rest of your summer!

Let’s let God do the work in is so we can steward our children well.

Oxford Languages defines "neighbor" as "a person living near or next door to the speaker or person referred to" and "(of a place or thing) be situated next to or very near (another)." We often think of this person as someone outside of our home, but the truth is that it is our very own domestic family that is our closest neighbor. Our spouse and children are our neighbors too. Do we follow the sec...

From time to time I get the question, "How are you teaching your kids to have faith?" I was pondering this deeply in the car the other day and I think I came up with an answer. Listen to learn what I deduced.  Here are some scriptures for you to take to your bible and spend some time with God pondering over. John 13:35 1 Peter 5:3 1 Timothy 4:12 Titus 2:7 Matthew 5:16 Ephesians 5:1 1 Corinthi...

Last week we talked about fighting the good fight of faith. This week I want to encourage you that we have already won. We have a God that loves us enough to tell us the end of the story before we are even there. Read Revelation for a spoiler alert of our victory! Scriptures in this Episode: 1 John 4:4 Romans 12:21 John 16:33 1 John 5:5 1 John 4:18 1 John 5:4 1 Corinthians 15:57 Romans 8:37 Philip...

Prayer is a powerful tool in our tool belt of Truth. Let’s use it to fight the good fight of faith on behalf of our children and teach them so that they will turn to it the rest of their lives.

Parenting is a calling. Not everyone gets to experience it. When He calls you to it, I want to encourage you that He will equip you for it if you trust in Him. Scripture from today's episode: Parenting is a good work: Ephesians 2:10 Children are a reward: Psalm 127:3 The Word is for equipping: 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Read the Scriptures: Psalm 119:105, John 7:37, Titus 1:9 Pray: Proverbs 3:5-6, Philippi...

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

God sows seeds of salvation all the day, according to the Psalmist who wrote Psalm 71. Those seeds become testimonies that you can share with others to strengthen bot their faith and your own. Your kids pay attention so why not share them with them to help them learn how to look for God in everyday moments?

Just because my kids see me drive all the time does not mean they can use my driver’s license. The same is true about my faith. They can watch my example but they can’t have my faith. They have to work out their own salvation and build their own relationship with Jesus. It is our job to equip them and show them how we do it, and the rest is between them and God.

A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion. Proverbs 18:2 We are all foolish from time to time. Hopefully, as we grow and mature, we become less so. These days it feels like I'm a fool raising a fool because her mouth continually gets away from her and here I am repeating myself for the umpteenth time. Ever feel that way? Listen up, friends, because I'm going to...

God is a loving Father who gently corrects is when we have steered off a path He has put in front of us. How does He get your attention? Listen up for the way He caught my attention this time!

Who do you text or call when you just need someone to understand? God doesn’t need a phone to hear your needs. He just needs your willing and open heart. Here’s how God reminded me about the fact that I was not giving Him my full trust with my life. Thanks, God, for renewing my trust in You.

Most of us have made resolutions upon the New Year. How many of you can say that you have kept them? I often will forget and get right back into my old habits. There's nothing wrong with starting good habits, but if we set expectations too high then we are more likely to break them and then just give up rather than editing them to be attainable. Small attainable goals are much better than huge oat...

Whether you were ready for Christmas or not, it came. Many people ask throughout the week before Christmas if we are "ready." That's a heavy word. What does it mean to be ready? Whether we are ready or not, Christmas came and went just like it does every year. Christmas isn't about the busyness of getting ready. It is about the gift that God has given us through Jesus Christ. He gave us a gift tha...

After last week's episode, the irony still astounds me. And yet, I would expect nothing less of the devil to try to shake up the financial peace that I feel. He used deception, lies, and fear, as usual, to try to shatter the solid Rock that I stand on. I am standing stronger in my faith than ever thanks to last week's scam scare. If you live in fear of something, I encourage you to stay in the Wor...

On a scale from 1-10, 10 being the most, how comfortable are you about talking to your kids about money? Did you know that you can talk to them about money without talking to them about the specific details about your personal budget? It's true! I grew up in a house where money was a taboo topic of conversation. Therefore, I grew up not knowing anything about how to manage money. I was thrown into...

As we embark upon the world's "Season of Giving," let us remember that God intends for our whole lives to be a season of giving. Pray that God would give you a vision in your heart and soul of how He wants you to be generous with what little or much that you have this year, whether it is material giving, the sacrifice of time, or generosity with your talents. Scriptures from this episode: Matt. 12...

We are not meant to be alone on this earth. God provided us with the Holy Spirit, God within us, so that we are able to constantly walk with God. When we have nothing to say but want to pray, He utters on our behalf. But we also were not meant to live without human companionship: friends.  Whether you are a loner or the poster child for extroverts, having at least one solid friend that you ca...

As we head into the busy holiday season, I want to remind you to find rest in the busyness of life. Many feel guilty about taking time for themselves, but you shouldn't. It doesn't mean that it is okay to just be lazy all of the time. That is not what I am referring to here. I am simply saying that you need to find out how your body and mind recharge and invest in a little bit of that time for you...

Okay, this episode started out being all about teenagers: what we thought it would be like vs. what it is really like. But God had another plan, as usual. As the photo on my fridge says: "I plan. God laughs." This is just as true with parenting as anything else. I planned to be a mom from the age of 5. Yes, it is the only thing I was ever truly sure of. When I was a young 20-something, I read "all...

When we choose to follow God, we inevitably become spiritual leaders to some, whether it is our own children, those of others, or even other believers. We need to consider how we are going to take responsibility for that role. What are some ways that you want to be "caught" working out God's plan for your life? How do you walk in the light of Jesus? Are there habits that you want to ensure your ch...

There are so many opportunities to get out and enjoy the last of the warm weather before the cold winter winds hit us. God spreads his palette of color all around us and we get to see the beauty that He provides for us each and every day. There are also many ways to spend time in our community, whether it is apple or pumpkin picking, harvest parties, or trick-or-treating. How do you like to gather...