Finding Joy in Your Home

Whew! We are here. Today we are wrapping up our 25 foundational episodes to kick off the relaunch of my podcast. These 25 episodes are to stand as the foundation of the idea of Finding Joy in Your Home. Go back and catch up on the ones you missed. Next week we are kicking off our NEXT 25 episodes. The theme for those? The Family & Culture: How to bring glory to God within our households in a hostile culture. It's gonna be good 🔥 Today we are wrapping up our discussion on drawing closer to the Lord through spiritual disciplines and a Q&A. Listen in here: Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. We need to put in the work and the discipline and the time. So often we cry that we want a deeper spiritual life, but we don’t want to put in the work. We want one or two slides on Instagram to teach us how to do it. We don’t want to go through the work of listening to an entire podcast episode or reading a book. We want fast and quick results. But a life that becomes more and more like Christ…takes small daily steps. Every single day of your life. Small little steps that don’t seem like anything earth shattering until you look back after 5 years, 10 years, 50 years and you are suddenly a different person. Questions we chat about today: How to get into consistent Bible reading. It’s such a struggle for me. Why as moms we should read our bibles? How to read the Bible to young kids Thoughts on fasting —> READ THIS Family worship. —> Listen to episode #17 Scripture memorization? Favorite kids devotionals? see below Favorite Kid's Devotionals: The Ology - Marty Machowski Wonderfull: Ancient Psalms Ever New 30 Prophecies: One story Links & Resources: Book on the Puritans I'm reading that I mentioned: Thriving in Grace: Twelve Ways the Puritans Fuel Spiritual Growth Join our community!! Grab your ticket to the 2022 Finding Joy in Your Home Online Conference Make sure to return next week as we kick off our next 25 episodes. The theme is: The Family & Culture: How to bring glory to God within our households in a hostile culture

As a newer Christian, I often struggled knowing how to have a deeper prayer life. Even a 3 or 4 minute prayer could get boring and I didn't know how to make it deeper or what a truly rich prayer life looked like. In this episode, we are going to discuss a few ways we can approach prayer, how we can have a deeper prayer life, and what that means to mature in our Spiritual walk with the Lord. This is a hands on and practical episode, so let's dive in!! Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Book recommendation: Everyday Faitfhfulness – my current read Book recommendation: Praying the Bible by Donald Whitney My interview with Donald Whitney Check out the 2022 homemaking online conference here!! This year’s theme is: Homemaking in Light of Eternity! Join our FREE Community!! All kinds of great things going on AND a Bible Study through James in October Our book store is open November 8-15th! Grab any books and Christmas presents you want before our shop closes until March 2022

In this episode, we are going to dive into some practical ways to be in God's Word more. But first, we are going to discuss WHY it's so important to be in His Word often. Let's dive into this practical episode! Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Bible verses mentioned: 2 Timothy 2:15, Romans 15:4, Psalm 119:105, 2 Timothy 3:16 Book recommendation: Everyday Faitfhfulness - my current read Book recommendation: Women of the Word - a great book on studying God's Word! My interview with Jen Wilkin on Women of the Word Podcast recommendation: The Verity Podcast with Phylicia Masonheimer (a podcast on theology!) Website recommendation: Katie Orr has some fabulous resources for deeper Bible study Podcast recommendation: Household Hermeneutics with Jason and Jami (our new podcast on deep theology - made fun and engaging!) Podcast episode: Going deeper when you have no time (episode 115) Podcast episode: A Bible Study Q&A (Episode 116) Podcast episode: Help, I can't find the time to read God's Word (episode 241) Our sponsor: Go to MoinkBox.com/HOME right now and listeners to this show get FREE bacon for a year!. Check out the 2022 homemaking online conference here!! This year’s theme is: Homemaking in Light of Eternity! Join our FREE Community!! All kinds of great things going on AND a Bible Study through James in October

Being faithful in everyday life can be tough. Add in a busy or exhausting season and it can sometimes feel impossible. Today's episode is meant to give you encouragement in those busy seasons, while also directing you to getting into God's Word more! Listen in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. I love this encouragement from the book, Everyday Faithfulness. She says, “As you press forward with regular faithfulness admit a mountain of laundry, a rotation of diaper changes and nighttime feedings, or basic acts of care for an aging parent, the Lord sees you. He knows you are weary, and he is working good from it. He has compassion on you when you struggle to pick up your Bible or sleep through prayer. Christ is your example, but he is also your helper as he intercedes for you to keep following him in faithfulness (rom. 8:34). Links & Resources: Check out the 2022 homemaking online conference here!! This year’s theme is: Homemaking in Light of Eternity! Join our FREE Community!! All kinds of great things going on AND a Bible Study through James in October Our sponsor: Go to GreenChef.com/homemaking125 and use code: homemaking125 to get $125 off including free shipping! Our sponsor: To get 15% off your next gift, go to UNCOMMONGOODS.com/home

Welcome back to the second part of our everyday faithfulness mini series. Last week we talked about becoming a student of God. Now we are chatting about finding joy in God's Word with our special guest, Brittany Ann from Equipping Godly Women. Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

Today we are kicking off a mini series on Spiritual Disciples & drawing closer to the Lord. We will dive later on to practical Bible study tips and a deeper prayer life. But today we are talking about what it means to practice everyday faithfulness. I might step on your toes a little bit in this episode, but listen in anyway! ;) Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Check out the 2022 homemaking online conference here!! This year's theme is: Homemaking in Light of Eternity! Join our FREE Community!! All kinds of great things going on AND a Bible Study through James in October For 50% off your first Care/of order, go to TakeCareOf.com and enter code: home50

This is an encouraging episode, I promise! Something I've been wrestling with a lot in my own life, is how much input from social media, news, and other sources that I'm letting in. Today we are chatting about when it's Biblically appropriate to carry each other's burdens and when it's okay to not. This has been on my heart a lot lately, listen in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Tickets go on sale for our 2022 online homemaking conference at noon PST on Tuesday. October 5th. You can find out more here. Get $10 off StoryWorth.com/Homemaking

Anyone else feeling like you need some encouragement in your parenting? Anyone else feeling like you are struggling with connecting with your kids or making sure you are meeting their needs? If you need some Biblical grace filled parenting encouragement, I want you to join me in this episode today with Crystal Paine from Money Saving Mom. Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Crystal's book is one of my favorite books I've read in the past 2 years: Love-Centered Parenting. It was not at all what I was expecting in a parenting book, but in the best possible way. It challenged me and encouraged me. But not only in my parenting, also in my own personal heart and outlook. Crystal is incredible honest and open in this book and I highly recommend it. Links & Resources: Book recommendation: Love-Centered Parenting We have a new free Bible Study challenge through the book of James starting October 1st! Join our free community app for it. Also starting October 1st is a brand new theme for our Kitchen Collective: Crockpots and instanpots. Trainings, videos, and loooooots of recipes! Join (and get instant access to September's month (30 Minute Dinners) and October's month (breakfasts)! JOIN HERE Mark your calendar: October 5th!!! Tickets go on sale for the 2022 homemaking online conference. The theme this year is Homemaking in Light of Eternity. Our Sponsor: Join the Moink Movement today! Go to MoinkBox.com/HOME and listeners to this show get FREE bacon for a Year (A pop up will come up with the offer.

Family worship and family discipleship are two areas in our home that we've always wanted to be intentional about. But in the beginning of our marriage, we struggled knowing what this looks like. It's been a journey through the years developing this culture in our home. And while we have a long way to go still, in this episode, Jason and I are sharing what this looks like in our home right now (and what we are still learning): Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. In this episode, Jason and I share our brand new podcast we launched in August called Household Hermeneutics. It's been a passion project of ours in 2021 and we are so excited to share that you can listen to it for FREE wherever you listen to podcasts. There has never been a more important time in history to make sure we know what we believe, why we believe it, and be able to defend our faith. And it’s vital that we teach these same things to our kids. Join Jason and Jami as they dive into Christian theology, starting with the basics in an easy to understand way. But they won’t stop at the basics or a high level overview. They will dive deep, right into the very heart of God’s Word and how we can know Him more and glorify Him with our whole lives…and pass this down to future generations. This podcast is truly unique and our prayer is that it will help you facilitate family worship and growth in your household in the Lord. The podcast is released every other Thursday. On release day each week, we release two episodes back to back. Episode #1 is the full episode meant for adults and teens (the whole family can listen in, it’s just on a deeper level). Episode #2 for that week is the Family Discipleship portion that is usually around 10 minutes long. This is meant to be played for the whole family and contains: 1 5 minute lesson, Scripture memory verses, catechism, and singing hymns together. You can listen to all the episodes here! Visit our sponsor for today's episode: Go to HelloFresh.com/homemaking14 and use code homemaking14 for up to 14 free meals, including free shipping!

I've gotten some really random questions lately that didn't build into an entire episode themselves and so I decided to turn them into a little stand alone episode. I love when Allie Beth Stuckey does this! So let's jump in. Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. In this episode, we will go over a few fun and random topics: What our plans are after travel life. Teaching our children to swim How do you know when God is calling you to something verses your wish or desire for something. How to become more like minded with your husband when it comes to planning and goal setting. Training your kids in chores (and an encouragement) How do you handle the fear of being out alone with your kids? Our sponsor: For 50% off your first Care/of order, go to TakeCareOf.com and enter code home50.

If you are needing some encouragement for where is our world headed? Then tune into this second part series of A Theology of Hope. You can listen to part 1 here. Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. C.S. Lewis gives us some good encouragement for right now: “How are we to live in an atomic age?” I am tempted to reply: “Why, as you would have lived in the sixteenth century when the plague visited London almost every year, or as you would have lived in a Viking age when raiders from Scandinavia might land and cut your throat any night; or indeed, as you are already living in an age of cancer, an age of syphilis, an age of paralysis, an age of air raids, an age of railway accidents, an age of motor accidents.” In other words, do not let us begin by exaggerating the novelty of our situation. Believe me, dear sir or madam, you and all whom you love were already sentenced to death before the atomic bomb was invented: and quite a high percentage of us were going to die in unpleasant ways. We had, indeed, one very great advantage over our ancestors—anesthetics; but we have that still. It is perfectly ridiculous to go about whimpering and drawing long faces because the scientists have added one more chance of painful and premature death to a world which already bristled with such chances and in which death itself was not a chance at all, but a certainty. This is the first point to be made: and the first action to be taken is to pull ourselves together. If we are all going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb when it comes find us doing sensible and human things—praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts—not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They may break our bodies (a microbe can do that) but they need not dominate our minds. — C.S. Lewis, “On Living in an Atomic Age” (1948) FIRST THING: God is good. All the time. "Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!" - Psalm 34:8 Second: He cares deeply for his children. "“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" - Matthew 6:25-34 Third: We can trust Him with our lives, our futures, and our kids. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 ---> God will work all things out for his glory and our good. A look at eschatology I am not going to get into a huge eschatological debate here, but we do need to address something. By and large, the American or western church has become very complacent about the future. With the dispensational premillenial view point of the end times being so prevalent in American Evangelism (think: left behind and sudden rapture), it has left so many of us feeling very apathetic and lazy about the future. I think we've adopted a very fatalistic viewpoint of the end times. The dis-premill position is that things will just keeping getting worse until bam, Christ's Church is raptured. While it's not true for all churches, it does seem that when we look at the past year and a half, the church has become apathetic. We look around and see the world going down hill and kind of give up. We become apathetic.

