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Courtney Ellis tells the story of how she suffered from a severe panic attack at work and had no idea why. The anxiety kept persisting, and she felt consistently overwhelmed by seemingly nothing. She discovered that her husband was also struggling with anxiety, so they worked together to find the root of the problem. They discovered how many things they had stuffed into their home and schedule. They began to purge their house, schedule and media subscriptions and discovered how much deeper their relationships with God, each other, and their families became. In this interview, Courtney will talk about how you can pare down what you own and free up your schedule. She’ll also discuss how parents can help their kids clear out the clutter.

In this episode of Practice Makes Parent, Dr. Danny Huerta and Rebecca St. James continue their discussion on raising gender-confident children with Dr. Jeff Myers and Dr. Kathy Koch, co-authors of Raising Gender Confident Kids. We continue to discuss the sensitive topics of gender identity, understanding gender differences, and teaching children to respect and harmonize with each other's unique qualities. We'll address how parents can maintain a healthy communication framework with their children on these topics and we answer a listener question about guiding children in a culture of preferred pronouns. This is one of those programs that you'll want to share with your friends.

Raising Gender Confident Kids

Launch Into The Teen Years

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Treasure Island, A Child's Garden of Verses - those are just some of the literary classics written by Robert Louis Stevenson. He must have had a way with words from the time he was a boy. Anne Graham Lotz tells of a night in his boyhood when his nanny just couldn't get him to bed. Young Robert just kept staring out the window, oblivious to her talking to him. Finally, she said, "Robert, what in the world are you looking at out there?" As she pulled back the curtain, she realized he was watching the lamplighter making his way down the street, lighting one street lamp after another. Young Robert Louis Stevenson saw something more. He said, "Look at that man! He's punching holes in the darkness!"

I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "You Are the Light of Your World."

What an awesome description of the reason God has placed you where you are! You're not there to shake your head and bemoan how dark it is where you work or go to school or whatever your environment. You're there to punch holes in the darkness! So, how are you doing on that so far?

Well, let's listen to what Jesus said in Matthew 5:14-16, our word for today from the Word of God. If you belong to Jesus, He's including you in this. "You are the light of the world." Wow! Think of your personal world and people in your world. Jesus says you are their light. He goes on to say, "A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp or put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

Look, we live in a pretty dark world, right. But it is not a world without light unless the Christian in a situation fails to punch holes in the darkness by living like Jesus would live there, treating people like Jesus would treat people there, and handling situations and temptations as Jesus would handle them. So many of Jesus' followers don't realize who they are - His personal representative in their personal world.

You punch another hole in the darkness every time you show up with joy instead of gloom on your face, with good things to say instead of griping, every time you stop for someone who's struggling, when you consciously put someone else ahead of you, when you insist on taking the high road when it's tempting to cut corners, every time you weep with someone who's weeping, or you rejoice with someone who's rejoicing, and when you reach out to someone who's really been acting pretty unloveable.

The lost folks around you probably won't be all that impressed with your don'ts or all the religious meetings you go to. No, they need to see meaningful differences in you because of Christ in you.

But it isn't enough that they just see that you're different. They need to know why, or they'll never be able to get out of the darkness themselves. They need Jesus. See, He put you in their life so they could find out what Jesus did for them on the cross; so they could find out from someone who's living proof that Jesus is alive and how they, too, could have a life-changing relationship with Him. Have you told them about your Jesus yet?

Humanly speaking, you may very well be their best chance at heaven - or maybe their only chance. They could watch you for the rest of your life and they're never going to say, "You know, Charlie's such a nice guy. I'll bet Jesus died on the cross for my sins." They're not going to figure that out. You have to tell them that.

Every morning, before your Lord, tell Him and tell yourself, "I am the light of my world." And go out there, showing a harsh and lonely and self-serving world that there's another way to be. Defy the darkness wherever you go. Punch holes in the darkness with the brilliant

Read: Acts 16:19-25

Josiah felt like his head was going to explode. “Get married! You’re going to get married? To Ryan? But what about Dad?”

“Josiah, you know that after your dad left, he married someone else. He won’t be back,” Mom said quietly. “I thought you liked Ryan.”

