Friend, You are SET FREE for freedom! I pray and hope that this month has been an opportunity for you to truly discover how the promises of God empower us to parent in the assurance of His sovereignty and grace!

At the end of a difficult day, when our weaknesses have been underlined AND highlighted in the ways we have parented our kids, it can be all too easy to believe the lie that a bad day makes us a bad mom. So if you’ve had some difficult days lately, and the enemy has tempted you to think that anyone and everyone could be doing a better job parenting your kids than you, can I encourage you today.

I believe this is what God wants you to know when you fear you are damaging your kids and disappointing God.

I just love The Message paraphrase of Romans 8:38-39.  “Absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.”

Doesn’t it paint just the most tender and beautiful picture?  Jesus has embraced us!  And nothing – no sin, no shortcoming, no shame – can wedge its way into that embrace. Jesus holds us THAT TIGHTLY in His embrace. 

I recently had coffee with a friend who is a first-time mom, and her adorable baby is getting older and beginning to look more like a tantruming toddler.  She is also pregnant with her second child.  So to say she was feeling really overwhelmed and defeated on this particular day would be an understatement.

This particular friend is familiar with how my parenting journey began, which just means she knows that when I first became a mom, and I had 3 little boys under 5, I had unrealistic expectations of perfection of myself, and therefore I had unrealistic expectations of perfection of my kids. 

We need to remind each other that we’re not alone.  As my pal Heather MacFadyen says “Don’t Mom Alone.”  We need each other to remember that we aren’t the only ones who feel overwhelmed by the magnitude of influence we carry, and we feel terribly inadequate to help our children navigate the hardships they face. We know we’ve got only one shot at this, and we desperately want to get it right for them. 

But while we’re doing the very best we can to raise overcomers and world changers, and to help our kids navigate this life with confidence and humility, we often feel like we’re drowning. There is so much we can’t prevent or fix. It hurts to see our kids hurt. 

One of the questions that came up in a recent podcast I did was this: Why can it be so hard to trust God with our kids?  Is it because we think we know what’s best for them? Is it because we think we have bigger dreams than God does for them? Is it because we don't like feeling like we don’t have control over them? Oh yeh, I had to admit that all of those things tempt me to put my trust in my parenting rather than in God’s providence.

Beginning February 1st – and then every other day throughout the entire month - I am going to post a “freedom declaration” from the Mom Set Free Manifesto on my Instagram and Facebook pages.  TOGETHER we will DECLARE the POWERFUL PROMISES of God’s Word over the pressures we face in our parenting.  We’re basically telling the pressure that it’s not the boss of us, and we are holding tight the promises of God, even amidst the pressure.  Doesn’t that sound so good? 

“My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” - 2 Corinthians 12:9

This is what the Lord said to Paul after Paul begged the Lord to take away a weakness in his life. Can we just sit with this verse for a moment and think about how we would have responded to this assurance that the Lord gave Paul.

Hello, Friend!  I’m writing with exciting news!  The Mom Set Free Bible Study is now available AND I have A LOT of copies to GIVE AWAY!!

I couldn’t wait for this day to get here to share this study with you because I’m a Bible Study girl and I don’t know what I’d do without my Wednesday morning Bible Study crew. I know how powerful and beautiful it is to study the Word of God alongside other women who also want to grow closer to God.

“Mommy, does Jesus live in your heart?” That’s the question a precious seven-year-old girl asked her mom after they’d finished their nighttime prayers.

The mom stroked her daughter’s hair, looked tenderly into her daughter’s eyes, and assured her, “He sure does, sweetie. Jesus has been in my heart since I was a young child like you.”

“Mommy,” her daughter continued with childlike curiosity, “what does Jesus do in there?”