Anyone else feeling super stressed and overwhelmed with everything going on? I've seen countless posts this week about how heavy everything feels and all of the stress of this world. But how do we, as Christians, face this present age, and the future to come? Join me in this two part series on a Theology of Hope. Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. The Problem of Being Hyper Aware Social media has become a plague to these current generations. We see and know all (or least we think so). And instead of taking comfort in God's sovereign plan, we stress and fret and fear. In the episode, we take a little jump into picturing what it would have looked like to live in the first half of the 1900s with smart phones. And compare that to how it feels now. Studying a Christian Response to: Black Plague Early Greco-Roman Plagues Emperor Nero Our Takeaways: Don't be ignorant of what's happening in the world, but largely stay in your circle Develop a robust prayer life You don't have to know all the answers TRUST In the next episode, we are going to get into the next part: The Theology of Hope for the Future Age Links & Resources: Songfinch is offering an additional $20 dollars off ALL personalized songs at SongFinch.com with code: HOME Go to GreenChef.com/homemaking100 and use code: homemaking100 to get $100 off including free shipping!

When I began looking into hospitality about 12 years ago, I felt totally overwhelmed. It felt like such a big thing to be, because I just didn't know what it looked like or how to practice it. So in today's last episode of our hospitality mini series, we are going to chat about how we can get practical with practicing hospitality. Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Getting Practical 1) Make a list of 4-5 wonderful hospitality recipes to make Don't try and reinvent the wheel each time. Create a few go-to staples you make and do those each time. The more you practice, the easier and more second nature it will become. Make sure to come up with at least one great gluten free meal and one great dairy free meal in the rotation. 2) Start inviting Seriously, just do it. The first time you blurt out, "Would you like to come to our house for dinner?" might feel awkward! But keep doing it. It becomes easier. 3) If you don't have kids Please invite the families over with kids. Go to the thrift store and have one small box of toys that you can pull out when kids come over. And don't be offended if the family with kids instead invite you over to their house. 4) Plan Ahead I know the first few times we extended hospitality to people we didn’t know very well, it felt like it took a week to get ready. Things I don’t normally notice (such as cobwebs and dirty mirrors) were suddenly obvious to me! I felt overwhelmed and I was exhausted after the first few people came over. But as time went on, I became more comfortable with the routine. We started practicing hospitality so often that I was always planning ahead to the next get together. This way the house never got too out of hand. After one night of hospitality I knew I had better stay on top of the house and cleaning because a new family would be in our dining room the following week! 5) Think outside the box with hospitality, it doesn't have to cost a ton Practicing hospitality doesn’t have to cost a lot of money! Many people feel that they don’t have room in their budget to have families over. But don’t stretch yourself. Start with a commitment of having a family over once a month and serve pizza! Everyone loves pizza; your meal doesn’t have to be complex or fancy. Many families will offer to bring something to dinner. LET THEM! If they ask, let them bring a dessert or side dish. Try out freezer cooking and make all your meals ahead, it can save a lot of money! 6) Learn from others As you start extending hospitality, just wait and you will get invited over to other’s houses as well. Learn from what they do. When you get invited to other’s houses, make a mental note of what they do from the moment you walk in the house. Do they have music playing? What kinds of questions did they ask? Did they get a card game out or offer coffee after dinner? This is the best way to learn new tips and tricks. Offering coffee at the end of a meal is a great comfort to offer, but if you never drink coffee past 10am then you might not think about it. Glean from other’s experiences and wisdom. 7) And ASK When practicing hospitality, ask, ask, ask. Many people that we have invited over to our house, we felt nervous about asking…will they want to come over? We barely know them…do they even know who we are? But everyone loves to be invited over. So just ask! Ask about food allergies or preferences. You don’t want to make a big meaty lasagna only to find out that one kid is allergic to tomatoes and Mom is a vegetarian! Ask other women for their hospitality tips. Many women like to share what they do to make their home welcoming, so ask those around you how they do it! Remember, it's not about your home, it's about your heart At the end of the day your candles don’t matter.

We are doing a little mini series right now on hospitality. In the last episode, we took a look at hospitality in the Old Testament and why it was important to them. We have to start first with the Old Testament because their view of hostility greatly influenced those in the New Testament and the early church. In the next episode, we will dive into practical ideas for hospitality but first, let's do a little deep dive into the New Testament! Listen in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Any discussion of Biblical hospitality, must first naturally start with the Bible. Yesterday we dove into the Old Testament to find out what it has to say on hospitality and now today we will find out how the early Church in the New Testament practiced and modeled hospitality. While Biblical hospitality is not a high priority for most modern western churches, it was vital to the growth, stability, and daily life of the early Church! “Hospitality is becoming an almost forgotten Christian virtue in our style of life today, particularly in big cities with their rampant crime on the streets, their locked-in apartments and all their affluent, urban and bourgeois devices which attempt to create privacy in our homes and our lives. In the New Testament, however, hospitality was a distinctive mark of Christians and Christian communities.” ~ Hospitality Commands, pg 6 Hospitality in the New Testament The Greek word for hospitality that is used in the New Testament is philoxenia which literally means “Love for Strangers“. Each time we are commanded to practice hospitality, God is literally commanding us to have and show love for others! Love is a central theme of the Bible. We are to love God {Deuteronomy 10:12}, love our neighbors {Luke 10:27}, and kove strangers {Philippians 2:3-4}. And at the root of hospitality is love. By practicing hospitality we are showing love for those in God’s Church, love for strangers, neighbors, and unbelievers, and most of all, love for God by obeying his commands. “The Christian practice of hospitality was not viewed simply as a means of overcoming a practical problem. Theological statements by different authors in the New Testament show that it was frequently viewed as the concrete expression of Christian love.” ~ Hospitality Commands, pg 16 Serving those in the Church We have a clear call from Paul to serve those within our Church and practice hospitality. “Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” ~ Romans 12:13 Practically, this serving and contributing to the needs of the saints can take on many different forms. It can mean bringing a meal to a family who just had a baby. It can mean inviting new people at Church to your home for dinner. It can mean donating money and time to the Church’s emergency fund. Later in this series we will get into practical ways we can serve through hospitality. Serving Unbelievers & Strangers While one component of hospitality is serving those in the Church, another aspect is serving unbelievers and strangers! As Abraham found out, you should never neglect to show hospitality because you never know who you are serving! Here is a clear command to practice hospitality to strangers “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” ~ Hebrews 13:2 Serve Without Complaining God surly knows our hearts! He wants us to serve Him with joy and humility. He is not merely concerned with our external actions but also the state of our hearts. He knows that we can tend to act selfishly or serve while complaining. So he issued this command: “Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.” ~ 1 Peter 4:9 We must be careful to not complain when extending hospitality when you think about the cost of food and extendi...

In the last episode we discussed ways in which we can serve within our homes. Today we are going to kick off a little mini series on hospitality. When looking at practicing Biblical hospitality, lets begin at the beginning, in the Old Testament. Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Hospitality in the Old Testament The Old Testament culture is very different from ours. As people traveled through the land {and often through very dry desert areas} there were no McDonald’s or Starbucks’ to stop at when they got tired or thirsty. When their feet were caked with mud and dried dust, they had nowhere to turn expect to houses they passed. Travelers often relied on the kindness of strangers for survival and they took the call of serving strangers seriously! “When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.” ~ Leviticus 19:33–34 In no uncertain terms, God commanded the Israelites to care for and love the strangers and travelers among them! Maybe they didn’t understand why God would issue this strong calling but all they knew was that God commanded it…and they should obey! “For the people of God in the Old Testament the duty of hospitality came right from the center of who God was. I am the Lord your God who made a home for you and brought you there with all my might and all my soul. Therefore, you shall love the stranger as yourself. You shall be holy as I am holy (Leviticus 19:1). Your values shall mirror my values.” ~ Strategic Hospitality fromDesiring God Blog Learning From the Father of Our Faith Abraham, the man called righteous because of his faith {James 2:23}, was a great example of hospitality that we can follow! Often the focus of this scene from Genesis 18:1-16 is that of Sarah who is promised to bear a son. While that is a profitable teaching from this passage, something else is illustrated as well: Abraham’s willing and eager heart to extend hospitality to these three men {who turn out to be angels & the Lord}. *Note: I recently heard a fantastic sermon on this scene that really describes Abraham’s willingness to serve. I highly recommend you listen to it as Pastor Phil Layton can describe it much more effectively than I can. You can hear the message HERE {and in fact, he is currently going through a fantastic series on Genesis right now}.* A few things to notice from this passage: Abraham Ran “When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth” ~ Genesis 18:2b This was an unusual thing for a middle eastern man of that time. He “girded his loins” and RAN to greet these strangers approaching their homestead. Abraham and Sarah were old by this point and in fact Sarah was past menopause. It’s would have been very unusual to see an old grey haired man pull up his robe and literally run to greet strangers on the road – but that is exactly what Abraham did! He was eager to share hospitality with these strangers! Abraham Called Them Lord Calling someone Lord was a sign of respect. Abraham was a wealthy man and yet he called himself a servant to these strangers and ran to wash their feet – a humbling act of service! To wash someone’s feet was to make yourself lower in status to that person {which is one reason it was so shocking that Jesus would wash the apostles feet {John 13:1-17}. “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree” ~ Genesis 18:3-4 Photo by paukrus Abraham’s Hospitality Was Generous “And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick!

We spent the first 10 episodes of our 25 Foundational Episode series chatting about routines, habits, and how we can find joy in our homes all for God's Glory. The last part of what we want to focus on in our homes, is serving! Today we are going to talk about what it looks like to serve within our homes and then we will jump into a 2 part mini series on hospitality. After that, we will kick off a series on PLANNING out all of these habits and routines in our homes. Let's jump in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. I did a deep dive into this topic in my new book, She Laughs Without Fear. So as I was planning out the notes for this episode, I started pulling stuff from that chapter but realized I basically just wanted to give you everything from that episode. So instead of reinventing the wheel, today's episode is just going to be the audiobook Chapter 7 of my new book! If you are loving this topic, you can hop over to FindingJoyShop.com to purchase the full eBook or Audiobook on the Proverbs 31 woman! “She opens her hands to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.” - Proverbs 31:20 Often in seasons where we are home a lot (like being a stay at home mom and/or having lots of little kids), it can feel like our ability to serve within our homes isn't much. But in this episode, I hope to show that while God has us all in unique seasons, we are still called to serve. In fact, we can use our homes as a powerful form of ministry...it might just look different from season to season. Some ways we can serve that we discuss in this episode: Through hospitality Tithes & offerings And other forms of ministry Ministry to our own families So I will leave you here on that note. What season does God have you in right now? What are some ways you can serve in the season you are in? Empty nesters, you might find yourself with more time on your hands and the ability to serve outside the home more, but lack the energy to do so. Pray that God would direct where you should serve and use the restrictions and freedom that God has given you in this season. Likewise, young moms, you might feel so squeezed for time, yet you are home a lot. Use what God has given you in this season to serve! Don’t discount the small ways you can serve the Lord right now. Take this lesson from the wise woman and plan and prepare for ways you can serve the Lord while serving your family. Links & Resources: Get my full book, She Laughs Without Fear here Get TWO full weeks of meal plans and learn how to prep ahead with PrepDish.com/Homemaking Join our new community to discuss this epiosde and so much more! --> FindingJoyCommunity.com

