Loving Women Impacted by Unexpected Pregnancy :: Amy Ford [Ep 542]

“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” Psalm 119:11 is a very familiar verse, but do you take it as a life-giving exhortation or do you shove it into the mental closet of “shoulds”?  The rest of Psalm 119 tells us the person who loves God’s word enough to hide it in their heart finds peace, wisdom, delight, comfort, blessing, shameless life, reminders of the Lord’s nearness, and promises that will endure forever - just to name a few!  So why don’t we memorize scripture?  What if you had a system that was simple and beautiful and easy enough for the whole family to practice together? This week’s guest, Natalie Abbott, is a mom of five who knows firsthand of the wonderful things the rest of Psalm 119 promises the person who hides God’s word in their heart.  She and her sister, Vera, created Dwell Differently, a system of temporary tattoos and devotional cards all beautifully designed for simple memorization of and meditation on one verse a month. It gives individuals, families or friend groups a chance to sow one verse into every aspect of their lives and then reap the peace and wisdom that comes from nearness to God.  Connect with Natalie Abbott:  Website:  https://dwelldifferently.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dwelldifferently/  Instagram:  @dwelldifferently  Podcast: https://dwelldifferently.com/pages/dwell-podcast-2  Links Mentioned:   Dwell Differently. Visit www.dwelldifferently.com to get the first month free of a FAMILY membership ($12 value) use the code: DMA   Related Episodes: Praying the Scriptures :: Jodie Berndt [Ep 194] Equipping Your Kids for Difficulty :: Kim Sorgius [Ep 356] Must Have Conversations :: Vicki Courtney [Ep 239] Gospel-Focused Conversations :: Joel Fitzpatrick [Ep 251] Featured Sponsors:  Caraway. Visit Carawayhome.com/DMA for 10% off your next purchase.  Stitch Fix. Get 25% off when you keep everything in your Kid’s Fix. StitchFix.com/DMA Fabric. Protect your family with term life insurance now, in just 10 minutes. Apply today at MeetFabric.com/DMA

30 Maj 202243min

Our sons are constantly receiving messages about how to handle their emotions - from us as moms and dads, or from other men in their lives and from our culture as well. All too often that message has been “Be strong, emotion other than anger only shows weakness” and this to their detriment. Anxiety and depression are rapidly on the rise and our boys are not immune.  We need our boys to grow into men who are strong of character and a beautiful, if undervalued, aspect of that is helping them learn how to name and process their emotions. This can be difficult to do as a grown up - imagine how your child experiences this and the training they need!  Counselor and author David Thomas works regularly with boys and their families to help them put his three R’s of emotional processing into practice - recognize, regulate, and repair. Listen as he walks us through the importance of these practices and how they can set our sons up for lifelong emotional health. His new book, Raising Emotionally Strong Boys: Tools You Son Can Build On for Life, and companion study guide for boys, Strong and Smart: A Boy’s Guide to Building Healthy Emotions release June 14th Connect with David Thomas:  Website:  https://www.raisingboysandgirls.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/raisingboysandgirls  Instagram:  @raisingboysandgirls Podcast: Raising Boys and Girls Podcast Links Mentioned:   Emotions Chart Raising Emotionally Strong Boys: Tools Your Son Can Build On for Life by David Thomas Strong and Smart: A Boy’s Guide to Building Healthy Emotions by David Thomas  Related Episodes: Understanding Boys Better :: David Thomas [Ep 315] Bruce Learns to Label His Feelings :: Bruce & Heather [Ep 316] Emotional Milestones :: Sissy Goff & David Thomas [Ep 160] The Art of Nurturing Boys :: David Thomas [Ep 119] Getting Brave About Anxiety :: Sissy Goff [Ep 311] Featured Sponsors:  Thrive. Join Thrive Market today to get 40% off your first order AND a FREE gift worth over fifty dollars! Visit ThriveMarket.com/DMA. Peloton. The Peloton Bike+ is now $500 less, its best price yet! Including FREE delivery and setup. Visit onepeloton.com to learn more. Storyworth. Save $10 on your first purchase at StoryWorth.com/DMA.

23 Maj 20221h 3min

Mommy Wars. They may have started out as “working mom” v. “stay at home mom” but it has morphed (or devolved) into something much bigger. While, in the eyes of our culture, “you do you” might have freed us to make different choices than another mom, has it drawn us together and given us the support we need? Parenting is so difficult and Ecclesiastes reminds us that toiling away alone is tantamount to trying to catch smoke. What we need instead are co-laborers. We need other moms to come alongside us, not because we agree on everything, but because we have a common goal - the flourishing of the next generation.  We need to come alongside other moms because when we pit ourselves against one another due to differences in parenting styles, we cut off our nose to spite our collective face. Join Heather this week as she challenges us to look introspectively and grow in conflict resolution in light of Ecclesiastes 4.  Links Mentioned:   Resolving Sibling Conflict :: Jim and Lynne Jackson [Ep 126] Bruce Learns to Label His Feelings :: Bruce and Heather [Ep 316] How to Help a Friend Process Life :: Heather and Stephanie [Ep 359] Fighting Shame through Community :: Dr Curt Thompson [Ep 308]  Featured Sponsors:  Ladder Financial. Go to LadderLife.com/dma to see if you’re instantly approved.  Athena Club. Get the best shave of your life with the Athena Club Razor Kit. Get 20% off your first order at AthenaClub.com. Use promo code DMA.   Rothy’s. Discover the versatile styles you can wear absolutely anywhere and get $20 off your first purchase at rothys.com/DMA.

