The Mission Driven Mom Podcast

“Lord, if you will show me the way, I will follow you. Amen.” ~Brother  Andrew Once there was a boy who grew up poor, uneducated, with a deaf father, an ill mother and a handicapped brother. This boy's life was full of troubles and heartaches. Yet, despite the challenges, his family deeply loved each other and God.  Unfortunately, despite being taught all the right principles this boy, Andrew, still lacked clarity, self-confidence and direction. Rather than turning to God to solve these problems, Andrew chose to lean on other things for strength -- changing his environment, giving in to peer pressure, chain smoking, getting drunk, even risking his life in battle. Of course, none of the things he had chosen to lean on restored his love of self, removed his grief and shame, took away his resentments, made him happy or brought him comfort, peace, or joy. Like Andrew, when the pain of the world descends upon us we must lean on something for support! What will we choose to lean on?  That makes all the difference! Listener's Guide: Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast.  3:54        Andrew's story 8:31        What do you want to do with your life, Andrew? 10:30     Killing is not the adventure he sought 13:57      Leaning on all the wrong things 25:00     The Bible 28:46     Letting go and Freedom! 30:00     God's smuggler 33:15      Audrey's challenge and the 1st Law of Life Mission Quotes from this episode: “I left home emotionally as well as physically…how I liked being treated like an adult.” ~Brother Andrew “And instantly I knew that I had been wrong about this adventure. It wasn’t the danger—I liked that—it was the killing. Suddenly targets were no longer pieces of paper stuck up on an earth background, they were fathers and brothers like my own. Often our targets weren’t even in uniform. What was I doing? How had I gotten here? I was more disgusted with myself than I had ever imagined possible.” ~Brother Andrew Brother Andrew's prayer: “Today help me not take a step outside Your will.”  “That was the final irony, the final failure. I hadn’t even managed to get my brains blown out. Just a foot. Somehow in all my furious self-destructiveness I had never considered this possibility. I had always seen myself going out in a blaze of contempt for the whole human farce. But to live—and crippled!—that was the meanest fate of all. My great adventure had failed. Worse, I was twenty years old, and I had discovered that there was no real adventure anywhere in the world.” ~Brother Andrew  “I said thanks but I didn’t pick [the Bible] up. I doubt if I ever would have, except for the nuns….The hospital to which I had been assigned was run by Franciscan sisters. I soon fell in love with every one of them…" ~Brother Andrew “He asks for so little in order to give us so much.”  ~Brother Andrew “'Why, Andrew, you ought to know the answer to that—a good Dutch boy like you. It’s the love the Christ.’ When she said it, her eyes sparkled, and I knew without question that for her this was the whole answer...” ~from God's Smuggler “It is just when we are weakest that God can use us most.” ~Brother Andrew “What was I hanging on to? I lay on my back with my hands under my head staring at the darkened ceiling and all at once, very quietly, I let go of my ego. With a new note in the wind yelling at me not to be a fool, I turned myself over to God—lock, stock, and adventure. There wasn’t much faith in my prayer. I just said, ‘Lord, if You will show me the way, I will follow You. Amen.  ...although I had thrown away every shred of self-defense, I felt secure in a way I had never before known. I woke up with such joy welling in me that I had t...

Success is such a broad term. It means so many things to so many people. Yet, we all seem to know when we don't have it.

 What is it, really? Why is it so illusive? And is there ONE key principle that would help us achieve success in ALL our endeavors--personal, home, AND business?!

YES there is! Presented last year at the Connect 2023 conference, in this presentation I give you the secret to the success you crave!

Subscribe to the podcast to hear David Emerald's interview: 

https://www.themissiondrivenmom.com/podcasts/the-mission-driven-mom-podcast

“All you’ve got to do is plant that seed in your mind, care for it, work steadily toward your goal, and it will become a reality. It not only will, there’s no way that it cannot.”~Earl Nightingale Jenny Butchart started small.

"Does everyone have a mission?  Yes, if they want one.  God will always use us if we want Him to."~Audrey Rindlisbacher If everyone has mission, then how do they set about discovering it?  What does life mission really look like?

For many years I thought I was the problem, and that was why EVERYTHING I tried didn’t seem to work! Then, through a series of experiences and deep study, I realized that I was NOT the problem (and neither are you), SELF-HELP is the problem! In this podcast I reveal WHY self-help is not helping you and show you how the TRUTH is what will truly set you free.

Get your FREE "How to Stop Worrying" Training: https://www.themissiondrivenmom.com/

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:

I was sitting in my basement, on an old armchair, in a sparsely furnished room because we had no money for couches or decor. Our used treadmill was next to me on one side, my children on the other. There were four of them then and I adored them, but I often felt that they deserved a much better mom than me.