“Not for a dad! And I definitely don’t want Brenner and Simon for brothers either.” Josiah stomped to his room, fighting back tears.

The next day they went to church, and Josiah, who normally loved going, was sad all morning. After class his teacher, Mr. Park, asked what was wrong.

“Mom’s getting married again,” Josiah told him. “The guy she’s marrying already has two sons. I don’t want someone else’s dad! I’ve got to get away.” He sank down into his seat. “I’m going to leave—for good! If they get married, I’ll never be happy here.”

“Do you think you’ll find happiness someplace else?” asked Mr. Park.

Josiah shrugged. “I sure won’t find it here!”

Mr. Park sat down next to him. “You know, Josiah, happiness isn’t something you find. It’s rooted in the joy that comes from trusting in Jesus—from knowing He’s good and rejoicing in all He’s done for you, even through tears. The Bible tells us that Paul and Silas sang even though they were in prison. You know Jesus and have the hope of eternal life with Him, so you can be joyful too, even when things are hard.”

Josiah sighed, and Mr. Park patted his shoulder. “I know it will be difficult at first, but I’ll be here if you need someone to talk to. And you can talk to Jesus about it too. Trust Him to give you patience and show your family His love. Your little sister will need her big brother, and your new stepbrothers will need help too—it will be difficult for them as well as for you.”

Josiah hesitated. “I guess you’re right,” he murmured.

“Give your future stepfather a chance to be part of the family,” said Mr. Park. “He loves the Lord, and I know he loves all of you.”

Josiah was quiet a moment, then asked, “Will you pray for me?”

Mr. Park smiled. “Of course.” They bowed their heads, and Mr. Park asked God to give Josiah comfort, peace, and joy.

–Agnes Livezey

How about you? Is something in your life making you unhappy? Are you doing all you can to get away from it? Running away from problems doesn’t bring joy. That only comes from trusting Jesus. Trust Him to be with you and help you through whatever is troubling you. Trust Him to help you show His love to those around you, even in difficult times. Trust Him to fill you with the joy of knowing Him.

Today's Key Verse: Those who trust the Lord will be joyful. Proverbs 16:20 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: Trust Jesus for joy

No matter how committed you are to Christ, your loyalty will be tested. Abraham faced the most difficult test a father could face—being asked to sacrifice his son. Abraham’s story is a great example of how trials can strengthen our commitment to God.

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In the American West in the late-1800s, the search for dinosaur bones created the Bone Wars in which two paleontologists battled one another in their pursuit of making the most historic find. One writer noted how the two “used underhanded methods to try to outdo the other in the field, resorting to bribery, theft, and the destruction of bones.” He noted how, in trying to ruin each other’s work, both destroyed their own reputations as well.

Conflict and competition are inevitable in our broken world. How we choose to engage those conflicts reveals what’s in our hearts. Paul learned of conflict between two women in the church at Philippi and wrote, “I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord.” He asked a fellow believer to “help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel” (Philippians 4:2–3).

When we find ourselves at odds with fellow believers in Jesus, we need the Spirit’s help. As we submit to His work in our hearts, He’ll help us demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). We’ll experience healing and peace—if not for our own reputations, for the reputation of Christ and the gospel.

Segment 1

• AI toys are feeding kids dangerous ideas.

• Abortion is celebrated in a book… for 5-year-olds.

• COVID-era work restrictions ease. Did we learn anything?

Segment 2

• Massachusetts puts limits on challenging explicit library books.

• AI robot “Miko” is being pitched as a friend for your child.

• Arrests and persecution arise in China.

Segment 3

• NYC embraces collectivism — and forgets its history.

• New mayor sworn in on the Quran; women’s rights under Islam questioned.

• Odd pairings emerge as culture redefines truth vs. tradition.

Segment 4

• A billboard in Times Square claims Jesus was a Palestinian.

• Muslim American Heritage Month is being celebrated loudly.

• You truly do learn something new every day… and not all of it’s true.

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Family, friends, even our spouses: Can it be a case of familiarity breeds contempt? Author Don Everts discusses the power of staying amazed by your spouse and others—and cultivating a culture of honor and appreciation in your relationships. Don't miss this eye-opening conversation.

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