We've been really working on routines around here. It's been one of those seasons where I need to tighten up our routines and habits for the whole family. In episode 9, we discussed a solid morning routine which will make your day go so much smoother. But the KEY to a solid morning routine is a very practical evening routine. That's what we are going to discuss today, let's dive in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. A practical evening routine for my house: Helps me to close out today and prepare well for tomorrow. If I can successfully do my evening routine, it's so much more likely that tomorrow will start without a hitch. It's kind of like a vicious circle in my household. When I stay up too late and am not intentional, my morning is rocky which throws off my whole day. Then we get to bedtime and I stay up too late again trying to either capture a little productivity or finally sneak in some rest time. Which of course, means TOMORROW is rocky or messed up. Thus the circle. But in a positive way, if you can get on a rhythm of good routines: closing out your day well, getting a good nights sleep and getting up and getting productive: a very good circle can start. That's our aim with a practical evening routine. A Practical Evening Routine for Me Includes: Shut down the house and my day: Create a routine that you step into each evening Set the coffee make to start Make sure kitchen is clear & I know what's for breakfast Review my dinner plan for tomorrow: does anything need to go in the crockpot or pull out of freezer Review my plans for tomorrow: school plans, doctors appointments, etc. The most important part: Get to bed on time I have a brain that likes to never stop. I have the tendency to get into bed exhausted but my brain is wide awake. So in some stressful seasons, it's very important for me to intentionally wind down before bed. If I try to go straight from working on a work project, watching tv with Jason, or scrolling IG on my phone to sleep, it just doesn't work. So I like to: Take a detox bath: Epsom salt + essential oil Take Mary Ruth's nighttime multi mineral (magnesium) Read a book before bed to relax Links & Resources: Our Sponsor: MoinkBox.com/HOME for a FREE year of bacon!! Our Sponsor: HookedOnPhonics.comHOME, and receive your first month for just one dollar Join our amazing free online community app (you can access it from anywhere): FindingJoyCommunity.com Sign up for the Finding Joy in Your Kitchen Collective. Our first month we will be breaking down BREAKFAST! Come join us Titus 2 Minute Podcast Season 2 is LAUNCHING TODAY!! Go listen.

For the past couple of months, I've been focusing on meal planning and getting my kitchen under control. And while there are so many fantastic practical things we can talk about when it comes to meal planning, the biggest thing I want to talk about is the spiritual aspect of meal planning. Dive into today's episode to find out what I'm talking about: Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. The kitchen has gotten a bad rap the last 50 years or so. We want to be in and out of the kitchen as fast as possible. Then we find out all these processed foods and fast food are actually causing a lot of health issues so we try and cook a little healthier all while spending as little time as possible at it. We get frustrated and angry when we end up spending more time in the kitchen than we want to. But what if we instead looked at meal prepping and cooking for our family as a ministry? Now I’m not saying you need to start cooking everything from scratch or that your version of nourishing your family needs to look anything like what it does for my family. But what if instead of viewing the kitchen merely as a place to build up the physical parts of our family, what if we viewed it with a ministry mindset and saw how we could use food to minister as well? In her book,Eve in Exile, Rebekah Merkle looks at what it means to work within the home. I love what she says about food: I read the quotes in the video but if you have the book she chats about it on pages 152-154. What if we used this opportunity in the kitchen to get creative? To serve our family? To help heal bodies with food. And used it as ministry? Food has been a central gathering place in every culture around the world. Good food and meals around the table should be celebrated. It can become the heart of the home. It can be used to ministry to our husbands and our kids. It can be greatly used to minister to others through hospitality or bringing them meals. As we head into the rest of this series, and fight to make our kitchens run smoother, let’s remember this: That the kitchen can be used to greatly serve the Lord. so let’s be women that use this rather large area of our lives, after all we have to make 3 meals a day plus snacks day in and day out, to serve God’s Kingdom. To teach our children the art of cooking and to use what time we have well. “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31 So today I want you to reflect on what your attitude has been about the kitchen? Do you complain often, either outlaid or to your kids, about having to make another meal? Da you whine and put off having to do the dishes? Da you anguish that this is a task that has fallen to you? Take a few minutes to really examine how you’ve maybe had a sinful heart in this area of your home and pray and ask God to change your heart and your attitude when it comes to this task. Join our brand new Kitchen Collective! If you are excited about this concept of using your kitchen as a ministry to your family, but you don't know how to actually make that happen, then I want to invite you to join our brand new Finding Joy in Your Kitchen Collective! Each month we will tackle a different area of our kitchen so that in one year, you will master your kitchen! The first month we are tackling Breakfasts!! It's going to be incredible. Jump in today to join us: FindingJoyShop.com/kitchencollective Links & Resources: Our Sponsor: Get free shipping on your kids play kits at Lovevery.com/HOMEMAKING Our Sponsor: Go to HelloFresh.com/homemaking14 and use code homemaking14 for up to 14 free meals plus free shipping! >> Join our new Kitchen Collective!! <<

I have become very passionate about establishing a solid morning routine in my day because it makes such a huge difference in the work I can get done in a day but also attitudes! Tune into this episode to hear about my morning routine and how I use it to really set the tone for my day. Listen in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. We've been talking a lot about priorities and a solid morning routine helps to make sure your 1-2 top priorities for each day happens. A good morning routine to me: Start off with: Bible reading & prayer Then: Get Ready This helps with: Making sure my own attitude is prepared for the day Make sure to: Review dinner Also: Review days plans This all: Kicks off our work and school day well In the next episode we are going to dive into a solid evening routine and how this is actually the key to a good morning routine and that is when things really start clicking! Links & Resources: Our Sponsor: For 50% off your first Care/of order, go to TakeCareOf.com and enter code home50

In the past episode, we discussed redeeming our time for God's Glory. Next we are going to dive into developing good morning and evening routines. But before we do, I want to pause and take a little look at the Proverbs 31 woman and something she can teach us about using our time well. And don't worry, I'm not going to leave you with a massive to do list that includes learning how to make your own clothes or grow a giant vineyard. Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. We are celebrating this month because my brand new book: She Laughs Without Fear: Wise & Joyful Living with the Proverbs 31 Woman launches this week. Preorders for the physical copy of the book already closed, but keep an eye out for future bookstore openings when we may offer it for print again. In the mean time, you can get the eBook and Audiobook version in our digital store. You'll get access to both versions! eBook launches Wednesday and audiobook is coming Friday! Order here. "What we are going to see throughout this book is a woman who is filled with joy. A woman who laughs, works hard unto the Lord, and personifies wisdom. All of this leads to a rich, full, and joyful life. And the heart of all of this is not how much she does, or what she accomplishes. It’s not about her worth, or her output, or her social media account where people can follow how beautiful and perfect her home is. The heart of it all is her relationship with God. We will see things we do want to emulate from the Proverbs 31 woman. We might be convicted and see places we can work harder. We might even start a little to do list of things to work on after reading this book. But all of it will be under the umbrella of knowing God more and serving Him with joy." - Introduction from my new book There are two parts of Proverbs 31 that are very relevant to our discussion today. The question is, how do we use our time well? The heading to the Proverbs 31 passage is titled "The Woman Who Fears the Lord" and then the chapter is concluded with these final 2 verses: "Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." We also see up in verses 25, "Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come." So how do we learn from this wise woman? In my book, we go into the concept of wisdom, what it is and how we can attain it. And then verse by verse we go through the final chapter of the book of Proverbs to see what the real lessons are there in it. But today I want to just look at these few verses. We are on a journey with these 25 foundational episodes to discover how to use our time well in the pursuit of finding joy in our home. And so many of us are plagued by stress and anxiety in our homes. Not a lot of extra room for joy or peace when you are plagued by anxiety. But we see that the wise woman of Proverbs laughs without fear of the future. How could this possible be? How can she be so secure in the Lord that she takes delight in what is to come? This speaks of a woman who has found joy and purpose in her day. Well we see the entire reason for it in verse 30, "but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." What does that fear of the Lord possible mean? The point of the book of Proverbs is to help us understand what God considers wise and righteous living. It helps us take the Law and apply it to daily life. Through the book of Proverbs, we see some powerful glimpses into the heart of God, and it helps us to learn His character more. One such powerful lesson is earlier in the book: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.” - Proverbs 9:10 he book of Proverbs is all about this concept - the wise person versus the fool.

As we kick off our next mini series on productivity and routines, we first need to start with the concept of our time. How do we use our time to serve the Lord? How can we redeem our time all for His glory and in finding joy in our homes? Let's dive into this episode to find out! Listen to the Podcast: You can find all the links and notes for this episode below! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Redeeming our time for God's Glory We can view the time we have as a gift - or we can grumble and complain that we don't have enough of it. Do we thank God for the time we have? Or do we constantly grumble and complain about what seemingly little time I have? God gave us 24 hours in a day and of those hours, we are not meant to be productive 24 hours a day. In fact, we "waste" roughly 1/3 of those hours every single day in sleep! God has given you the right amount of hours to accomplish all that he has for you. You won't get to the end of your life and God is like whoops! So with that in mind, are we scheduling in the big priorities that God has given me? Am I making sure that HIS priorities are #1 and that I'm not filling my time with my priorities. We glorify busy and productive. And often, God's big priorities are not often the ones that we feel good sharing on social media or checking off a list. Our big priorities in our life: God Marriage Kids Business Other important things: homeschool, eating healthy, my own health, reading, etc. What do you need to say not to right now in order to use your time well? I think for many of us, it's getting more wise with our technology use. Tim Challies shares "They are questions I receive often: “Do you ever sleep? Do you work all the time? Do you ever stop?” There seems to be this impression among certain people that either I am an unrepentant workaholic or that I am remorselessly neglectful toward life’s other responsibilities. The truth is far less sordid: I have invested a lot of effort over many years in learning how to simplify life and how to maximize productivity. I love to make the best use of my time and energy, and I am constantly fine-tuning the systems that allow me to remain that way." His very helpful article: https://www.challies.com/articles/how-to-get-things-done/ Links & Resources: Our sponsor: Get free shipping on the kid play sets at Lovevery.com/homemaking Our sponsor: Get 12 free meals and free shipping with HelloFresh.com/homemaking12 and coupon: homemaking12

Ever year, I do a recap of our homeschool year to share what has been working well and sharing all the resources we used. Listen to to a fun homeschooling convo today. Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. This year we had 2 2nd graders, 2 kindergartners, and a 4 year old who wanted to be in Kindergarten and do everything her big brothers were doing. So it was our first year really with 5 kids in school. Our biggest focus this year: READING. I had a big focus with all 5 kids on getting everyone to the next reading level. Which I am so glad because I feel like my 2nd graders are really walking into 3rd grade with good reading under their belt now. And the two kindergarteners are doing fantastic. They will be reading early readers on their own by 1st grade. The 4 year old in betweener will be there soon as well. We spent a lot of time reading this year and the pay off has been so worth it! I've taught all 5 of my kids so far to read using Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. Best $14 investment for all 5 of my readers. Our Main Curriculum this Year: The Good and the Beautiful Math We used their level 2 and level K this year. This is our 2nd year using TGATB for math and we love it. They are releasing an all new math program August 2nd and we are very excited about it. I'll update you when we start using it. Gather Round Homeschool for all other subjects We switched to Gather Round in July 2020 after 2 months of heavy research into it (I did NOT want to switch curriculum again lol). But I am so glad that I did!! You can read all about why we love Gather Round in this blog post. Units we've done so far: Oceans Asia North American Birds Europe Space Africa Earth Science Artists - Year 2 Mini unit: Christmas mini unit: Government We will finish up: Human Body & South America by September. Extras we added in: Notgrass - Our 50 States Random lesson pages from TGATB language arts (they are free to print grades 1-5) Lots of books & art crafts Some books we read this year: Boxcar children Looots of magic tree house books Growly series I survived Series Star Wars Jedi Academy Wingfeather Saga Next year I will have 2 3rd graders, 2 1st graders, and a Kindergartener. So it'll be a full year. I will share exactly what we are using and studying as we get closer to September and I've had a chance to actually plan and order all my stuff! ;) Links & Resources: Our Sponsor: Check out storyworth.com/homemaking for $10 off your first purchase. PERFECT gift for Father's Day! Our Sponsor: Get 50% off your first order of supplements and herbs! Go to TakeCareOf.com and use code home50 at checkout!

