I don’t often do a solo podcast but God has been working on my heart when it comes to parenting teens and expectations and I felt prompted to sit down and share what I am learning with you all.  

So often as parents, we live in a worst-case scenario mindset, when it feels like the dreams and expectations for a child's future are not aligning with the present. We obsess over baby monitors, teen friendships, and grades/sports but this comes from a place of worry, or even fear-based control. 

God wants freedom and hope in our parenting! I realized I have a choice: to believe in an imagined bad scenario or to flip a switch and choose hope and expect in God for unimaginable good things to come. Both choices involve belief, imagination and control. I'm choosing to double down turn my belief toward hope, knowing that even when things don't go as planned, God's story is far greater.

In this episode, I will share the steps God gave me to practically practice choosing hope over worry. How to walk with the Spirit and produce fruit instead of formula-based parenting rooted in power and control. Reminding my own heart that God is good and has a good story for our kids- let’s lean into the HUGE expectation that God is the God of HOPE and let our prayers align with that truth. 

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Man's Search for Meaning: By Viktor Frankl 

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Do you feel that it is hard to connect with your aging parents? Are your kids and grandparents not communicating well through the generational gap? 

In this episode, Isabel Tom, author of The Value of Wrinkles shares insights into her background, her work with the elderly, and her experience growing up in a multigenerational household. She gives a unique perspective of how much joy and life we can bring to the generation before us but it takes a lot of intentionality. This conversation covers practical tips for deepening these family ties and the mutual blessings they can bring.

We cover a wide range of topics-

Simple ways to involve children in caring for their grandparents or older relatives

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Have you struggled to break free from generational trauma or sin? Do you find it challenging to help your kids navigate tough situations at school and in sports?

Today, author Melanie Shankle joins us to share insights from her new book, Here Be Dragons. Her story is one of both deep trauma and undeniable evidence of God’s provision—placing the right people in her life at just the right time. It wasn’t until college that Melanie realized her mother-daughter relationship was far from what her friends experienced. That realization set her on a long journey of untangling her past and healing from the wounds of her upbringing.

In this conversation, we cover so many important topics, including:

Join us for an honest, insightful discussion on healing, parenting, and trusting God through life’s toughest moments.

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Do you often feel like you give everything to your family but don’t know what you enjoy? Have you lost your spark for life that you felt in your youth? 

Today, Chrystal Evans Hurst is here to share her journey and story from a single mom to a life filled with the passions and purposes that God has placed inside of her.  So often as women we feel the pull of family, career, and household duties and forget what makes us who we are. Here are some topics we cover. 

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Did you know that 12-step programs are for anyone? Do you feel like your life has spiritual direction or are you just floating through surviving? 

Today I am excited to have Ian Cron who is an author, speaker, trained psychotherapist, songwriter, and Episcopal priest here. Ian shares his own journey into addiction and sobriety and how that process prompted him to write his newest book The Fix to help people see our deep need for Jesus in our journey through life. Here are just a few of the topics we cover…

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Al-Anon/Alateens Family Groups (find one near you) 

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Do you feel like it takes too much time and energy to host? Does having people in your home stress you out or seem out of reach?

Today Logan Wolfram joins me- she is an author and speaker that knows how to host well. We met long-long ago at a blogger’s conference before the podcasting world was even a thing. I have been drawn to her knack for pulling people into her home and sat down to glean her wisdom in this area. Here are the topics we covered…

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As we enter a new year do you feel stuck or like last year did not go like you intended it to? Are you dealing with disappointments and finding it difficult to see God in your situation? 

Today Cleere Cherry Reaves, author and podcaster, joins me to talk about how God’s word is the most powerful tool in shifting our focus and seeing the Lord in our everyday circumstances. In her new book Revive she writes about how Jesus is with us through the storms and trials of life, He does not simply pluck us out of every situation but we learn how to see Him in the hard times. Here are some topics we cover…

Cleere’s son has a powerful testimony in the making as a non-verbal kid. She shares how she uses the word of God to reframe that situation. 

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Do you feel like your mind is full of tasks making it hard to focus and be present with your family? Do you struggle to articulate what you need, feel, or want from your spouse? 

Today, Dr. Morgan Cutlip is here to help us navigate the topic of mental load specifically as moms. Morgan is a psychologist and highly sought after relationship expert. Her book Love Your Kids Without Losing Yourself helps moms advocate for their needs in a loving way. We cover a large range of issues facing parents today including… 

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A Better Share : How Couples Tackle the Mental Load  (pre-order) 

How We Feel App 

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Have you or a friend ever walked through a season of infertility and grief? Do you often wonder what to say when a friend is walking through loss of any kind? 

Today my friend Julie Fowler is here to talk about her heartbreaking (but hopeful) story of motherhood and how God used her story to help people navigate loss. Julie has faced miscarriage, adoptions that fell through at the last minute, and baby twins she only held for four short hours. She truly has walked this long road and knows all of the feelings of grief and uncertainty around waiting for a baby. This valley produced a beautiful study of walking through infertility in community and connecting with God in the deepest, darkest places. We cover so much in our conversation including…

How to talk to a friend in a season of infertility and loss- what not to say. 

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Today my conversation with Dallas and Amanda Jenkins is a powerful reminder that the Christmas story still needs to be told thousands of years later. Dallas is the acclaimed director, writer, and producer of The Chosen, and now the heartfelt movie The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. 

The movie is based on a book read for years in the Jenkins’ house (and many households worldwide). Twenty years ago Amanda brought the book home and asked Dallas to read it to the kids. By the end they were both in tears and could not finish the story without taking turns reading. That started a 20-year journey of Dallas praying to make this movie and the Lord answered through an amazing story in His own time. 

Moms play a vital role in this film from a mom telling her son to let Dallas have the rights to the movie, to Amanda helping with the casting, to Grace (the mom in the film) who uses her God-given space to change the lives around her. As we enter the Christmas season let us remember Jesus came for the outsider and not cling so tightly to our traditions that we do not see those who need to hear the true Christmas story. 

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