Clutter Free Academy

Where does all the money go? It can be frustrating when you are trying to save money but every time you turn around there is something you weren’t planning for- school supplies, birthday gifts, and oh wait, is that Christmas decor in Hobby Lobby!

Our guest Mary Hunt, author of Debt-Proof Living, joins us with practical, do-able and inspiring tips on how to take the stress out of the finances. If you are drowning in debt, almost debt free or anywhere in between, you’ll want to hear Mary’s EASY tips on getting where you want to me- financially free!   Mary shares:

• her experience of getting out of debt
• how to get started
• tips on staying motivated
• the key to getting started

Listen in and leave a comment below to win her book, Debt-Proof Living. What is holding you back from becoming debt-free?

* We discussed making our own Starbucks inspired coffee and we want to share all of our great recipes. Just visit Kathi’s blog.

God sometimes asks us to do things that seem crazy big and beyond our scope of “ableness” (and let’s be real, willingness!).

Things like:

• Starting a business
• Creating a ministry
• International adoption

What happens when we faithfully jump in with both feet? Jessica Honegger, founder of Noonday Collections, joins us on So Here’s the Thing to discuss her journey of listening to the prompting God put on her heart. From adoption, to job creation, to everyday willingness to see Jesus in the big and small, Jessica’s journey will inspire you. If you have a passion and you don’t know where to begin, listening to this podcast is it!

You will gain some practical tips on:

• How and who to ask for help
• When to know God is saying go for it
• Bringing your entire family along for the journey
• Being real with yourself, your purpose and the demands of raising your family

GIVEAWAY Win a pair of earrings from Noonday!

You have a passion for a reason! What small change can you make to make a big difference in somebody else’s life whether it be buying from micro businesses, Operation Christmas Child, or living out the purpose God is calling you to? Leave a comment below for a chance to win one pair of these gorgeous ear rings from Noonday!

In part two of my interview with my co-author Cheri Gregory, we talk about how the last two of the bullies from our book The Cure for the Perfect Life 12 Ways to Stop Trying Harder and Start Living Brave, Performancism and People Pleasing, follow us around and beat us up daily, and what you can do about it.

Do you:

• Change your mood to match the mood of those around you so you don’t upset them with your happiness/excitement/bad day/ etc?
• Do more so you can seem like more to those around you?
• Have a long to do list out of fear of not being what you want others to perceive you to be?

If you can relate, you may be being bullied by people-pleasing or performancism or both! It’s time to live braver and stop trying harder.

* During this episode, Kathi and Cheri discuss rest and Bonnie Gray’s interview on So Here’s the Thing. That episode can be foundhere.

* Here’s the link to the free verse downloads

Do you need a Braver Living outlook? Join the 5 Days to Braver Living Devotional!

She had all of her “Christian” ducks in a row…. until God swept them all to the side.  Jen Hatmaker was a Christian speaker and author, married to a PASTOR for heaven’s sake who spent every day of her life doing the church thing and doing it well. But then, Jen prayed a prayer: “God, raise up in me a holy passion.”

And that’s when her whole life got completely messed up.

In this episode of “So Here’s the Thing” Kathi and Erin talk to Jen about her book, “Interrupted: When Jesus Wrecks Your Comfortable Christianity” and discuss how that one simple prayer led her to flip her life upside down… and do everything from serving the poor to letting HGTV invade her home.

Tell us in the comments below how Jen’s experience of being interrupted has inspired you to pray for a holy passion or what is keeping you in your comfortable Christianity. Two winners will be randomly chosen and will receive two copies of Interrupted.

Hi Friends! My newest book, The Cure for the Perfect Life, came from my deepest desire to help the women in this world live fuller, richer lives at exactly where God wants them. This week Cheri Gregory (who co-wrote The Cure for the Perfect Life) and I sat down to discuss the concept of rebelling against the ideas of perfectionism, and procrastination. (don’t worry! People-pleasing and Performancism are coming soon!)

Now this podcast is only for you if you deal with one of the four bullies we talk about:

• Perfectionism
• Procrastination
• People Pleasing
• Performancism

You are invited to take part in our rebellion against perfectionism.

Win 2 copies of The Cure for the Perfect Life- just comment below and tell us one small thing you are doing to fight procrastination or perfectionism, and who you are going to ask to be your bravery buddy (she can have the second copy!).