In the last episode, we talked about the Biblical idea and encouragement behind Biblical REST. God wants us to rest and in fact, we need to rest in Him. Resting in Him will produce more rest in our life overall. What how do we go about cultivating true rest in our busy too full lives? That's what we are diving into today! Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Build better routines for your life. This might not happen overnight, in fact, it might be a long road to setting better habits in your life. We are so use to living at break neck speeds in our society, it can be SO hard to reframe our concepts of what a productive life looks like. Today we are going to chat about a few things: Getting more sleep, getting OFF social media, being intentional with your rest time, and MAKING the time for rest. Get MORE sleep. "One study highlighted that we are sleeping between one and two hours fewer per night than people did sixty years ago, and two and a half hours fewer than a hundred years ago. However, ultimately the practice of getting a good night's sleep is rooted in the outworking of our theology. We believe God has made sleep an integral part of our humanity (Ps. 127:2), but as with all good gifts from God, we have a sinful tendency to refuse or misuse it. While some may struggle with wanting too much sleep, many of us struggle with wanting to make do with too little. In our productivity-mad society, we idolize activity and minimize the need for sleep. We can even pride ourselves in how little sleep we seem to need. Stories of famous Christians throughout history who reported getting by on very little sleep fuel the idea that less sleep is more godly and an example of great faith. What is often forgotten is that many of these Christians also suffered terribly ill health, and others dies young. That's why I want to make the case that adequate sleep is a far better example of great faith." - Refreshed, page 52. I have struggled deeply with this concept. I feel like I need to constantly worry about the next step and pushing myself harder. As Ive grown in my journey, I've learned that often, I need to just go to sleep and be wise with my time. God will meet our needs. "I believe God will look after my family, my work, or my studies. I refuse to believe the lie that everything depends on me. I believe in God's sovereignty and trust that he does not need me to overwork and under sleep to get all of the work done (Ps. 127:1-2). I believe God created my humanity, and I need to follow his guide for maintaining it. I refuse to believe the lie that I'm unique. I'm no stronger than others and therefor equally in need of his gift of sleep (Ps 3:5, 4:8). I believe my body and soul are so closely bound together that each impacts the other. I refuse to believe the lie that if I neglect my body, my soul and mind will still flourish. I believe my sleep is one of the best illustrations of my rest in Christ. I refuse to believe the lie that I must be known for my sacrificial service to Christ rather than by my resting on him. I believe in God alone and refuse to worship idols. I refuse to idolize work success and belittle sleep. I refuse to idolize late night entertainment and neglect sleep. I refuse to idolize service at the expense of sleep. I refuse to make impressing my boss more important than sleep. I refuse to idolize a perfect home at the cost of damaging the temple of my body. Our sleep patters reveal our idols." - Refreshed, pages 53-54. How do we get more sleep? Discipline "We need God's help to translate this conviction into action. Ask him for the willpower to make the necessary schedule adjustments and lifestyles changes."

Rest is a topic that Christian women are not talking enough about. In fact, we tend to glorify busy. We glorify perfection, and doing more, and sometimes we even glorify a too full messy life over a more restful life. Today we are going to dive into what rest means from a Biblical perspective and why it's so important for the Christian women today. Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Physical Warning Signs of Lack of Rest "Just as running too fast round the track will eventually result in physical problems, so running the race of life at too fast a pace will have physical consequences. Over 70 percent of Americans experience stress-induced symptoms such as headaches, stomach cramps, sore joints, back pain, ulcers, breathlessness, bad skin, an irritable bowel, chest pain, and palpitations. I certainly had some of these symptoms, and I also remember many female patients who came to me with multiple and varied bodily pains for which no physical explantation could be found, no matter how many tests and scans they had. Their lives were simply too fast and full for their bodies and minds. It's called "burnout" for a reason: All the stress causes chronic inflammation, a sort of fire in our cells that burns all the hotter, further, and longer the more fuel we add to it with our hectic lifestyles. Feeling tired, exhausted, and lethargic all the time are early warning signs that should be heeded." - Refreshed, page 26 PUSHING ourselves too hard: "We are not only creatures; we are complicated creatures. We have not only incredibly complex bodies but also remarkably intricate souls. And when you put these together in one person, you have multiplied complications as each part interacts with the others. That was one of the key areas I forgot. I was pushing myself physically in many different ways. God has blessed me with a strong will, and when I decided to get something done, I just kept pushing until it was accomplished. "Yes, at times I could tell that such determined pushing was taking a toll on my body but I ailed to see that it was also taking a toll on my mind and my soul. I seemed to think that I could push and exhaust the physical part of me, and the mental, emotional and spiritual parts would be unaffected. I was not seeing myself as God has made me - a limited creature and complex creature. I was not only underestimating my limitations but underestimating the impact of an exhausted body on my mind and my soul. And I'm not talking here about exceptional times in life when we have to push ourselves much harder, such as when facing exams, work deadlines, or nursing babies. I'm talking about this becoming the norm, the default, for extended periods of time. Verses such as Phil 4:13 - "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" - do not override our basic need to eat, drink, and sleep." - Refreshed, page 39. I've found in my life, that knowing I need to rest more, isn't the same as truly believing it. And I've found that my inability to rest was very much tied up in feeling like I needed to do ALL THE THINGS all of the time. This is still something I can struggle with time to time, but by God's Grace I've come a long way. Here are some truths to keep in mind when we are struggling with this Biblical concept of REST: Stop striving - your worth is in Christ "A grace-paced life? What's this? It's a pace of life that's constantly refreshed by five different wells of divine grace. First, there's the motivating well of grace. We used to be driven by money, family perfection, beauty, careers, or earning God's favor. But instead of filling and fulfilling us, these motivations drained and dried us. Now though,

We are on a quest here with this ministry...to find joy in the everyday. And that's no easy task. We've talked about. 1. The Ministry of Home 2. How the Gospel Impacts Our Homes. 3. Finding Glory in the Mundane Moments. And now, practical ways to find joy. Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. This episode is based today on this article published in 2016. If you want to read along to everything we discussed, you can hop over and read it here. In this episode we discuss: Finding Joy in the Early Morning Hours Fill the House with Worship Music Open the Bible Count Your Blessings Keeping a Joyful Heart in the Mundane Tasks of Home Keeping Pray Over Your Home Listen to Something Inspirational Have a Plan Create Room for Fun In the next episode we are going to jump into the importance of REST in our homes and lives. Links & Resources: 2016 Article on Finding Joy My Spiritual Disciplines Notebook Set Hf #143: Cultivating Gratitude in Everyday Life Hf #141: Growing in Gratitude with Mary Mohler Hf #50: Choosing to be Thankful in Troubled Times Our Sponsor: Go to HelloFresh.com/homemaking12 and use code: homemaking12 for 12 free meals, including free shipping! Our Sponsor: Get 20% off your smart subscription for shampoo and conditioner for Gemmist with code: HOME

In episode #1 (of our new relaunch of the podcast) we talked about the ministry of home and #2 focused on how the Gospel impacts all we do. Today we are chatting about finding glory in the mundane moments. Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Most of us spend our days in the mundane. You see, I struggle sometimes with finding worth in the mundane. I struggle finding glory in the ordinary. I sometimes struggle knowing how the second load of dishes or sweeping the sidewalk is worth anything. Do you ever struggle with this? Do you ever struggle knowing how our work in the home matters to God? I feel like I’ve gone on a similar journey as the author has in Glory in the Ordinary. I love how she’s open about her struggle with this as well: “Like all major changes, my early days as a stay-at-home mom rocked me to the core. I had gone from days filled with fruitful conversations to days filled with crying and blank stares from two needy babies. Over time I began to see that being home had inherent value, but what I couldn’t immediately see was how the work at home had value as well. It was not merely about staying home to take care of the children (which made sense to my exhausted brain); I had to learn there was value in the laundry and cleaning too.” – Glory in the Ordinary page 25 This is the impactful part, she goes on to say: “What I’ve learned is that God is glorified in the mundane work as much as he is in the magnificent. In fact, it is in the mundane moments, the moments where we live each and every day, where we come to see the true greatness of God and his love for us.” – Glory in the Ordinary page 25 Life is lived out in these tiny moments. I may not always have the mental capacity to remember and realize that I am doing big, grand work, even when I’m scrubbing toilets, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Something that I love throughout her book is this concept of how our culture views work in the home versus how God does. Our culture views work as simply a means to an end. We work just enough to be able to afford leisure time. And we look down on those blue collar jobs or work that seem to have little worth, such as working McDonald’s. We value big important jobs. We admire people who are in charge of large ministries who are making changes in the world. That’s not a bad thing to admire those people, but we tend to put all our value into these jobs or those people. So we tend to think then, even if we don’t say it out loud, that our work doesn’t matter if we are not accomplishing something big. And then we apply that to life in the home. When I’m caring for these five souls that God has entrusted to my care, it’s easier for me to see the worth. I can glimpse the Gospel-work that I am doing, even if I don’t always verbalize it or even remember it. But when I can take a step back, I can more easily see that the work I do with my kids, is big and important. But scrubbing the toilets? Cleaning out the garbage can so it stops smelling? Pulling a red crayon out of the dryer which has now stained an entire load of laundry? How are these moments important when they don’t seem to accomplish anything big or important? And Courtney makes an important point: we have to choose the middle of the road when it comes to the work in our home. Because on one hand we can completely devalue the work at home and on the other, we can make it an idol! We don’t have the time to cover all of these in detail today, but I love that God so cares about the everyday details of our lives. Here are some ways we can think about the work in our home: 1) We are loving God and serving Him through serving others

Last week we talked about our ministry at home. We need to have a focus on Christ that is all encompassing of our life. And this leads us to our 2nd foundational episode: The Gospel as our central focus within the home. Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. As Christians, the thing that we need to stand upon, the thing that unites us, and the thing that our homemaking should be based upon - is the gospel. Starting with the Basics Having a Gospel-Centered home means purposefully and intentionally creating the goals, activities, and atmosphere in the home to be firmly centered on the Gospel. So, What IS the Gospel? The Gospel is powerful: "I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes." Romans 1:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16 1) First, Paul tells his readers that it is God to whom they are accountable. Romans 1:18 - For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men" 2) Second, Paul tells his readers that their problem is that they rebelled against God. Roman 3:10 - “None is righteous, no, not one." Romans 3:23 - "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 6:23 - "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." 3) Third, Paul says that God's solution to humanity's sin is the sacrificial death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Romans 5:8 - "But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." 4) Finally, Paul tells his readers how they themselves can be included in this salvation. Romans 10:9-10 - "Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved." So Gospel-Centered living first starts with a thorough understanding of the Gospel, daily reminding ourselves about the beauty and the truth of the Gospel, and finally, having a firm vision of eternity. Bringing it all together 1) For our own sanctification 2) Relying on and needing God's GRACE 3) Winning our husband's to Christ - or encouraging his faith 1 peter 3:1-2 "Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct." 4) The Gospel in our Parenting Deuteronomy 6:6-9 - "And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." 5) Out into the world Train up our children so THEY can present the Gospel Spreading the Gospel through Hospitality Next week we I'll turn to how this plays out in ordinary life. It's one thing to say that we want a focus on the Gospel...it's another to live it out in the mundane. So next week we are going to discuss: Glory in the Mundane and finding joy in that. Join our New Community App! The other very exciting news I have for you today is that our brand new community app has launched. You can come join our FREE app where you can join in on the discussion of THIS podcast episode and so much more. If you are looking for a safe and encouraging place...