 I was so depressed, so confused and overwhelmed. All my life I had wanted to be a wife and mother. I had planned for it and looked forward to it. Now it was here and I felt grossly unprepared. What made things even worse was the myriad of unforeseen troubles that had descended on me over the past 5 years until I felt crushed under their weight.

 One of the worst of these was my marriage. My husband and I loved each other and wanted to make things work but his pornography addiction was a constant source of pain and confusion for both of us, and I often felt betrayed. He had shared his struggles with me before we married but unfortunately we were both naive enough to think that marriage would “fix” it. Our crippling financial situation strained our relationship further. His commission-only career meant a constant see-saw of income that we didn’t know how to ride successfully. Trying to make ends meet, we built one home after another—building it, living in it, then selling it, and using the equity for income. This created instability in our family, as well as loneliness for me.

 During this time I longed to turn to our families for help but our parents were lost in their own failing marriages—in those years one couple had separated and the other divorced. Unfortunately, many of our other extended family relationships were also strained for a variety of reasons.

 As for me personally, it wasn’t just all these external issues that were causing me pain. I loved my family dearly. Although I was grateful to be a wife and a mother, I felt like I was getting lost in it. There never seemed to be enough time, money, or resources for me to develop myself as a person. Actually, it was worse than that. I didn’t even know enough about myself—what I liked, what my gifts and talents were, how I could spend time each week doing things that would fulfill me—to know where to begin.

 In this midst of these hardships, in that moment, in our basement, I knew that I should get on that treadmill. But I didn't want to. I mean, it was more than not wanting to, I didn't know how to make myself. And as I glanced from the treadmill, to my children, I felt a wave of discouragement. How was I going to become the mom they deserved—a mom that was more optimistic, that was more put together, that knew how to be a stable, consistent wife and mother, that knew how to handle all the challenges in her life? I felt trapped but I also knew there was nowhere I’d rather be. I never thought I’d find myself in this situation and I wondered what else I could have done to be more prepared.  

 College had been no help. Although I’d spent three years in a really good university, we all know higher education doesn’t prepare you for real life. The purpose of university studies is the pursuit of career and financial success. Yet, there is so much to life outside of those specific endeavors, arguably the most important things in life. I wanted to know how to live—how to navigate key relationships with confidence and connection, how to better manage my emotions, time, and money, how to raise children of integrity, how develop myself as a woman. Virtually nothing I learned in school taught me how to do those things.

 Of course, all my life I had turned to God again and again for comfort and insight. He was always there, loving me through all the troubles. But now my difficulties seemed so much bigger, so much more vital. I knew He cared; I was regularly nurtured through prayer and scripture reading. Yet, the answers to the problems I was facing didn’t seem to be surfacing. Either I didn’t know how to hear Him and utilize scripture well enough, or, as I think was truly the case, He wanted to lead me to the truths I would later find so that I could not only have more permanent solutions to my own problems, but I could share what I’d learned with others.

 So I did what all of us do in these moments of great desperation, I turned to self-help. For me this included spending time in dozens of books, courses, and even going to therapy. Though there were moments of insight and bits of progress, after several years of exhausting these resources, I was not much better off. Our marriage was still troubled, my husband was still addicted, our finances were still a mess, and I still didn’t know how to move forward in my own personal growth. I constantly wondered, “Why is nothing working? What in the world am I supposed to do?”

 Out of ideas, and feeling incapable of solving many of my personal and family problems, I decided to try to find something just for me, something that could break through the “mommy fog” in my brain and help me feel like I was growing as a person. I looked into several options including finishing my university degree, signing up for then popular “Franklin Covey Writing Mentoring”, or taking drawing classes. The problem was that everything that sounded interesting cost money and time—both of which I didn’t feel I had.

 Around this time I went to lunch with my sister-in-law and shared with her my woes. Listening to my story, she told me about a little college she had recently run across. When I looked into it, I was intrigued by how different it seemed than any college or university I was familiar with. For one thing, this school was not accredited. That meant there was an intense focus on personal development rather than income earning. This college also allowed me to sign up for distance courses where I would work through the material at my own pace—something absolutely vital for a mom of four small kids. Most importantly, there seemed to be a depth to this college that was apparent not only from the difficulty of the readings but, as stated on their website, the goal of this education was to build character by learning from the most important thinkers in history. It sounded challenging but a different kind of challenge than the ones I’d been having for the past several years—something that might provide real answers and real personal development.

 Some of the most important insights, those that would have the greatest impact on our lives, came early on. For one of my first courses, I was reading The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People  and two important paradigm shifts that helped me begin to understand why this college focused on classics to build character. They also gave me my first insight into why self-help doesn’t seem to help.