Do you need a Braver Living outlook? Join the 5 Days to Braver Living Devotional!

When it comes to being a mom, have you ever felt like you wish someone would just tell you what to do? (Or at least talk you down after your kid has told you that he wishes Jake’s mom was his real mother?)

My dear friend Stephanie Shott joined us this week to discuss mentoring, a topic that is near and dear to her heart as she lacked a true mentor and community when she was a teenage/single/unsaved mom. She started the Mom Initiative specifically to help women be the mentors other moms need. And guess what, she shares the secrets with us today.

Some of the things we discuss:

• Mentoring makes us better women
• Great mentoring isn’t difficult!
• Why mentoring is so important
• REAL friends can be our mentors

When you are in the thick of it, knowing someone is there for you makes all the difference. We shouldn’t do this mothering things alone friends. Take this first step to learn how to find your tribe and your mentors.

My friend and speaker, Michele Cushatt hasn’t had the prettiest life. It has been down right hard and the things God have called her to haven’t always been pretty. Michele has handled the not so pretty with such grace that I wanted her to speak about her experiences because no matter how ugly, she always inspires me. I think she’ll inspire you too.

In this episode of So Here’s the Thing, we discuss how following God isn’t always easy. We deal with some of the tough questions like:

• Should I be a working mom or stay-at-home mom?
• If God has called me to this, shouldn’t it be easy?
• Why do some decisions have only comprises for answers?
• How can I even think of reinventing my life with all of the responsibilities I already have?
• How can/do I say NO to the wrong things so I can say YES to the right things?

After listening, tell me how you have reinvented a part of your life whether it be your work, the way you juggle the needs of your family, your ministry or the relationships with your extended family. Two people will win pack of books from me- The Cure for the Perfect Life (being released in August!) and Praying God’s Word for Your Life.

“You don’t get a pass on your faith because of a curve ball.” OUCH! Would your best friend be willing say the same to you if you needed to hear it?

My co-host this week is Gillian Marchenko, author of Sun Shine Down: A Memoir. Gillian’s life as a mom, wife of a pastor and missionary in Ukraine was completely rocked when their third child was born with down-syndrome. In this experience, Gillian learned what deep faith, true friendship and real appreciation for life was all about.

Through our discussion, Gillian shares how:

• it’s possible to feel two opposing emotions at the exact same time
• it’s ok to dislike the diagnosis and still love
• to react when your friend goes through a hard time

Join us for an inspiring discussion about how dealing with the curve ball isn’t always pretty but absolutely survivable.

What is the event in your life that you weren’t sure you would ever see the “sun shine again”? Share it with us for a chance to win a copy of Gillian’s memoir.

It’s easy to get bogged down with commitments- us moms have a knack for it! But then we start feeling exhausted, over committed and frustrated that our parenting, our physical, emotional and spiritual lives aren’t exactly what we had in mind. Join host Kathi Lipp as she welcomes guest Kasey Johnson, author of a new book and bible study specifically for moms called Mom Essentials. They discuss:

• the differences between essentials and extras
• how to best identify what each are in your life
• and why getting back to the “essentials” can be key to an overall healthy mama.

“It’s not about being perfect, it’s about being smarter.” Kasey Johnson  

Some parents are excited when summer comes. They get to be around their kids all day, everyday. This was SO not my experience. I loved the first day of school, not having to hear my kids whine that they were bored, or try to figure out what to do with them without breaking the bank.

So this episode of So Here’s the Thing is all about keeping the fun in Summer Fun. If you’re just starting to run out of tricks in your summer bag, you will want to hear this conversation with Kathi and her co-host Erin MacPherson.

Erin gave us some great ideas about creating a CAMP MOM and offers us her ideas from last years Pintasttic Summer.

Finally, I promised you a picture of what my brother in law made in less than 15 minutes: A life-size Jenga.

He took a bunch of 2x4s, cut them each to 10.5 inches long, until he had 48. Standard Jenga rules apply. (I promise you it took Randy all of 15 minutes to make the entire game.) I’ve seen directions for these floating around Pinterest. Some say you have to sand, but ours were unsanded and worked just fine.

Roger contends that the reason it’s so much fun is the real threat of bodily harm. (The blocks are light enough they wouldn’t hurt anyone, but you may want to keep small children and dogs at a fair distance…)