Welcome!! It's relaunch day of our podcast! For 330 episodes, we've been the Homemaking Foundations Podcast. But we are rebranding everything under our new name, including the podcast. So welcome to season 1, episode 1 of the Finding Joy in Your Home podcast. We are kicking off the new season with 25 foundational episodes. Today we are talking about what the Ministry of Home is and more specifically: What is the purpose of life and how should we spend our time? So let's dive into our first official episode under our new name. And don't worry - ALL 330 episodes are still there! Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. As a society, we are all searching for meaning. We deeply want to use our lives (and our time) well. We want to have purpose and meaning in our days. The big question we all want answered: What does it mean to have a successful life? And where should we spend our time? As Christians, this has to first and foremost start with God. How does God define a successful life? How does he say we should spend our time? <-- This is where we are starting in this discussion. You see, as Christians, God's Word should be the back bone of how we spend our life and our days. But sadly, for many, being a Christian has become a secondary or even tertiary influence in our lives. Many Christians today focus on a worldly life and worldly pursuits and might fit God in when it's convienent. So as Christians, what is our point in life? The Westminster Shorter Catechism says this: "Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever." Well there you go. That's the entire mission behind our ministry and new name of: Finding Joy in Your Home. How do we find that joy in our homes? When we seek to follow God and glorify Him. How do we glorify God? By loving him and obeying his commands. "The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man."- Ecclesiastes 12:13 "Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?" - Matthew 16:24-26 So we see, as soon as we dive into Scripture, that our primary purpose is to love and serve God. A big way of serving God is loving and serving others. "For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” - Galatians 5:13-14 So what does this mean for us in the context of loving and raising our families? Our Ministry At Home A successful life is not marked by: How much money we have in the bank How many degrees or titles after our names we amass How beautiful our homes are or how trendy we stay By juggling a giant career and being a mom Losing the baby weight so fast that no one even knows you are a mom ...or a myriad of other things we find out worth in. Those things are not bad in and of themselves. But they become bad when we mark these as a successful life. Rather, a successful life is marked by a life of service and a joy that can only come through the Lord. "So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit,

As we've embarked on full time travel this past year, we've learned so much! As of the day I'm recording this, we have been traveling full time for exactly 11 months. And while I feel like we are always refining the process, we've also gotten so much better at it! This episode is inspired by the fact that I've gotten a handful of friends messaging me, asking for travel tips for this summer. Some are going camping for the weekend, one friend is taking an 8 week trip staying in cabins, another friend is embarking on a 3 month RV trip, and others are venturing out in their local areas for day trips. So after thinking about it, here are my travel tips for families (especially those with little kids). Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Psst: This is our very last episode under the name of Homemaking Foundations. ALL of my episodes will still be here in the feed for you, but all 330 episodes will be set to episode 0. The next episode to come out will be episode 1, under season 1 of Finding Joy in Your Home. All the same amazing content...just under a new name to better capture what we do here! 1. Just do it. Go. Make it happen. It might sound overwhelming. It might be overwhelming as you pack and get ready. It might be a lot more work than just staying home...but go. The memories and experiences are worth it. And you'll get better at it with time. 2. Plan as best you can, but go with the flow. For those of us planner types, we can get deep into the details of planning out summer plans. In fact, I actually LOVE planning out our trips. I get very geeky and excited about mapping out the perfect route, where we will stay, and what we will do. Whether you dread or love this step...you have to remember to take it all in stride. It's NOT going to be perfect, in fact, it's often in the imperfect that we remember things the most. We've had RV plans fall through last minute, which ended up being huge blessings in the things we ended up doing. On moving days, we are always so exhausted after taking down camp, driving to a new location, and setting up again. But then the sun dawns the next day and we are ready for fresh exploring. 3. Stock up on activities for kids...and slowly release them. Don't give them all out at once. On long travel days, we usually let the kids just read or do their own thing for the first 2 hours or so. Usually until our first rest or gas stop. Then we will pull out a craft or activity and let them play with that for a while. A few hours later when we are starting to get tired, I'll pull out something else new! The key, for when you are traveling a lot, is to find cheap stuff! The dollar tree is my favorite place to grab stuff and I've gotten creative with the things I'll get for the kids to do. Some ideas: $1 crayon and picture packs $1 Felt pictures with markers $1 magic market packets. Or get the $5 from Walmart, they usually come with several pens and sheets of paper. I'll buy random stickers and scrapbooking stuff + packet of markets + $1 notebook for each kid and have them write their own book. $1 activity books Walmart as these cool glitter poster boards for $1 each. Give them stickers + pens and make a poster Print off mazes, activites, and pages from Pinterest and bind into a book for each one. Etch a sketches, Melissa and Doug Water wow books, etc. It's not until usually the final hour or so that we break out the Kindle fires and let them watch a movie. I'm not against using screens on long card rides, but since we do it SO often, I like to save it until the very end so they are not asking from minute #1 of being in the car. 4. SNACKS

Mother's Day is coming up in a few weeks. And while we may look forward to the day (or not), it can also be hard with expectations and a lot of emotions. Maybe you will get a hand written card. Maybe you will get a half-hearted “Happy Mother’s Day” from your teen. Maybe your husband will do the dishes for you. Maybe it will be all you dreamed of and it will be amazing. Maybe. Or maybe you will feel a little disappointed. Maybe you will feel hurt that your husband didn’t make a bigger deal out of the occasion. Maybe you resent the fact that you still had to do all the cooking and the cleaning over the weekend. Maybe you will wish that just for once, someone in your family would notice ALL that you do. Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. I get it. I think all of us have been there at one moment or another. “Don’t they see ALL that I do for this family day in and day out?” “Wow, I sure wish I could just throw my clothes all over the room and hope that someone else will deal with it later.” “I don’t ever stop working, I wish that just for one second that someone would notice that and recognize it!” I know it’s easy for these feelings to creep into our hearts. But at the end of the day, this is only going to lead us feeling frustration, overwhelmed, and with a lot less joy in our lives. These feelings and this line of thinking robs us of our contentment in the everyday. When mother’s day is over and we are feeling under-appreciated and overwhelmed, how do we being again to find joy? Finding our Joy in the Lord It can be so discouraging when we feel like we are not appreciated for all we do. We want to be recognized or even just given a small thank you every once in a while. But when we don’t get these, or it doesn’t look like how we think it should look…we are quickly robbed of our joy. The problem is: We are placing our hope, our trust, and our joy in the things of this world. We are placing our joy – or our lack there of – in the hands of our toddlers who might wake up on the wrong side of the bed and scream all day or in the very angsty hands of our teenagers. We are turning to our family to fulfill us and meet our needs. I did this a lot in the early days of our marriage. I looked to my husband to fulfill all of my needs. I looked to him for encouragement, for security, for complete and perfect love…and of course, when he would inevitably fail…my joy would go along with it. I’ve learned through too many mistakes throughout the years that ultimately, my joy needs to be in the Lord. These sinful humans that we live with day in and day out WILL fail us at one point or another. Or everyday. Yes, our children and our husband can bring us an immense amount of joy. But if our ultimate joy, peace, and life rests in how our family all responds to us then we have turned our family or our kids into an idol and at the end of the day, we will be sorely disappointed. RELATED: Idols of the Heart and Keeping Our Eyes on Jesus – Hf #45 “Idols aren’t just stone statues. No, idols are the thoughts, desires, longings, and expectations that we worship in the place of the true God. Idols cause us to ignore the true God in search of what we think we need.” – Idols of the Heart, page 23 Instead of placing our trust and our hope in our family, we need to place that trust and that hope in Christ. We need to turn to him when life hurts, when we feel disappointed, when we are overwhelmed. When we tie our identity, the worth of our motherhood, to the thanks or gratitude we get on Mother’s Day, or our birthday, or any old day of the year, we will be sorely disappointed. We will become bitter, resentful,

Anxiety is no stranger to both Phylicia and myself. In this episode, my guest Phylicia Masonheimer, is going to share her journey with battling anxiety from a Biblical and practical stand point. It's a very encouraging chat. Let's dive in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: This interview originally appeared in the 2021 Homemaking Ministries Online Conference. If you would like access to the other 39+ conference sessions. Check it out here Our Sponsor: For 50% off your first Care/of order, go to TakeCareOf.com/home50 and enter code: home50

In our culture, we run from hard things. We tend to think that hard = bad or wrong. But today I'm going to give you some encouragement that hard doesn't necessarily mean bad. In fact, God often does His biggest work in Hard. Listen in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. We get asked a lot how we do certain things: run a business from home with 6 kids, travel full time, go out to eat with said kids, homeschool all of them without losing our minds, etc. And honestly, most of what we do doesn't seem overly mystifying to us, but some of it is really hard. A big theme in our life has become: hard doesn't mean bad. Often in our culture, we equate hard with bad. We think that if things are hard, they must be wrong. Or that we are doing them wrong. For example: Newborn days and entering motherhood can be HARD. That doesn't mean we are doing it wrong. Some homeschool days are terrible. It doesn't mean the sacrifice isn't worth it. Traveling all around the country with 6 young kids can be exhausting. It doesn't mean the education and exploration isn't worth every single second. In our culture today, we've been trained to think that hard is bad. We feel like life should be easy and good, not tough and hard. So we either assume we are doing something wrong or that the hard isn't worth pushing through. The thing is: most worthwhile things in life ARE hard. Getting a college degree is HARD. But it can be worth every single bit of work. Pregnancy and labor is hard. But it produces new life. Discipleship is hard, and exhausting, and frustrating at times...But it's God's work in our children's lives (and in our own lives). God disciplines us and it's often so hard. But it produces the fruit of the Spirit. "God’s sovereignty is exercised primarily for His glory. But because you and I are in Christ Jesus, His glory and our good are linked together. Because we are united with Christ, whatever is for His glory is also for our good. And whatever is for our good is for His glory." “God does not willingly bring affliction or grief to us. He does not delight in causing us to experience pain or heartache. He always has a purpose for the grief He brings or allows to come into our lives. Most often we do not know what that purpose is, but it is enough to know that His infinite wisdom and perfect love have determined that the particular sorrow is best for us. God never wastes pain. He always uses is to accomplish His purpose. And His purpose is for His glory and our good. Therefore, we can trust Him when our hearts are aching or our bodies are racked with pain.” ― Jerry Bridges, Trusting God: Even When Life Hurts Links & Resources: Book recommendation: Trusting God: Even When Life Hurts Our Sponsor: Go to HelloFresh.com/homemaking12 and use code homemaking12 for 12 free meals, including free shipping!

