When it comes to “quiet time” with God, we often want the ideal setup: our favorite chair, a cup of hot coffee, sleeping kiddos. But God is faithful to meet with us and sustain us, even in the loud, chaotic places of motherhood.

I look down at my shoes, worn black Vans, and rub the dried formula off the toe. I hastily tuck my hair behind my ears and catch my baby girl smiling at me from the corner of my eye. I move to the stove to look down at the oatmeal I'm making for breakfast, stirring in raisins and obscene amounts of peanut butter to try to hold off the request for a snack for at least a couple hours.  

There's this thing I've noticed when you become a mom, it happens abruptly beginning with the first night of the first babe, yet I'd be willing to bet that most moms don't even notice it happening. It's subtle, a common thread among all of motherhood - but one that would rather not be noticed, not be plucked out and put on display.

I know you don't feel deserving of his love and admiration. I mean, you wipe butts for a living and still need to lose 15 lbs. from that last baby. But he does love you and somehow still thinks you're beautiful - and you love him all the more for it.
You love him.

So tell him.
 

This week on the show, we're sharing eight reasons why the Old Testament should matter to moms. Below are descriptions and links to books that will help you understand the beauty of the Old Testament and how to communicate its truths with others, especially your children.

We're so excited to announce that the full tutorial for how to study the Bible Inductively is live! While there are many wonderful resources out there to study the Bible, the Inductive method is one that requires at minimum, nothing but a Bible and a pen (and maybe some extra paper if it's not a journaling Bible), and is a skill that can be applied to any verse or passage of scripture, making it a great launching point for any Bible study you engage in. 

"What does the church need to give moms this Mother's Day?" <--- a question we received on Twitter that's worth considering ...

At first, my brain shuffled through the obvious things: the church needs to support moms, to thank them, to equip them for discipleship, and to provide outlets for fellowship and spiritual growth. These messages, at some level, always feel timely and helpful. But as I thought about it more, what moms really need to hear from their church this Mother's Day isn't a burdensome statement about the hugeness of their calling, a heartfelt "thanks" that can sometimes fall on deaf ears due to guilt, or a list of ways they can do even better in motherhood...

What moms really need, if we are to give them the strength to run the race set before them, is a reminder of who they are and what they have in Christ.

This week on the show (ep. 62), we're talking about finding ways to adjust our hearts and attitudes when your husband works long hours. No matter if it's one night a week or a month of travel, here are some tips to help you love your husband well and avoid becoming angry or bitter with him or your situation. 

If you've been married for longer than your honeymoon, you know that a covenant marriage relationship includes conflict.  In some seasons it's more frequent than others, and the severity can range from vow-hindering sin to the slight offense of leaving a trash can un-emptied.  One great skill that happy and holy married couples possess is the ability to forgive, especially as they constructively approach difficult conversations.  Lovingly approaching sins and hurts in your marriage isn't the primary change agent for your spouse's heart, but it can pave the way for repentance, reconciliation, and restored marital health.

Ever since we've been married my husband has worked long hours. I don't know why I've ever expected it to change, but I suppose there has always been this hope in me that it would. To give perspective (and I suppose some credibility as to why I'm writing this post), my husband typically works 12 hour days, and though he is supposed to have every other Friday off, he works them about half the time and at times, he is unexpectedly called in on the weekends or in the middle of the night. He also goes through long seasons once or twice a year, working 12-15 hour days (or nights) for anywhere from 30-90 days straight (yes, even weekends), although this past year they introduced "Fatigue Days," where it became a requirement that they give the employees every 14th day off. (I'll be honest, I've always wondered how this could be legal.)

I know there are a lot of professions that require husbands to work long hours and I am not the only mother preparing and eating dinner with the kids by myself. But it can feel like a very lonely road sometimes and it can be tough to know how to talk about it or what to do, because for most of us, we know deep down, it's not going to change anytime soon, so what good does talking about it do?

That said, I'm not writing this to say that I have anything revelatory to add, nor do I always have a good perspective or follow the advice I'm about to share, but in seven years of being married to a man that works long hours and four of which I've been a mom to small children, I have come a long way in my attitude and learned a few tricks to ease the frustration. So to the mom who's husband works long hours, this is my letter to you.

Susanna Welsey had 11 children and still found time to pray.

In motherhood, prayer can feel as elusive as finding space in your day to take a shower. It seems we all wish we did it more, but it can be a struggle to find the time or be consistent with it. Thankfully, there's no perfect formula to prayer - it's simply talking with God - and you can do that anytime, even while changing diapers or making lunch. God longs for us to come to him all the time, any time, just as we are - even as a frazzled mom trying to get out the door for preschool drop off in the morning. 

Because prayer isn't about rules, it's about relationship.