Pardon the Mess with Scarlet Hiltibidal - Christian Motherhood, Biblical Parenting, Raising Christian Kids

You know that one time you went to Nashville for a podcast and Mike Donehey from Tenth Avenue North sang one of your favorite songs live in the studio?  Me neither—until our podcast today! Mike Donehey is the lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist for the award-winning Christian rock band, Tenth Avenue North. He has four daughters and a lovely wife, and he just released a new book, Finding God’s L...

Today we begin week six of our prayer journal, and we are praying for our children to know their identity is found only in Jesus, not in this world. Psalm 139:13–14 so beautifully reminds us that God perfectly and very personally created each of us in our mother’s womb. We are very intentionally made in the image of God and have great worth and identity to the Lord who has created us and calls us...

We had the great privilege of taking Pardon the Mess on the road to Nashville recently. We can’t wait for you to hear from all of the great guests who joined us live to talk about parenting, their walk with the Lord, and all the good and hard places of raising kids. To kick off our Nashville series, we start with none other than the multi-platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated, seven-Dove-Award-winnin...

Today we begin week five of our prayer journal, and we are praying for the fruit of the Spirit to be present in the lives of our children. Love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—these are not just “good” attributes we hope to see in our kids, but these qualities are evidence that the Holy Spirit is moving in their lives. Notice that we are pra...

Lisa Harper joins us on Pardon the Mess with a thoughtful discussion of finding “happy” in the unlikely places. She shares how spending an extended amount of time in the book of Job gave her a new perspective on happiness. (Didn’t see that coming, right?) She reminds us that happiness is a biblical concept and explains why God wants us to be happy. Lisa Harper is the real deal. She’s funny, honest...

 It’s week four of our prayer journal, and we are praying for our children to have self-control.  Quick Note: Please subscribe to Pardon the Mess on iTunes or wherever you listen to our podcasts. Once you subscribe, you will receive notifications each time a new episode is out. In the next few weeks, we will stop sending out the weekly email reminders of our prayer podcasts (like this one), and we...

Can you believe it?  Pardon the Mess is already one year old!  We’ve had such an exciting year, and we’re so glad you’ve joined us on this wild ride. From recording a podcast in the midst of a tornado to the unbelievably inspiring advice from Bob Goff, it’s been quite the year.  Thank you for being a part of this journey with us!  Parenting is not easy, to say the least, and we love that we’re abl...

Today is the start of week three of our prayer journal, and we are praying for our children to have influence. Every group our kids participate in has influencers, whether they’re good or bad. It’s not by coincidence that our kids spend their days with certain people, doing life together through school, sports, and other activities. Let’s pray that our children will be influencers in their circles...

Hold on to your hats, people: Christine Caine is in the house! She’s fast-talking, truth-giving, Australian-sounding and joining us today on Pardon the Mess . Christine describes herself as an Australian-born, Greek-blooded lover of Jesus and an activist, author, and international speaker. Christine shares her very personal story of coming to terms with her identity in Christ after finding out as...

Today is the start of week two of our prayer journal, focusing on praying for our children to be fearless. As a part of our prayer challenge this school year, I am releasing a short podcast each Monday morning with a few thoughts on the topic we are praying. I will also take a few minutes to pray out loud with you for each of our children. Take a few minutes today to listen to our podcast and thin...

We have none other than Rebekah Lyons joining us today on Pardon the Mess . Rebekah is a national speaker and bestselling author living in Nashville, Tennessee. She’s a mom to four children and speaks honestly about the joys and challenges of raising her children, two of whom have Down syndrome. Her work has been featured on Good Morning America , CNN , the Huffington Post , and more. Rebekah and...

Remember that time we purposefully prayed for our kids every day with such vigilance that lives all around them were changed? Me neither!  Today we start week one of our prayer journal, focusing on praying for our children to be a light in their schools. As a part of our prayer challenge this school year, I am releasing a short podcast each Monday morning with a few thoughts on the topic we are pr...

Ever felt like you’re stuck in a rut of boring, ordinary, or just routine days? Lisa-Jo Baker is our guest today on Pardon the Mess, and she’s got a word for you! Many of us are smack-dab in the center of (brace yourself) midlife and need some encouragement that the daily, not-so-picture-perfect moments in this middle portion of life really do all add up to the truly extraordinary life the Lord ha...