We hear all the time that "you are enough" or "just believe in yourself." But what happens when you are NOT enough? When you can't just make it happen or work it all out? We run headlong into trouble in our life when we start relying on OUR strength instead of in God's strength. That's what we are discussing today. Listen in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Book recommendation: Enough About Me: Finding Lasting Joy in the Age of Self by Jen Oshman Our Sponsor: Try out StoryWorth, no shipping required, by going to StoryWorth.com/homemaking for $10 off your first purchase.

Mentoring is such an important topic in the Church today, but it's to still feel left wondering what it looks like. In today's episode we are going to discuss some different ways that mentoring can look in real life and a call to the importance of the local Church! Plus I'll share more resources for Biblical mentoring. Let's dive in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Mentoring in real life can look so many different ways! It can look like a formal Bible study time, or meeting one on one for coffee, by watching how others conduct their life, and just living real life with other women. Links & Resources: Growing Together: Taking Mentoring Beyond Small Talk and Prayer Requests Spiritual Mothering: The Titus 2 Model for Women Mentoring Women Finding a Mentor, Being a Mentor: Sharing Our Lives as Women Adorned: Living Out the Beauty of the Gospel Together Our Sponsor: For 50% off your first Care/of order, go to TakeCareOf.com/home50 and enter code: home50

My reading time has fluxuated greatly in the past year. And after only hitting 50% of my reading goal in 2020, I knew I wanted to really dive back into better reading habits this year. And so far, I'm smashing my reading goals and have formed some new habits. In this episode, I'm going to share some reviews for 10 of the books I've read so far this year (out of 33) and then share what has been helping me this year in reading more. Let's dive in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. What's helping me this year compared to last: Getting excited about reading again! I bought some new books to get excited and its helping me work through old ones Going back to reading 1 chapter of a non fiction book a day: currently working through a beastly systematic theology doing this. Setting an easier goal so I feel excited when I break it instead of just feeling supppper behind. Making it habit to listen through audiobooks again in nooks and crannies. My favorite books read so far this year: You can follow me over on Goodreads to keep up to date on what I'm reading. But here's some of our favs! As a family we are currently reading through the Chronicles of Narnia. This is our first time reading the whole series with all the kids and we are going through it very slowly when we have travel days! We are also on book #1 of the Wingfeather Saga as a family and are really enjoying it. Church History in Plain Language by Bruce Shelley- 4 star Awaking Wonder by Sally Clarkson - 3 starts Why Children Matter by Douglas Wilson - 4 star - I listened to this for free with the Canon Press app free trial. Hooked - 2 star The Common Rule: Habits for Purpose for an Age of Distraction - 3 star The Household and the War for the Cosmos - 4 star - I listened to this for free with the Canon Press app free trial. A Heart Set Free: A Journey to Hope Through the Psalms of Lament - 3.5 stars Eve in Exile: and The Restoration of Femininity - 5 stars - I listened to this for free with the Canon Press app free trial. The Self Sufficient Backyard - 5 stars (I purchased it from their website) Before Jerusalem Fell - 5 stars Comparison Girl - 5 stars Meal Planning Help for Eating Healthy: I am really excited to share with you the sponsor of today’s podcast episode: PrepDish! If you ever feel like you wish you had a little help in your meal planning, then I highly encourage you to check out PrepDish. They offer gluten-free meal plans and paleo meal plans. But you don’t have to eat a gluten-free or paleo diet in order to take advantage of all that PrepDish has to offer! In fact, almost half of their customers don’t eat those diets. The meals are healthy and non-processed and work well for anyone who is trying to eat a healthy diet. And PrepDish is offering a super special TWO week free trail when you sign up through this link (how awesome!!) When you sign up, you’ll receive an email every week with a grocery list and instructions for prepping your meals ahead of time. After only 1-3 hours of prepping on the weekend, you’ll have all of your meals ready for the entire week. I absolutely love how easy they make it. Free TWO week trial of PrepDish

In this episode we are going to be discussing what it means to serve others with a heart of humility. We will focus on laying aside pride and putting on humility...in all areas of our lives! Listen in: Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Book recommendation: Comparison Girl: Lessons from Jesus on Me-Free Living in a Measure-Up World Our Sponsor: Go to HelloFresh.com/homemaking12 and use code: homemaking12 for 12 free meals, including free shipping!

Here in our 5th and final part of our eschatology series, we are going a Q&A wrap up. Jason and I are sharing where we've landed on this whole debate (maybe), determining churches based off Eschatology (should we??), viewing current events, and where do we go from here? I hope to leave you at the end of this episode with a ton of encouragement! Listen in here: Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. A note on this series: In no way are Jason and I an expert in this topic. But we’ve greatly enjoyed diving into eschatology this year and are excited to share what we’ve learned. We are covering the 3 main views of the end times, but even within those 3, there are countless smaller viewpoints of those. So what we are attempting to do here is a broad overview of each point. Please forgive us if we over generalize any areas or if we make a mistake on any of these. Please come dialogue with us on Instagram if you want to share anything! Links & Resources: Check out the previous episodes in this series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4. Book Suggestion: Three Views on the Millennium Book Suggestion: Four Views on the Book of Revelation Video Suggestion: An Evening of Eschatology (We highly recommend this video!!) Our Sponsor: Visit BarberMom.com and use the promo code HOME for $10 off a Lifetime Membership. Our Sponsor: Go to GreenChef.com/90homemaking and use code 90homemaking to get $90 off including free shipping!

Welcome to the fourth part of our Eschatology series: A look at the end times. In part 1, we covered WHY you should care about Eschatology and why it’s worth spending our time on. Then in part 2 we covered the Premillennial viewpoint and part 3 we covered the Amillennial viewpoint. Now we are going to deep dive into the Postmillennial viewpoint. Then we will wrap up the series with a Q&A episode (and where do we go from here)? Let’s dive in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. A note on this series: In no way are Jason and I an expert in this topic. But we’ve greatly enjoyed diving into eschatology this year and are excited to share what we’ve learned. We are covering the 3 main views of the end times, but even within those 3, there are countless smaller viewpoints of those. So what we are attempting to do here is a broad overview of each point. Please forgive us if we over generalize any areas or if we make a mistake on any of these. Please come dialogue with us on Instagram if you want to share anything! Overview of the Postmillennial Viewpoint: This is the view that Christ will return after the Millennium here on earth (hence the post part). This is a partial preterest viewpoint which means that they view many of the events prophesied in the book of Revelation as already have happened (i.e. the great Tribulation, the Antichrist and so forth). Because of this (and Bible verses from both the Old and New Testament), they take the most optimistic view of human history. They believe that the Gospel will flourish (from the times of the Apostles and the Early Church) now through until when the Millennium is ushered in here on earth. They think the world will get "better and better" because of the triumph and influence of the Gospel in the world. They see the world becoming more and more Christian until even the nations bow to Christ. Once the Gospel has spread that far, the Millennium here on earth will be ushered in and Christ will return after that. Graphs from The Blue Letter Bible Proponents of Postmill: Rousas J. Rushdoony, Greg L. Bahnsen, Douglas Wilson. Jeff Durbin, James White, Kenneth L. Gentry Jr., David Chilton, Gary North, Eusibius, Athanasius, Samuel Rutherford, John Owen, Isaac Watts, Jonathan Edwards, Richard Sibbes, John Cotton, BB Warfield, Loraine Boettner, Iain Murray, Ligon Duncan. Postmill resources: The Puritan Hope by Murray, Iain H. Eschatology of Victory Kik, J. Marcellus He Shall Have Dominion: An Eschatology of Victory Gentry Jr., Kenneth L. Millennium Boettner, Loraine. Postmillennialism: An Eschatology of Hope Mathison, Keith A. Before Jerusalem Fell Kenneth Gentry Allie Stuckey Relatable Episodes with Jeff Durbin (Part 1 and Part 2) Postmill documentary: On Earth as It Is in Heaven

Welcome to the third part of our Eschatology series: A look at the end times. In part 1, we covered WHY you should care about Eschatology and why it's worth spending our time on. Then in part 2 we covered the Premillennial viewpoint. Now we are going to deep dive into the Amillennial viewpoint. The next episode will feature Postmillennialism. We will wrap up the series with a Q&A episode! Let's dive in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. A note on this series: In no way are Jason and I an expert in this topic. But we’ve greatly enjoyed diving into eschatology this year and are excited to share what we’ve learned. We are covering the 3 main views of the end times, but even within those 3, there are countless smaller viewpoints of those. So what we are attempting to do here is a broad overview of each point. Please forgive us if we over generalize any areas or if we make a mistake on any of these. Please come dialogue with us on Instagram if you want to share anything! Overview of the Amillennial Viewpoint: This is the view that there is no earthly millennium. Rather, the millennium is a Spiritual one that is currently taking place in Heaven. We have been in the millennium since Christ ascended into Heaven and will remain until He comes back again. They believe the 1000 years is a figurative term to mean a really long time. Believers who have already died and die today will be in Heaven immediately experiencing the millennium. The Kingdom of God (proclaimed by Jesus and his apostles) is synonymous with the millennial kingdom of Revelation 20:4-6. This is a very simple and straightforward look at our present age and Christ returning. They are partial preterists and interpret many of the prophecies in Revelation to have already happened in the first century (i.e. antichrist, great tribulation, etc). Preterism - An eschatological viewpoint that places many of the eschatological events in the past, especially during the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. - What Does the Bible Teach About the End Times? Graphs from The Blue Letter Bible Amill Resources: What Does the Bible Teach About the End Times? The Bible and the Future by Hoekema, Anthony A case for Amillennialism – Kim Riddlebarger More Than Conquerors: An Interpretation of the Book of Revelation by Hendrikson, William Triumph of the Lamb by Dennis Johnson Sam Storms video The Preterist Approach to Revelation - Ligioner Ministries eCourse: The Last Days According to Jesus by R.C. Sproul

Welcome to the second part of our Eschatology series: A look at the end times. In part 1, we covered WHY you should care about Eschatology and why it's worth spending our time on. Now we are going to deep dive into the first viewpoint: Premillennialism. The next episode will feature Amillennialism and the next part Postmillennialism. We will wrap up the series with a Q&A episode! Let's dive in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. A note on this series: In no way are Jason and I an expert in this topic. But we've greatly enjoyed diving into eschatology this year and are excited to share what we've learned. We are covering the 3 main views of the end times, but even within those 3, there are countless smaller viewpoints of those. So what we are attempting to do here is a broad overview of each point. Please forgive us if we over generalize any areas or if we make a mistake on any of these. Please come dialogue with us on Instagram if you want to share anything! Defining our Terms Before we jump into the Premill viewpoint, let's first define a few terms we will talk about when it comes to all three viewpoints. Second Coming of Jesus: To conquer sin and death and Satan once and for all. Verses: 1 Thess 5, Titus 2:13, Matthew 24:30, Revelation 1:7, Revelation 19:11. When will the second coming happen? It will be like a thief in the night. No one knows when it’ll happen. Verses: 1 Thess 5:2, Matthew 24:44. Antrichrist: Man of lawlessness. Verses: 2 Thess 2:3-4, Revelation 13:5-8. The Rapture: Gathering up of all believers; the Church. Verse: 1 Thess 4:17 Millennium: the 1000 year reign of Christ (either figurative or literal 1000 years). Verse: Revelation: 20:2-3 Final Judgement: Where Jesus will judge the living and the dead. Verses: Revelation 20:11-15. Overview of the Premillennial Viewpoint: This is the view that Christ's second coming will happen before the Millennial Kingdom which will be the 1000 year reign of Christ on Earth, The two most common views within premil are pre-trib and post-trib. Though there are arguments for mid-trib as well. Premills have a futurist view of the book of Revelation. This means that they believe the events outlined in Revelation to be future events (to us). Revelation chapters 4-22 are yet to be fulfilled. Premills argue that theirs is the most literal reading of Revelation. Those who disagree argue that premills take passages of Revelation as literal when in fact they should be read and interpreted symbolically or figuratively. Pre-trib Premils believe that Christ will rapture the Church BEFORE the 7 years of tribulation. Post-trib premils believe that the Church will live through the 7 years of Tribulation before Christ comes again. Dispensational Premill: The most popular view of the end times in America today is the dispensational premill view. This view first appeared in the 19th century which distinguished it from historic premill. This view argues for a secret rapture 7 years before Jesus returns. They also emphasize the fulfillment of the promises made to Jewish people during this Millenium. Proponents of this view include: Wayne Grudem, John MacArthur, Erwin Lutzer, Charles L. Feinberg, John Walvoord, Charles Ryrie, and J. Dwight Pentecost, and it was popularized through Hal Lindsey’s 1970 bestseller, The Late, Great Planet Earth, and the Left Behind Series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins. Graphs from The Blue Letter Bible Historic Premill: As oppose to their dispensational brothers, historic premill believe that the Church will go through the great Tribulation and the rapture will happen at the end of those 7 years. They also see no radical difference between the Church and Israel. Proponents of this view include: John Gill, Charles Spurgeon, John Piper, Albert Mohler,