 The first epiphany came when Stephen Covey talked about how, in an attempt to understand the “keys to successful living,” he had read or scanned hundreds of articles, essays, books, and key publications in the United States since 1776 on subjects such as self-improvement, popular psychology, and self-help. He noticed a pattern. He explained, “The success literature of the past 50 years (he said this in 1989) was superficial. It was filled with…techniques and quick fixes…that addressed acute problems and sometimes appeared to solve them temporarily, but left the underlying chronic problems untouched to fester and resurface time and again.” He contrasted this literature, what he called “personality ethic” writings, with the “character ethic” approach that he said was prevalent in the writings published the 150 years prior. Benjamin Franklin’s autobiography was representative of the “character ethic,” he explained. In it, Franklin attempted to change his basic nature over time, not adopt specific practices and habits that others recommended.

 This was mind-blowing for me. If Covey was right (which I came to know he was as I later studied many of these same writings myself),  then there was a major flaw in most of the books, programs, and even therapeutic approaches I had been trying for years. There was actually a reason they hadn’t worked—and it wasn’t that I was stupid, or couldn’t change. There was something wrong with them, not with me. I felt a spark of hope for the first time in a long time.

 Then came major insight number two. Covey went on to explain that the shift  in the focus of the literature began happening after World War I when the “personality ethic” writings, while sometimes giving lip service to the importance of character, were full of “quick-fix influence techniques, power strategies, communication skills, and positive attitudes.” (Sound familiar?) In contrast, the “character ethic” writings of earlier times “taught that there are basic principles of effective living, and that people can only experience true success and enduring happiness as they learn and integrate these principles into their basic character.”

 I felt like I’d been hit right between the eyes. Basic principles. Enduring happiness. It sounded fantastic. But I had no idea what he was talking about.

 Although Covey went on to call out some of the “principles” he was referencing, they were concepts like “honesty” or “kindness”—values I believed in and I was already striving to live. This left me feeling confused about exactly what principles were or how they could make my life more successful and happy. But new ideas had been planted. I didn’t have any answers yet, but I had these powerful insights, and with further searching, praying, study, research, pondering, and practice, these ideas would eventually blossom into a new way of life for me and my family.

 In the meantime, I kept reading 7 Habits. When I ran across Covey’s description of mission statements and the importance of creating a family mission statement, I got excited. It sounded like just what we needed! I thought that maybe writing out a family mission statement would help me and my husband get on the same page in our parenting, and maybe it would give our family some clarity about the direction we were headed. So my husband and I went on a weekend retreat with a long list in our hands of all the things we wanted our family to become. For hours each day we walked and talked, going over each item and trying to get at the heart of what was most important to us. Then, on our last afternoon, we were sitting in our hotel room trying to put all the pieces together and suddenly my husband lit up with excitement, “It’s like that scripture verse about the truth setting you free!” We looked it up in the Bible and there it was: John 8:31-32 “And if ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

 We just looked at each other for several moments feeling the power of those words, “the truth shall make you free.” That was it. That was our family mission statement. There was nothing we wanted more at that time in our lives than for the truth to make us free—free of addiction, free from financial worries, free in our relationships, free from our fears. Again, I was hopeful. Again, unsure of how to proceed.

 Yet, over the weeks that followed, I kept turning that phrase over in my head, "the truth shall make you free.” At some point during that time, I made a connection that got me thinking about principles in a new way. Jesus had said that the truth will make me free and Covey had taught that principles are the foundation that produces successful, happy lives. What if principles and truth had something to do with each other? What if principles were truths that could make me free? And if they were, how could I better understand principles and live them?

 I sat with these thoughts and wondered how to move forward until one day John Locke provided the first step. Locke was a British philosopher in the 1600’s who had a huge influence on the way people think about government and its role in our lives. For one of my classes we were reading an essay by him called “Second Treatise on Government”. In this essay, in order to better explain his ideas about government, he began by asking the reader to imagine a place where there was no ruling body. Consider what would society be like with no government in place, he proposed. How would individuals know what was right and wrong? How would people behave?

 After setting up this scenario, Locke said something that made me think differently about the world from that moment on, “All men,” he explained, “are naturally in a state of perfect freedom to order their actions…as they think fit, within the bounds of the law of Nature.” This single sentence turned what I’d been taught all my life upside down. I had been told, from spiritual and secular teachers alike that there was God and his “commandments,” on the one hand—and only the “believers” took those ideas seriously. And then there were the “scientific” laws of nature on the other hand—and those were universal and immutable. But here was this brand new idea, from a thinker in the past, who had been so influential that he was quoted in the U.S. Declaration of Independence. He seemed to be claiming that the law of nature was not a scientific set of truths, but rather a social set of human laws that govern human interactions at all levels, from the family to the government. He then went on to connect the law of nature to freedom. You can only imagine how much that completely intrigued me—I desperately wanted greater freedom! I knew I had to get to the bottom of this. I determined to do whatever I had to do to figure out if Locke was right, if others agreed with him, and if so, I wanted to deeply understand the law of nature and how it could make me free.