16 Maj 202238min

God ordains the time and space we inhabit - sometimes that’s one home for decades, sometimes it’s 12 homes in 6 years and instant homelessness at age 18. It was the latter for Tori Petersen and for so many other children in the foster care system. Tori has accomplished a lot since then - 5 time State Champion in track and field, a book releasing August 30th, and even a Mrs. Universe 2022 title. But if you asked her how she got here, she would say it was because someone loved and served the “least of these.” (Matthew 25:40) She was the least of these. She experienced extreme difficulty while in foster care, but looking back she sees God’s fatherly hand guiding her all along the way, loving her through the words and actions of her track coach, and now working through her and her husband to others as they model loving and serving the “least of these” for their own kids. Tori tells her compelling story in her new book, Fostered: One Woman’s Powerful Story of Finding Faith and Family Through Foster Care, which releases August 30, 2022.  Connect with Tori Petersen:  Website:  https://www.torihopepetersen.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/torihopepetersen  Instagram:  @torihopepetersen Links Mentioned:    Fostered: One Woman’s Powerful Story of Finding Faith and Family Through Foster Care by Tori Hope Petersen Pre-sale link  Related Episodes: Foster Care Story of Hope :: Victoria Petersen [Ep 263] How to Discern God’s Will and Stick With It :: Tricia Goyer [Ep 179] Adopting Special Needs :: Alice & Candace [Ep 213] Family Transformation Starts With Personal Revival :: KJ Perdomo [Ep 227] Overwhelmed Beyond Your Strength :: Jackie Askvig [Ep 313] Featured Sponsors:  StitchFix Kids. Grab 25% off your Kid’s Fix when you keep everything at StitchFix.com/DMA  Hello Fresh. Get up to 16 free meals and 3 free gifts at HelloFresh.com/dma16 Caraway Home. Take 10% off your next purchase at VisitCarawayhome.com/DMA

9 Maj 202247min

The kitchen. It can be a place of glorious delight or it can be a place of burnt despair. Whether it’s mostly delight or mostly disaster for you, it’s often a place of frustration. Everyone is hungry and needs something all the time or everyone is refusing to eat; there isn’t enough space or you feel like a pinball trying to get people what they need.  Enter Kendra Adachi, aka The Lazy Genius. She’s here to help you be a genius at what matters and lazy about what doesn’t and she’s at it again, this time in the kitchen. She gives you permission, she helps you analyze and streamline, but most importantly she’s offering you a middle ground - the space between perfection and hot-mess, where you can love your people well with those important moments at the table but not be overwhelmed with how to get there. (Spoiler alert: we can apply these principles to the rest of our lives too!)  Kendra is a wife, mom, and author. Her latest book, The Lazy Genius Kitchen: Have What You Need, Use What You Have, and Enjoy it Like Never Before releases May 3, 2022.  Connect with Kendra Adachi:  Website:  https://www.thelazygeniuscollective.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thelazygeniuscollective  Instagram:  @thelazygenius  Podcast: The Lazy Genius Podcast   Links Mentioned:    The Lazy Genius Kitchen: Have What You Need, Use What You Have, and Enjoy it Like Never Before  The Hub of all Lazy Genius Information - https://www.thelazygeniuscollective.com/  Related Episodes: Choose What Matters to You :: Kendra Adachi [Ep 293] Which Type of Rest Do You Need :: Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith [Ep 209] Owning Your Motherhood :: Erin Moon & Courtney Cleveland [Ep 325] Featured Sponsors:  Ana Luisa. Make Mom's Day and treat her to new jewelry pieces with Ana Luisa's Buy One, Get One 40% OFF sale! One piece for her, and one piece for you at shop.analuisa.com/alone. Pair Eyewear. Go to paireyewear.com/DMA for 15% off your first purchase. Caraway Home. Take 10% off your next purchase at VisitCarawayhome.com/DMA