Jason and I have done a deep dive study into eschatology this year. And what was once a very confusing theological idea has turned into a very rich and profitable theological point for both of us. We are kicking off this mini series (A Look at the End Times) with an episode all about why we should care about eschatology. Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. This is the first in our 5 part series on Eschatology. In this first introduction we are going to cover WHY we should care about eschatology and take this time to study it. Then over the course of 3 mini episodes that are all released at once, we are going to cover the 3 main view points: Premill (pretrib & historical), Amill, & Postmill. Then in the final episode in this series, we are going to go over more resources and questions! We are excited to dig into this topic with you. And while we certainly don't have all the answers on this topic, we are excited to share the resources that have been helpful for us in studying it all. At the end, we hope this inspires you to dive into Scripture more! Links & Resources: Our Sponsor: Get 15% of your order at HighKey.com/HF Our Sponsor: Go to HelloFresh.com/homemaking10 and use code homemaking10 for 10 free meals, including free shipping!

Last week we talked about getting to the bottom of WORK, leisure, and what's the point? Today we are looking at the next logical topic: building out your schedule and the importance of taking care of yourself. Listen in here: Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. What does it mean to invest in yourself? This is a hot topic right now in Christian circles. Many people proclaim we need to be doing MORE to invest in ourselves and others say that this is an entirely selfish phrase or idea and we need to throw it out. Where do I stand? Right in the middle of this debate. I think that there is a huge movement in our culture to be selfish. Spend all your time and money on yourself. The good life consists of many shopping days, trips to the spa and making sure YOU are #1 priority in your life...to the exclusion of others. That is a wrong and sinful attitude. So on the flip side, I think Christians often overreact on the other end and we take the idea of denying ourselves so far to the extreme that we no longer have the capacity to serve well because we've neglected ourselves physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Matthew 16:24 - Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." We see that we ARE to live a selfless life. We are to want to become more and more like Christ. We are to deny our own selfish wants and desires and follow HIM! So we shouldn't plunge all of our time, money, and energy into ourselves. We shouldn't be selfish to the detriment of those around us especially. Caring for our health But we should also be concerned about caring for this body and mind that God has given us so that we can serve him with joy and vigor. If we run ourselves into the ground trying to be and do everything, we won't have the energy or creativity to joyfully serve our family and do all that God has called us to in this life with joy. God calls us to be wise with our time. To use it well. To serve him. And I think a very wise use of some of our time, is making sure that we are taking care of ourselves. "Some godly people who exercise regularly and eat well drop dead at every age. And some sedentary overeaters live to be ninety. Our days are set by God, not us. You won’t live a day longer or shorter than God decides. But keep in mind that some people have survived the plunge over Niagara Falls. That doesn’t make it wise." - Physical Exercise by John Piper "Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain." - 1 Corinthians 15:58 John Piper explains why he puts time and energy into jogging: "Underneath most of my besetting sins is despondency. I am less prone to such melancholy when I hammer my body three times a week. The reason could be endorphins. Could be ego. Whichever, it’s cheaper than Prozac or psychotherapy. I’m simply happier. And I sleep better. I have more energy. Most of that energy goes into the Bible and preaching and people. And the fruit from that is, I hope, edification. Which means I exercise to be a more loving person and a better pastor." Caring for our bodies and our minds is being a WISE steward of what God has given us: "If you ask how the fruit of exercise relates to the fruit of the Spirit, my answer is this: the Holy Spirit produces his fruit both directly and indirectly. He can zap you in your worst moments and make you kind. But he often does it indirectly. For example, if you are impatient when you get little sleep, and if patience is a fruit of the Spirit (which it is, Galatians 5:22), very likely the Holy Spirit will not only remind you of the sufferings of Christ and the glory of God’s promises, but he will also give you the humility to stop being God and go to bed on time.

If you want to get more productive in life, then a really important place to start is our view of work (and leisure). How we view the work we do (especially those mundane moments of our day) has a really big impact on how we craft our own habits and routines. In this episode, we are going to dive into what this looks like from a Biblical perspective. Let's jump in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. The goal of this episode is to give you ENCOURAGEMENT. When we have the proper end goal in mind, it can transform our homes and the work we do! God’s View of Work How do we spend our time? Where do we turn throughout the day? What does it mean to construct a life and schedule that brings glory to God? I think one important discussion that we must have around this all: Is what is the point of work? It's a question that we must grapple with especially in our modern society. Past cultures didn't really have the luxury of pondering the point of work and leisure. They worked hard for their very survival. And they rested when they needed to to make that happen. They had natural habits built into their day: They went to bed with the sun and rose with the sun. They could do a few tasks well and that was it. In some ways, I envy them: They saw the direct fruit of their labor day in and day out. In our modern society, I think many of us can feel like we are "wasting" our day when we spend more time in the kitchen cooking or picking up around the house. We see it as somehow bad that we are spending more time preparing food. We are constantly looking for ways we can save time and cut down on things around the house because we want to do more "worthwhile" things. We miss the point deeply that God created us for work. Work is good and hard work can produce much fulfillment and fruitfulness in our lives. Instead of constant grumbling and complaining about the tasks that God set before us: What if we embraced them with vigor and joy? What if we took on 2021 and joyfully labored for the Lord in all that he has given us to do? What if we put our heads down and just got to work!? Keeping it all in perspective that we are laboring for the Lord...all for His Glory! How we view work: “Work is a major instrument of God’s providence; it is how he sustains the human world.”- Every Good Endeavor When it comes to a proper view of our work, I think it's easy to fall into one of two camps: We are lazy and not working unto the Lord OR we create work to be an idol. Making an idol out of our work: “The idols of modern culture have had a profound influence on the shape of our work today. In traditional societies people found their meaning and sense of value by submitting their interests and sacrificing their desires to serve higher causes like God, family, and other people. In modern societies there is often no higher cause than individual interests and desires. This shift powerfully changed the role of work in people’s lives—it now became the way we defined ourselves. Traditional cultures tended to see people’s place on the social ladder as assigned by nature or convention, each family having its “proper place.” That view had put too little stock in the role of individual talent, ambition, and hard work for determining the outcome of one’s life. But modern society responded by putting too much stock in the autonomous person.” ― Timothy Keller, Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God's Work Work Before the Fall I think we often think of work as being a result of the Fall. But in fact, we see work as part of God's perfect plan. "And to Adam he said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistle...

Are you finding yourself needing to fight for JOY this year? In this episode we are going straight to the Bible to see what our source of Joy is and how we can find steadfast joy and peace this year and beyond. Listen in for some deep encouragement today! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. What is true JOY according to God’s Word? "Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls." - 1 Peter 1:8-9 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." - Romans 15:13 "Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” - Nehemiah 8:10 "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit," - Romans 14:17 And so many others. But when you read through the entirety of scripture with this joy in mind, you will quickly see the Christian life is one of JOY. To set the stage about what we will be talking about, I love this lengthy quote from R.c. Sproul's book Can I have Joy in My Life? (FREE on Kindle right now!) “THE WAY TO RECOVER JOY - Paul’s admonition to believers to be joyful presupposes that believers can do something if they find themselves lacking in joy. He is right, of course, and the New Testament is filled with teaching on how to be joyful. The most basic method is to focus our attention on the ground of our joy, the source of our joy. Paul gives one of the most practical of these teachings in Philippians: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (4:8). This is a call to meditate upon the things of the Lord, to turn our attention to the things of God. When we find ourselves depressed, down, irritated, annoyed, or otherwise unhappy, we need to return to the source of our joy, and then we will see those circumstances that are sapping our joy in perspective. The circumstances of this life will pale into insignificance when compared to that which we have received from God. Sometimes our joy is determined by the intensity of the latest blessing we experienced at the hands of God. We’re always looking for the mountaintop experience, for a spiritual high that will excite us and fill us with joy, but these intense feelings wear off. When I have things in perspective, I know that if I never experienced another blessing in my entire life other than the blessings I already have received from the hand of God, I would have no possible reason to be anything but overflowing with joy until the day I die. God has already given me so much to be thankful for, so much to provoke my soul to delight, gladness, and joy, that I should be able to live on the basis of that surplus of blessedness and remain joyful all of my days.” How does joy differ from happiness? Happiness is a fleeting emotion. And usually a very unstable one. What makes us happy might differ from moment to moment. And what is true happiness anyway? Happiness is easy to get swept away with the troubles of this world. Joy on the other hand, is a fruit of the Spirit. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" - Galatians 5:22-23: Why is this significant? "Paul mentions some of the fruits of the Spirit like “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,

It's here! We are finally diving into our 2021 Christian Reading Challenge! If you've followed along with us, you know this is our 5th year in a row issuing a reading challenge (and taking one on ourselves). This year we've changed it up a little bit to make it easier to use. You can check out our 2020 reading challenge to use as well if you want! One of the major changes you'll notice this year is that we've combined both challenges. In previous years we've issued a men's challenge and a women's challenge. This year, anyone can use the challenge to fit their needs. Listen to the Podcast: Listen in to my podcast episode from this week to find out more about why we developed this reading challenge, tips for following along, and the reasoning behind the books and categories chosen. Or skip the podcast and head down below for all the info ? And don’t forget to subscribe to my podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. What's New This Year Change #1: Like I mentioned above, we are combining the men and women's challenge all into one. Choose which books most interest you! Change #2: Instead of choosing actual books to put into the challenge, we are just adding in categories for you that you fill in with your books or find new ones! Change #3: We are adding a bunch of new books to the category lists below but also carrying our book recommendations from previous years. All NEW book suggestions (that haven't been highlighted in past challenges) will be bold. 2021 Christian Reading Challenge Here’s how it works: You will find the reading challenge below. You'll see that we've given you two tracks - 13 books or 26! This is either reading one book every four weeks or one book every two weeks. If you want to do 52 books (one a week) you can easily adjust for that as well. A note about fiction: This year we've included fiction categories per your request! I think fiction is hard because all of us are going to have different tastes in what fiction we prefer. You can find some of our favorite Christian Fiction books here. But feel free to substitute any fiction books or series that you enjoy. Pick Your Level: I know each of us has different reading levels and time for reading, so I created two different tracks you can follow. 13 Books a Year – This works out to 1 book every 4 weeks. If you have no habit of reading right now or have no idea you will fit reading time into your busy schedule, then this is a great level to begin with. Pick one book every 4 weeks and commit to getting it down within that time. 26 Books a Year – If you want to tackle a bigger challenge, then this level will get you reading 1 book every two weeks throughout the year. It’s still a very doable reading track but will challenge you to stay on track! If you want to follow this plan, read one book from each list every month. So in January, read book #1 and book #14! This way everyone can read through and follow along with books #1-13 together. Here are the categories: Christian Living Marriage Parenting/Family Life Theology Fiction Biography/History Spiritual Disciplines Christian Classics Church History *If you are not a parent or are not married, then scroll down and fill in those spots with other fantastic book suggestions from the other categories. Book Recommendations Per Category: Christian Living: Everyday Faithfulness: The Beauty of Ordinary Perseverance in a Demanding World - Glenna Marshall Growing Together: Taking Mentoring beyond Small Talk and Prayer Requests - Melissa Kruger A Place to Belong: Learning to Love the Local Church - Megan Hill God Does His Best Work with Empty - Nancy Guthrie Piercing Heaven: Prayers of the Puritans - Robert Elmer Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers - Dane C. Ortlund