 What my research over the next few years uncovered was shocking. It turns out that the concept of the law of nature is thousands of years old. I found dozes of voices echoing the validity of the law of nature and how important it is to human thriving. Philosophers, leaders, and thinkers in the West have been talking about it since the time of Plato and before. In fact, it’s an idea so pervasive in human nature that it is very similar to the concept of the Tao in the East.

 In my studies, C.S. Lewis’ guidance through the basics of the law of nature has been invaluable. Aware in the early 20th century that the removal of the classical works from our schools was closing down the conversation on the law of nature, he took to studying, speaking, and writing about it several places beginning with his “fireside talks” on Christianity aired on BBC radio during WWII. He knew it was necessary to begin these talks on the basic tenets of the Christian faith with a tutorial on the law of nature because even eighty years ago, this knowledge was already being lost. He understood how vital the natural law is to the stability and success of individuals and societies, so in his books he left  us many important insights into what the law of nature is, why it matters, and how we can honor it.

 There are basically two different aspects to the law of nature that Lewis presents. The first deals with our own personal behavior. Lewis He explains that because God has created everything, He knows best how to help all his creations function optimally—especially His children. That’s why he calls the law of nature, “God’s instructions for running the human machine.” It’s like an inventor who builds a robot and proceeds to write out the instruction manual, teaching the user how make it work properly, how to keep up with the on-going maintenance, and what to do if there is a breakdown. The law of nature, or the law of human nature as Lewis calls it, is the set of rules that God has put in place for humans to best manage themselves. To the extent that they follow the Creators instructions, Lewis argued, their lives will be productive, successful, and happy. William Blackstone confirmed this idea centuries earlier by beginning his extensive set of volumes on British common law by explaining that all human law has its root in God’s law of nature. He said that God has so intimately interwoven our real personal happiness and the law of nature that “if the former [the law of nature] be punctually obeyed, it cannot but induce the latter [true happiness].”

 Just as the robot doesn’t get to make up all the rules for his own maintenance, we don’t get to decide for ourselves what is right and what is wrong, God has made those rules. But, God has not left us to figure it out for ourselves. As the 18th century philosopher Thomas Reid put it, the law of nature is “written by the very finger of God on the hearts of men.” It is this intuitive understanding of the basics of right and wrong that enables us to judge our own behavior against a higher standard that we intuitively know. This explains why we have a conscience, why we suffer with guilt, why we feel we “should” be better. In fact, without an innate sense of the law of nature, we would never judge ourselves or others at all, because there would be no higher objective standard to judge things by. Therefore, in our personal behavior, we all know we have something inside ourselves encouraging us to do certain things and behave a certain way—whether we want to or not. And as Locke, Blackstone, Reid, Covey, the American founders, and many, many others have taught, to the extent that we know and honor the law of nature, we will enjoy lasting success and happiness. In this very real sense, I came to see that the law of nature was the truth that could set me free.

 Which brings us to the second aspect of the law of nature that Lewis expounded upon—its social aspect. He explains that if you listen to people long enough you’ll hear a lot of arguing about things like “fairness” or “ownership” or “justice”. He says that all this quarreling is only possible because each person is trying to prove that the other is wrong and he is in the right. But, and here’s the important point, you can only have these kinds of arguments if you both know that there is a right and wrong, and that you both should, and actually do inherently understand it. We couldn’t even navigate our social interactions without appeal to the higher law of nature. Yet, ironically, we pretend like it doesn't exist. As Jordan Peterson recently commented, today we say we don’t believe in objective moral truths [aka this law of nature], yet we actually act like we do. C.S. Lewis made this same comment decades ago about the moral issues of WWII. He said that if there’s no intuitively known law of nature, “all the things we said about the war were nonsense. What was the sense in saying the enemy were in the wrong unless Right is a real thing which the Nazis at bottom knew as well as we did and ought to have practiced?” Lysander Spooner agreed. In his 1882 work titled Natural Law or The Science of Justice he taught that listening to children on a playground is profound evidence of the reality of this law in our social interactions. He explained that children constantly appeal to it and hold each other to this standard, “Their childish plays, even, could not be carried on without a constant regard to them [laws of nature]; and it is equally impossible for persons of any age to live together in peace on any other conditions.” Blackstone reaffirmed this when he taught that the law of nature “is binding over all the globe in all countries, and at all times; no human laws are of any validity, if contrary to this.” This means that not only do we desperately need a clear understanding of the law of nature to navigate our personal lives, it is also the foundation for all our social interactions, and even the basis for all human laws.

 That’s why C.S. Lewis was right to be alarmed about the loss of this fundamental framework of human existence. Its loss is daily wreaking havoc in our world. The secularization of everything, the “your truth, my truth” approach to personal and societal resolution, the subjective rather than objective approach to truth, goodness, and beauty are creating confusion as they conflict with the real truth which is the law of nature written on our hearts. We’ve certainly moved a long way from where we were 250 years ago when the American Founders wrote “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God” into the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Clearly it was understood and believed then. What happened?