2 Maj 202253min

Do you remember commercial breaks? They were built-in pauses, breaks from the drama or sitcom. With DVR’s or streaming services we can easily skip or minimize the pauses. But what if “pause” is what your everyday really needs? Not a week-long, pick your favorite vacation spot pause, but a quick moment to stop and say, “God, where are you leading? What are you saying?” or “Help me today because I don’t have what it takes to make it through the day.”   Kirsten Watson is a busy woman - a wife, a mom to seven, an author and podcast host - but all those responsibilities only lead her to pause more. Whether it’s in the moments just after her alarm goes off, or in the middle of after-school stories, she challenges us to slow down and first ask God for the help we need, and then to see where he is at work. She encourages us to practice discernment for what is most helpful in our kids’ sanctification - either stepping in or stepping back. She invites us to tap into the power of the Holy Spirit available to us if we will only ask.  Kirsten’s book, Sis, Take a Breath: Encouragement for the Woman Who’s Trying to Live and Love Well (but Secretly Just Wants to Take a Nap), releases May 3, 2022.   Connect with Kirsten Watson:  Website:  https://thewatsonseven.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kirstenwatsonofficial  Instagram:  @_kirstenwatson_ Podcast: Why or Why Not with the Watsons   Links Mentioned:    Sis, Take a Breath: Encouragement For the Woman Who’s Trying to Live and Love Well (but Secretly Just Wants to take a Nap)  by Kirsten Watson   Related Episodes: Talk to Your Kids About Race :: Kirsten Watson [Ep 314] Wild and Free :: Hayley Morgan [Ep 118] Breathe…{replacing “me” with “He”series} Blogpost  Featured Sponsors:  Ana Luisa. Make Mom's Day and treat her to new jewelry pieces with Ana Luisa's Buy One, Get One 40% OFF sale! One piece for her, and one piece for you at  shop.analuisa.com/alone. StitchFix. Sign up today at StitchFix.com/DMA and get $20 off your first purchase. StoryWorth. Save $10 on your first purchase for a limited time at StoryWorth.com/DMA.

25 Apr 202241min

“Peaceful” and “parenting” aren’t words we usually put together. Think about the parenting moments that stick out to you from the last week – was there anything peaceful about them? What if there could be? What would it change for you if parenting didn’t feel like moving from one fight to another? My guests this week, Dr David and Amanda Erickson of Flourishing Homes and Families, encourage us that it IS possible. Peace and grace can be meaningful parts of your parenting – not only for your kids, but for you. The gospel always brings freedom. Gentle Christ-Centered Parenting will not only change the dynamic of your house, but it will set your kids up for success in the hardest parts of life – responding with grace when someone hurts them, learning to hold boundaries and communicate their needs in a way that still respects the dignity and honor of the person who hurts them or crosses those boundaries and how to collaboratively problem solve. Ultimately, there is no better place for them to see reliance on the Holy Spirit’s work in life than through us fighting against sin by his power in our own lives. David and Amanda have fostered children and are raising two biological kids. They too have had to work against the patterns of their own childhoods to transform their parenting.  Connect with David and Amanda Erickson:  Website:  https://flourishinghomesandfamilies.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flourishinghomesandfamilies  Instagram:  @flourishinghomesandfamilies TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@flourishinghomesfamilies  Links Mentioned:   Instagram Stories on “the rod” verses  Good and Angry: Exchanging Frustration for Character in You and Your Kids! By Scott Turanksy and Joanne Miller   Related Episodes: Connected Relationships (LIVE Event) :: Jim & Lynne Jackson [Ep222] How to Avoid Power Struggles :: Stacy Bellward & Chad Hyenga [Ep 292] Grace According to Our Needs :: Beth Moore [Ep 270] The Mom Game Changer :: Kat Lee [Ep 41] Featured Sponsors:  Caraway–Visit carawayhomore.com/DMA to get 10% off your next purchase. Nontoxic cookware made modern. Hello Fresh-Go to HelloFresh.com/dma16  for up to 16 free meals and 3 free gifts. Peloton-Visit onepeloton.com to learn more.

18 Apr 202254min

We all walk through seasons of transition, whether we leave something behind by choice or it was chosen for us. Life after a disruptive event or during life transitions can feel like “starting over” just as much as a move clear across the country. You may be asking the question, “who am I here?” even in familiar places and routines. Author Shauna Niequist encourages us in what to hold on to and what to let go of, through seasons of loss.  She equips us with three tools for the journey - curiosity, self-compassion, and courage. We discuss how prayer can tenderize an angry heart, and Shauna shares how hanging on to writing and hospitality, even when they felt like impossible disciplines, helped her journey forward through grief and change. Shauna Niequist is a wife, mom, and author to numerous books including, Present Over Perfect, Cold Tangerines, and Bread and Wine. Her new book, I Guess I Haven’t Learned that Yet, releases on April 12, 2022   Connect with Shauna Niequist:  Website:  https://www.shaunaniequist.com  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sniequist  Instagram:  @sniequist  Twitter: @sniequist  Links Mentioned:   I Guess I Haven’t Learnd that Yet by Shauna Niequist   Related Episodes: Soulful over Frantic :: Shauna Niequist [Ep 127] How to Get Real and Savor More :: Shauna Niequist [Ep 65] When Moms Walk Through Grief :: Stacey Thacker [Ep 76] Quiet Your Inner Critic and Practice Self-Compassion :: Kim Frederickson [Ep 188] Recovering from Mom Burnout :: Nicole Zasowski [Ep 357] Featured Sponsors:  Rothy’s. Step up your shoes and accessories this Spring and get $20 off your first purchase at rothys.com/DMA. The Biggest Story Bible Storybook by Crossway and Kevin DeYoung. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold or visit crossway.org/plus to find out how to save 30%. Athena Club. Show your skin you care with the Athena Club Razor Kit! Get 20% off your first order at AthlenaClub.com with promo code DMA.

11 Apr 202247min