Today I'm sharing my top 10 books that I read this last year. I love reflecting back over the books I've read and I've got some good ones to recommend to you today. Listen in! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. I read 78 books in 2020. It was far off from my original goal of 156, but considering what a busy year we had, I'm very happy with it! Of all the books I read this year, here are my top 10 favorites! My Top 10 Books of 2020 Suffering is Never For Nothing - Elizabeth Elliot Love Centered Parenting - Crystal Paine (Releases March 16th!) God's Battleplan for the Mind: A Puritan Practice of Biblical Meditation - David W. Saxton Adventuring Together: How to Create Connections and Make Lasting Memories with Your Kids - Greta Eskridge Loving Well - William P. Smith The Gospel Comes with a Housekey - Rosaria Butterfield The Call of the Wild and the Free: Reclaiming Wonder in Your Child's Education - Ainsley Arment Stop Calling Me Beautiful: Finding Soul-Deep Strength in a Skin-Deep World - Phylicia Masonheimer Start With Your People - Brian Dixon (My interview with Brian here) Grain by Grain: A Quest to Revive Ancient Wheat, Rural Jobs, and Healthy Food - Bob Quinn Links & Resources: Follow me on Goodreads Follow Jason on Goodreads Follow me on Instagram Our Sponsor: Go to GreenChef.com/homemaking10 and use code homemaking10 to get $90 off including free shipping!

I love setting goals for the new year! For 2021, my goals are based off of my word for this year and the focus I want to have. Listen in to my 12 goals I'll be working on this year! Listen to the Podcast: And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. My word for 2021 took a little while to settle on. But in praying about it and really thinking through what Jason and I both want our household to capture this next year, I landed on: Kingdom. It's shaping a lot about how I approach this next year in my thought process and practically through my goals. As I dig into what we will be working towards in 2021, I've broken my goals down into 3 categories: The Kingdom and my personal goals The Kingdom and my family The Kingdom and my business/ministry The Kingdom and My Personal Goals: I'm a big planner and goal setter. It helps to motivate me and I know that by setting personal goals for myself, I accomplish far more than if I didn't set any goals at all. I've got 4 goals for this category: Read 130 books in 2021 Read the entire Bible cover to cover Keep a gratitude journal for 365 days Do 6 craft projects in the year The Kingdom and My Family Goals: Jason and I have developed these goals together. Memorize 40 Bible verses this year (I would like to shoot for 52, one a week, but I know 40 is more realistic). Play more board games (as a family and Jason and I) Invest in solidifying our homeschooling routines. We started a new curriculum 6 months ago that's working so well for us. The next step is really solidifying those routines and habits. Better family worship routine (5 times a week) The Kingdom and My Business/Ministry Goals Write a book Launch rebrand of Finding Joy in Your Home (from Young Wife's Guide) Hire 3-4 people over the course of the year Launch 4 new big products and 4 small products Secret goal: Work on a huge secret project we have set to launch quarter one 2022. We need to be working on this project each week but it's hard to stay on track with a project that huge when it's so far away!

This is my 7th year picking a word for my year. Last year I expressed that I always love picking my word for the year but I had difficulty in picking one for 2020. Well that's true again this year. I thought and prayed about it a lot but I think I landed on the perfect word for my year. So today I’m sharing my new word for the year as well as some tips for picking your own word for this year. Here are my past words: 2012: Intentional 2016: Joy 2017: Create 2018: Refresh 2019: Faithfulness 2020: Cultivate Listen to the Podcast: We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. What has gone into choosing this word: When picking my word for 2020, I was looking ahead to what looked like an extremely full and weird year. We were looking ahead to selling our house, having baby #6, and buying an RV and starting to travel around the U.S. full time. And now we are almost 7 months into that travel journey. But of course, we had no idea what else 2020 would have in store. So I've been praying a lot these past months on what 2021 will have in store for us. I know now more than ever that I can't control what the future holds. But I can hold fiercely to joy and peace this year for my own life and family. More than ever, I need to make sure that MY priorities are crystal clear. I need to make sure that when things in the world get crazy and the days might be hard, that I am standing fiercely in the hope of God's Kingdom. I need to make sure that God's priorities are my true priorities. For my own personal goals, for my family, and for our business. It's something that Jason and I have been discussing a LOT and praying about a LOT. And so all of this has led me to my word for 2021... Kingdom. I want more than anything for 2021 to be Kingdom focused. I want Kingdom focus in my personal goals, my parenting, my marriage, and my business. I want to make choices, pray about decisions, and walk boldly into 2021 with this Kingdom focus. So what does this mean? Got Questions explains that God's Kingdom is: "Broadly speaking, the kingdom of God is the rule of an eternal, sovereign God over all the universe. Several passages of Scripture show that God is the undeniable Monarch of all creation: “The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all” (Psalm 103:19). And, as King Nebuchadnezzar declared, “His kingdom is an eternal kingdom” (Daniel 4:3). Every authority that exists has been established by God (Romans 13:1). So, in one sense, the kingdom of God incorporates everything that is. More narrowly, the kingdom of God is a spiritual rule over the hearts and lives of those who willingly submit to God’s authority. Those who defy God’s authority and refuse to submit to Him are not part of the kingdom of God; in contrast, those who acknowledge the lordship of Christ and gladly surrender to God’s rule in their hearts are part of the kingdom of God. In this sense, the kingdom of God is spiritual—Jesus said His kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36), and He preached that repentance is necessary to be a part of the kingdom of God (Matthew 4:17). That the kingdom of God can be equated with the sphere of salvation is evident in John 3:5–7, where Jesus says the kingdom of God must be entered into by being born again. See also 1 Corinthians 6:9." So to me, what this brings to mind is twofold: Christ is reigning over the cosmos. He is in control of all things. He is not afraid for what tomorrow will bring. He knows and he sees it. His Kingdom reigns over everything. From the small everyday concerns we deal with to the overarching global pandemic that seems to make the world crazy. Because Christ is reigning over the cosmos,

Church with littles in tow can be tough. Worth it, but tough. In this episode we are going to chat about the importance of being in Church as a family and some tips for making it easier. Listen to the Podcast: You can find important links & info below. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Ever since our first set of twins started making all those loud noises that babies do when they "talk", it's been hard. I remember one Sunday, pulling into Church, already exhausted from the Sunday morning scramble. We had hurried around getting 3 year old twins dressed and fed, wrangled 14 month old twins into their outfits, and got my pregnant self semi-put together...and I glimpsed a mom of 6 with older kids...just walking into church. She was holding her coffee and her Bible. And each kid was walking across the parking lot by themselves (NOT in constant danger of being run over). And I know she had her own struggles that day... But man I was so overwhelmed at the moment that I couldn't imagine a day like that coming. I had spent SO many Sunday's feeling so defeated and wondering what the point was anyway. I'm still in the tenches with 6 kids 7 and under, but not nearly as deep as a when we had 5 kids 4 and under ? But I've started seeing the pay off (STARTING to see ?). Moms (and dads), it's worth it. Show up. Model the discipline it takes to get there. Lay out clothes the night before, put oatmeal on the crockpot to be ready, have a snack ready for in between services...make it easier! But.show.up. Bring them to Church so they hear God's Word preached. Let them see believers of all ages worshipping together. And don't sweat the small stuff (preaching to myself here). It'll get easier. It'll get sweeter. But show up. God will take care of the rest ? Training littles: Some days are awful. They just are. Some days are good. Don't let this discourage you. Make sure no one goes hungry. Start off with a calm morning (and make sure they got enough sleep) If you go to tow services, bring a snack in between! Set the expectation: Make it so they are not happy if they have to be taken out of service. (chocolate chips example) Bring things to occupy little hands. We have special coloring bags, they can draw, take notes, ect. Don't sweat the noise: You are training them. It's good work. Don't give up, even if it feels awkward and hard. And it's probably much louder to you than it is to others. Watch other moms: Many of them are awesome and know what they are doing!! Train outside of church: Go out to eat and talk about expectations. Do quiet reading time at home, ect. And don't give up. It gets easier. I think sometimes we get this idea that if we don't perfectly train them at 2, then they will be hopeless cases by the time they are 8. It's not true. Keep training them. All kids are different and will respond differently. Now that the oldest are 8 and 5, it's so much easier to train them then when we had 4 and 2 year olds. Links: Follow me over on Instagram Our Sponsor: Get 2 weeks of FREE meal planning from PrepDish.com/Homemaking

This week we are chatting about DATING your husband. Having more fun together as a couple and how to bring the laughter (and the fun!) back into your marriage. Listen in! Listen to the Podcast: You can find important links & info below. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. I love this advice from my friend Lisa over at Club 31 Women (you can listen to her full episode) How to be best friends: By spending time together By being nice to him By being interested in his stuff By having fun together By praying for him What Jason and I love doing together: READING Board games Video games Watching movies/tv shows OUR BUSINESS Date nights out: Coffee and reading date ? Bowling - our fav fun activity! Going to movies Dinner and shopping What do you and your hubby do together for fun? (responses from Instagram!) Beekeeping Going for drives looking for things to photograph Bike riding "I have an eBay store so we love driving around to thrift stores looking for things to resell." Air hockey Kettlebell workouts Going to antique stores "We plan and cook meals based on different world cuisines" 3D archery He is the soccer coach and me a soccer mom! Many outdoor things: hiking, kayaking, camping, and day trips to things like state park Dog training Watching funny and goofey youtube videos together "We enjoy a nightly routine of good conversations over coffee. When his schedule allows we enjoy sitting in our living room and just being with each other. It's one of my favorite times!" "You can find us on our back deck almost year round...heater for the cold nights! We love listening to a plethora of music genres while playing games or each doing our own activities...together! We cherish OUR TIME!' Links & Resources: 100 Ways to Love Your Husband - Lisa Jacobson 100 Ways to Love Your Wife - Matt Jacobson Sweethearts for a Lifetime by Wayne Mack Phylicia Masonheimer also has a lot of stuff on marriage Our sponsor: Get $80 off plus free shipping at HelloFresh.com/Homemaking80 Our sponsor: Get 50% off your first month go to TakeCareOf.com/home50 and code Home50 at checkout