 Going all the way back to what Stephen Covey uncovered with the personality and the character ethic approaches to human problem-solving, we can see that the timelines correspond—the 20th century loss of the classical works that taught about the law of nature, and the religious framework that made sense of it in every day life, have left us floundering in quick-fix approaches that cannot produce the lasting results we long for. Further research and study taught me that the term “law of nature” is an umbrella term for all the “rules” that govern human thought and action. Under this umbrella are universally and intuitively known “first principles” that most human beings can agree on. These are concepts like rights, self-reliance, justice, love, etc. These are actually the types of principles Covey was talking about. From these first principles flow “principles” (I finally figured out where they fit). These are also universal truths but not necessarily intuitively known—they often have to be learned and applied consciously. These are truths like “forgiveness brings emotional peace,” or “seek first to understand, then to be understood.” These are what I have come to call “actionable principles.” They are truths in the form of principled statements that apply to all humans all of the time, but which are presented in such a way that a myriad of applications of them can be formulated. With these actionable principles in hand, individualized applications of the principles can be practiced which produce lasting health and wholeness—the truth that makes us free.

 With this understanding in hand, I could now clearly see why self-help didn’t help me, and doesn’t help so many others. It was obvious that the basic assumptions and approaches which make up modern self-help philosophies and practices are fundamentally incomplete or broken. I’ve come to understand that there are at least 5 specific reasons why self-help doesn’t help us.

5 Reasons Why Self-Help Doesn’t Help

Reason #1: Modern self-help resources are personality ethic rather than character ethic based—focusing on content, discussions, or solutions that don’t change our basic character permanently for the better.

Reason #2: Because the concept of natural law is virtually lost today, modern self-help isn’t developed within that framework, which means it may or may not align with reality and truth.

Reason #3: Modern self-help often focuses on managing thoughts or emotions rather than learning to fundamentally think differently about ourselves and the world, especially through the lens of the law of nature and principles.

Reason #4: Because we don’t have the skills for identifying the principles of the natural law, modern self-help encourages us to lean on experts in the major decision-making of our lives, rather than depending on our own ability to discern truth and principles.    

Reason #5: Without the ability to discern principles themselves, creators of modern self-help mix up any principles they may teach with a myriad of applications, confusing us, causing a great waste of time, and potentially moving us backward rather than forward.

  Understanding why I spent years spinning my wheels in modern self-help resources helped me see why my best efforts often led to failure. This was a huge relief. It gave me courage to find new answers and a new path for myself and my family. I felt incredibly empowered because I not only knew why self-help doesn’t help, but I knew what to do instead! Because of my newfound understanding of the law of nature, I could see that from it flow timeless principles that I could discover and live, and that they were the truths that would make me free. I knew exactly how to proceed! I simply needed to gain the skills for identifying true principles, and then learn the best techniques to practice them in my every day life. I knew it would be hard and it would probably take many years, maybe even a lifetime. But I didn’t care how long it took because I some of the greatest individuals in history had verified the reality and effectiveness of this path. I was determined to discover and live truth—not just for me but for my family as well. 

 Now, twenty years later, I am a different woman. Through writing, speaking, teaching, and practice, I have learned the skills for identifying the true principles that flow from the law of nature, and applying them to my life. This has generated increased freedom in virtually every area of my life—my marriage, our finances, my relationships, my health, my education, my self-knowledge, my life-fulfillment. I cannot emphasize enough how this new way of seeing and engaging in the world keeps me on solid ground, keeps my confidence high, and empowers me to discern and follow truth. My life is far from perfect but I know how to meet the new challenges that present themselves by applying timeless truths that always bring better results. I have walked this path long enough to know that the law of nature, with its underlying first principles and principles, is the truth is truly making me free. It’s also, as Blackstone and Covey and so many others promised, making me happier and more successful.

 Thankfully, it’s not just me that’s benefiting. I recently got a phone call from one my students. She was struggling in her marriage and attending marriage therapy with her husband. At a critical point, she felt she needed to take a particular action in her marriage and her therapist counseled her differently. She asked me, “Audrey, I think that my therapist is giving me an application, not a principle.” She then shared with me the principle she felt she should apply. “I think this is the principle and I should apply it in my marriage differently than my therapist is counseling me. In fact, I think she is not only telling me an application, it’s clear she can’t tie it back to a true principle. Am I right? Is this a principle and should I apply it my own way?” I told her she was right, and she should follow the principle she had uncovered. Her newfound sense of confidence and courage to stand up to her therapist wasn’t born out of discomfort or laziness, but out of knowledge of the law of nature and the skills she’d worked hard to gain in identifying the truth and applying it appropriately to her own situation. She has become the expert in her own life—not that she has all the answers, but she knows how to identify the true principles and valiantly champion those, rather than being constantly confused by the barrage of information and applications being thrown at her.