John Cooper is about to rock your world – literally and figuratively. If you’re anything like me, you probably have not had a lot of exposure to the metal music of John Cooper and his band, Skillet. But after hearing John Cooper’s interview today, I can almost guarantee that you will be an instant fan. Skillet has sold over 12 million albums worldwide, and their song “Monster” is one of the most s...

Mary DeMuth talks friendships, parenting, and her new book, We Too . It’s such a gift to have Mary DeMuth with us today on Pardon the Mess . She’s a wife, mother of three, a blogger, a podcaster, and the author of almost forty books. Having suffered abuse as a child, her faith brought her to a place of turning her difficult past into God’s glory, allowing her to re-story her past. We start our con...

Any introverts out there? This episode of Pardon the Mess  is for you! Jamie C. Martin shares practical help for those who parent from a place of introversion. She also reminds us to accept our God-given personality by letting go of the false burdens and negative stereotypes we may associate with being introverted. But wait, there’s more! If you’re not an introvert (like me), you are very likely m...

Priscilla Shirer is a wife, Bible teacher, mom, actress and so much more. There’s so much to love about Priscilla, but what always sticks with me is the way she speaks so freely and powerfully about her faith while also practically reminding us of what really matters as we go about our days.  Priscilla and I had the opportunity to talk about her life as she raises her three boys and how she builds...

Life changed for Chris Norton in an instant, going from a talented college football player to a quadriplegic with a 3 percent chance of ever moving or feeling anything below his neck. But, with determination and hard work, Chris proved his doctors wrong four years later by walking across the stage to receive his college diploma. Emily Norton knew from a young age that she was called to help strugg...

This week on Pardon the Mess we’re going to places we’ve never been before! You’ve heard Cynthia Yanof interview guests each week as we talk parenting, but today there’s no guest. It’s Cynthia unplugged! Cynthia talks candidly about the places where the Lord has worked in her life the last several years, and encourages us to live for the higher purposes of God. She reminds us to be careful not to...

Vivian Mabuni describes herself as an Asian American Christian woman, wife, mom, and cancer survivor. Having the opportunity to visit with her on  Pardon the Mess   this week, I agree that she is all of this and so much more! Vivian grew up culturally Buddhist before coming to Christ in high school. She talks candidly about being the only Christian in her family and the impact her cancer diagnosis...

I first heard Christina tell portions of her story on the  Today  show several months ago. I was initially captivated by her unabashed sharing of the gospel on national television. But, even more than that, her hope in the Lord and her passion for foster care reform were visibly stirring during the interview that day. I knew we had to talk with her on Pardon the Mess . Christina Meredith endured y...

Melanie Shankle is the New York Times  bestselling author of Sparkly Green Earrings, The Antelope in the Living Room, Nobody’s Cuter Than You, and Church of the Small Things . Melanie lives in San Antonio, Texas, with her husband and daughter. She has the gift of being able to write humorously about the seemingly ordinary things of life while pointing to God in the midst of it. Melanie talks to us...

David Green is the seventy-seven-year-old founder of Hobby Lobby and our guest this week on Pardon the Mess . Mr. Green began his retail journey many years ago with a six-hundred-dollar bank loan for a frame business he operated out of his garage. The Lord grew that little start-up into a multibillion-dollar craft business that we know today as Hobby Lobby. Mr. Green shares a great word for us tod...

Today on Pardon the Mess, we continue the conversation with Noel Bouché and Aszia Pearson of the  pureHOPE organization  about sex. Well, about more than that . . . but ultimately that’s the topic of the day. pureHOPE aims to equip Christians to experience and model God’s love, purity, and justice in a sexualized culture. As related to our parenting, Noel and Aszia talk candidly about the importan...

"Let’s talk about sex, baby." If you’re a product of the 1990s and have a little bit of Salt-N-Pepa wherewithal, you might have just gotten that reference. If not, I apologize. Today on Pardon the Mess, we have the great privilege or talking with Noel Bouché and Aszia Pearson of the pureHOPE organization  about sex. Well, about more than that . . . but ultimately that’s the topic of the da...