 Learning about the law of nature and true principles can do the same for you. Rather than running to the next “thing” that promises you the solution to the pain you are in, you can become the authority in your own life. You can have the truth make you free through gaining the skills to identify the principles for yourself and practice applications of them in your life in ways that will work for your unique circumstances. 

 Obviously, these are skills that will take time and practice to develop, but I know that the work is worth the result. That’s why I’ve spent so much time speaking and writing about the importance of these truths, and why I’ve built several courses and masterclasses educating people on how to live in more principle-centered ways. I’ve dedicated my life to this message and building tools to help others along this path. Stephen Covey said it best, “The internalization of correct principles is the foundation upon which lasting success and happiness are based.”

You don’t need self-help to meet your potential, you need the truth to make you free.

“Our culture is moving further and further away from principles and truth. What we really ultimately hope to give you, and to build and create, is a community that has the power to shift the culture. We do that by beginning with shifting the culture in our homes and raising principle-centered children. But we also do that by reaching out into our communities and building bridges through emphasizing that there are fundamental truths that can unify us all.

And all of that begins with empowering every mom with a clear understanding of true principles and how to apply them in her life.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

Are you ready for the fast track to a principled life?! HERE IT IS!

This fall you have the opportunity to gather in Dallas, TX with other moms just like you--truth seekers who want to build a strong family culture centered on principles--and spend an entire day gleaning all the most important concepts, ideas, and tools that Audrey and her team have gathered in over 20 years of research, study, and teaching!

Do NOT pass up this unique and one-time chance to be mentored, inspired, and trained in the ability to pierce the confusion and identify the principles. Not only that, you'll be armed with skills for implementing those principles in your daily life and enjoying the abundant blessings that always follow principles.

Listener's Guide:

Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast. 

1:16 - Welcome and introduction of Julie, Tracie, Lindsey, and Audrey

2:17 - When, how, why did you begin learning about principles?

12:57 - How have principles changed your life?

23:05 - What insights have you had as you've been preparing for the event?

30:43 - What would you tell someone who thinks this is too hard, too intellectual, or too abstract?

35:40 - What excited you the most about this event?

Quotes from this episode:

“We make rules, but we don’t make principles.” ~ Lindsey Wright

“His settled convictions were as a dike against those invading waters of novel opinion - social, political, and otherwise - which carried away, as in a torrent, no few minds, in those days; minds by nature not inferior to his own.” ~ Herman Melville, Billie Bud

“I realized that I was lacking something, I just didn’t know how to think when I was confronted with different ideas and different opinions. I just wanted a way to find a way through that and I knew I desperately needed it.” ~ Tracie Hyde

“Natural law is a way to bring people together; to connect us at our core.” ~ Audrey Rindlisbacher

“It’s been my passion to try to govern my life according to principles. I wanted to discover what they are and build a framework that can be communicated clearly to give other people tools for the discovery and utilization of true principles at the most basic, easiest level possible.” ~ Audrey Rindlisbacher

“I got so much clarity by asking better questions and focusing on the outcome that I want and then connecting that to some principles and first principles.” ~ Lindsey Wright

“Once you understand the principles and the outcome then it’s really clear what the next step is.” ~ Lindsey Wright

“Now I have a way forward. I have a way to act because principles have given me something specific to do - a direction to act that I didn’t know before.” ~ Tracie Hyde

“The role that each of these types play, from natural law to first principles, principles, and applications, is in helping us to clarify our vision and to figure out the what, the why, and the how, to move forward.” ~ Audrey Rindlisbacher

“They change the way I think about myself and the way I think about the world. They give me hope…They help me get clear.” ~ Audrey Rindlisbacher

“They create long-term solutions and peace.” ~ Audrey Rindlisbacher

“When we ask the five types of questions that’s what helps keep us focused on finding principles, articulating them and applying them.” ~ Tracie Hyde

“Just understanding this framework, that there is truth,

"I feel the sustaining presence of the Savior and a deep sense of calm." ~Sharidean Flint

One year ago, my sister was healthy and happy —as a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, friend, neighbor, and community leader. If you were part of our community then you probably watched or listened to an interview I did with her about her childhood, motherhood, and path to becoming the first woman mayor of Hyde Park city. We discussed her challenges, hardships, and the difficulties she’d overcome in her life. I also made sure to highlight how she lived the 7 Laws of Life Mission and the way in which they prepared her to become an amazing source of love and inspiration to those around her. Since our interview, Sharidean had continued to do all the good of which she was capable, serving others in her fun-loving way. Then, at the end of January, intense migraines began. Within two weeks she had brain surgery and was diagnosed with glioblastoma. Almost from the moment she was diagnosed I felt that I needed to share with you what I saw, heard, and experienced, so that, along with her family, friends, and community, you could be lifted by the legacy she has left.

This podcast is the rest of her story.

(P.S. When I went in to create the image for the podcast, I was going to post a picture of us together or of her with her family. But then I visited her Facebook page and noticed that I hadn't seen her newest profile picture. I've used that picture here. The image and words are what she created -- a powerful, faithful message which demonstrates all she stood for.)

Listener's Guide:

Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast. 

1:20 - MDM Updates

6:30 - Sharidean Update

15:39 - Sharidean's fear is replaced with profound peace

29:30 - Love between Sharidean & her husband Kevin

31:13 - Outpouring of love from the community 

38:47 - Sharidean's letter to the city

Quotes from this episode:

"She went through a lot of really hard things in her life. And she used those hard things to drive her faith deeper." ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

"I feel the sustaining presence of the Savior and a deep sense of calm. I feel His love and your love." ~Sharidean Flint

Links from this episode: 

“There is an exhilaration in knowing who you are.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

The first time I learned about "The Hero's Journey" by Joseph Campbell, I was blown away. It was everywhere! The idea that there was a form for the way the best stories are told - across time and culture - spoke to how similar we really are as humans.

But for me, it was much bigger than that. My question was: WHY? Why do we tell the same kinds of stories, century after century, and why are these stories made up of the same components? Why do our best stories talk of "calls," "departures," "trials," and "treasures"? What is it about these kinds of stories that evoke our imagination and resonate with us so much? 

I believe it is because we are identifying with the Adventure of Self-Discovery. Deep down inside all of us want to grow and learn and become more than we are. "The Hero's Journey" reminds us of what that path looks like, that we need to say "Yes" to the call in order to begin the growth process, and that although the way will be full of obstacles and hardships the pay-off will be well worth the struggle. 

In this podcast, I explore "The Hero's Journey" using stories of those who have rejected and those who have accepted the call. I look at why we reject the call and remind us all of some of the treasures we can obtain if we accept it. I also encourage you, if you've heard the call of self-discovery - through an MDM program or other opportunity - and you've rejected the call, or you've hesitated on your journey, to ask yourself "Why"? And begin again on the adventure of your own self-discovery, knowing you won't be disappointed. 

Listener's Guide:

Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast. 

2:39      Introduction to Andrew Young

4:38      The Heor's Journey/The Adventure of Self-Discovery

10:00     The turning Point

13:51     Leadership, Martin Luther King, and Non-violence

14:44     A New Chapter in Life

18:11     A Changed Man and Politics

21:53     Your Call to Self-discovery

30:10     Why Do We Do It

34:48     If You Are Stuck...

Quotes from this episode:

“Andrew, if you ever forget that under that sheet is a child of God you need to quit preaching.” ~Jean Childs Young

“We are like any growing thing, going to experience resistance, pain, trials, and tests. A flower has to burst out of its seed, push against the soil, and spring up above the earth. It has to put down roots, weather the rain and storms. It is always pushing, that's what makes it strong. It grows by pushing through the resistance. That is how we are fashioned, it's what we are meant to do.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

“Why do we do it? Partly because that is what we are made to do. Partly because it is what makes life worth living. Partly because that's the only way we're really going to know ourselves. But mostly, we do it for the reward, the pay off - of who we will become, and the people we will bless.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

“There is an exhilaration in knowing who you are.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

Books from this episode:

Links from this episode:

“Whatever is at the center of a person's life forms the fabric of his conscience. The conscience must be educated from divine sources in order for it to be keen and sharp, responsive and sensitive to God. ” ~Stephen Covey

The rights of life, liberty, and property seem pretty straight-forward and self-explanatory, but the right of conscience?! What does that mean? And more importantly, why does it matter? 

In this podcast, Audrey and Lindsey explore the 2 Consciences taught by Stephen Covey and why understanding them is so critical. With so much confusion in the world around rights and entitlement, absolute or relative truth, and the nature of the conscience, this podcast is a MUST LISTEN for those who want to better understand the proper role of government in society. 

Listener's Guide:

Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast. 

0:45      Summary - Principles of Government Part 1

3:30      Understanding the Significance of Basic Rights

8:11      Conscience - What is It

18:30     Understanding Conscience and How it Affects Us

20:55     Shinichi Suzuki

23:26     James Madison

27:03     Albert Schweitzer

27:40     Immaculée Ilibagiza

28:05     Your Center is Your conscience

29:50     Recognising the Difference in the Two Consciences

38:40     Government and conscience

Quotes from this episode:

“The conscience is the internal voice, our sensitivity or awareness, our sense of right and wrong. This is why we can say we are all born with a conscience because on some level we have a sense that there is a right and there is a wrong and that we ought to choose the right.” ~Stephen Covey

“We basically have two consciences. We have a divine conscience and a social conscience. The divine one is the true one. It is the light God has given every man who comes into the world. The second one is also given to us but this one comes from our human experiences - from our upbringing, the culture around us, the norms, the mores, the traditions, values, and beliefs, and from the level of our obedience to the divine conscience.” ~Stephen Covey

“The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.” ~Holy Bible, Psalm 37:31

“ We must educate our conscience. Once a person is true to the light he has received he is then capable of receiving more light and obeying it. Until he is true to the light already given additional light would only condemn him for he is capable neither of understanding it nor appreciating it. He would fall into the trap of being given a gift and being unable to receive it. The Lord gives to his children what they are able to receive and no more. If they are true to that he will give them more. ” ~Stephen Covey

“The voice of your conscience is the voice of God.” ~Leo Tolstoy

“Do the next right thing.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

“You can speed up your own personal growth by deciding to stay in obedience to your divine conscience.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

“In the former sense, a man’s land, or merchandise, or money is called his property. In the latter sense, a man has property in his opinions and the free communication of them. He has a property of peculiar value in his religious opinions, and in the profession and practice dictated by them. He has a property very dear to him in the safety and liberty of his person. He has an equal property in the free use of his faculties and free choice of the objects on which to employ them. In a word, as a man is said to have a right to his property, he may be equally said to have a property in his rights...conscience is the most sacred of all properties.” ~James Madison

“Whatever is at the center of a person's life forms the fabric of his conscience. The conscience must be educated from divine sources in order for it to be keen and sharp, responsive and sensitive to God. ” ~Stephen Covey

“The heart never takes the place of the head but can, and should obey it."

“Whatever is at the center of a person's life forms the fabric of his conscience. The conscience must be educated from divine sources in order for it to be keen and sharp, responsive and sensitive to God. ” ~Stephen Covey

The rights of life, liberty, and property seem pretty straight-forward and self-explanatory, but the right of conscience?! What does that mean? And more importantly, why does it matter? 

In this podcast, Audrey and Lindsey explore the 2 Consciences taught by Stephen Covey and why understanding them is so critical. With so much confusion in the world around rights and entitlement, absolute or relative truth, and the nature of the conscience, this podcast is a MUST LISTEN for those who want to better understand the proper role of government in society. 

Listener's Guide:

Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast. 

0:45      Summary - Principles of Government Part 1

3:30      Understanding the Significance of Basic Rights

8:11      Conscience - What is It

18:30     Understanding Conscience and How it Affects Us

20:55     Shinichi Suzuki

23:26     James Madison

27:03     Albert Schweitzer

27:40     Immaculée Ilibagiza

28:05     Your Center is Your conscience

29:50     Recognising the Difference in the Two Consciences

38:40     Government and conscience

Quotes from this episode:

“The conscience is the internal voice, our sensitivity or awareness, our sense of right and wrong. This is why we can say we are all born with a conscience because on some level we have a sense that there is a right and there is a wrong and that we ought to choose the right.” ~Stephen Covey

“We basically have two consciences. We have a divine conscience and a social conscience. The divine one is the true one. It is the light God has given every man who comes into the world. The second one is also given to us but this one comes from our human experiences - from our upbringing, the culture around us, the norms, the mores, the traditions, values, and beliefs, and from the level of our obedience to the divine conscience.” ~Stephen Covey

“The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.” ~Holy Bible, Psalm 37:31

“ We must educate our conscience. Once a person is true to the light he has received he is then capable of receiving more light and obeying it. Until he is true to the light already given additional light would only condemn him for he is capable neither of understanding it nor appreciating it. He would fall into the trap of being given a gift and being unable to receive it. The Lord gives to his children what they are able to receive and no more. If they are true to that he will give them more. ” ~Stephen Covey

“The voice of your conscience is the voice of God.” ~Leo Tolstoy

“Do the next right thing.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

“You can speed up your own personal growth by deciding to stay in obedience to your divine conscience.” ~Audrey Rindlisbacher

“In the former sense, a man’s land, or merchandise, or money is called his property. In the latter sense, a man has property in his opinions and the free communication of them. He has a property of peculiar value in his religious opinions, and in the profession and practice dictated by them. He has a property very dear to him in the safety and liberty of his person. He has an equal property in the free use of his faculties and free choice of the objects on which to employ them. In a word, as a man is said to have a right to his property, he may be equally said to have a property in his rights...conscience is the most sacred of all properties.” ~James Madison

“Whatever is at the center of a person's life forms the fabric of his conscience. The conscience must be educated from divine sources in order for it to be keen and sharp, responsive and sensitive to God. ” ~Stephen Covey

“The heart never takes the place of the head but can, and should obey it."