Many of us have heard Sally's encouragement to mothers, but today we are doing something a little different. Many life advice books encourage us to "begin with the end in mind." When I was thinking about how I wanted to close out the Legacy of Faith series, I sat down with a pen and asked "Who do I see finishing the race well?" Immediately, Sally Clarkson came to mind. She hasn't just mothered well and retired to leisure, but has spent all her retirement energy on encouraging other mothers and t...
Jun 17, 2025•26 min
Hey don't stop listening! Based on stats, a lot of you who listen are under 40. I'm excited this means we are in the territory of getting out of echo chambers, because if I had to guess, most of you aren't grandparents yet. We are getting close to the end of our series about what it looks like to live a Legacy of Faith. Grandparents have a unique role in modern culture. In times past, it seems like the role was a bit more defined, but with as much as well all move now, it makes things a little m...
Jun 10, 2025•28 min
We would never dream of waking up one morning and just going to run a marathon. Yet, we often do that with Christian life. Then we hit that wall at the 18th mile and want to drop out. A phase of my own life that nearly took my faith out at the knees was when we lost our baby to miscarriage. Death is something that doesn’t neatly fit into our boxes and leaves us asking a lot of questions about our faith. But the Christian faith in resurrection holds a path of hope through the valley of the shadow...
Jun 03, 2025•28 min
As Christians, we want to be formed by wisdom. Biblically, we know that wisdom comes with age, but we live in a culture obsessed with youth rather than one formed by gospel truth. I’m of the age that I have friends turning both 30 and 40, and for so many women, those milestones are greeted with grief. Creams and fillers to disguise our age are in our social media feeds constantly. When you open the comment sections on so many things, the term “Okay, Boomer” has revealed how far we’ve moved cultu...
May 27, 2025•30 min
For many people, God calls them to serve in the middle of full-time work or parenthood. For other's he calls them to work in ministry. Each comes with its own unique challenges. When did you step into vocational service, and how did God work in you specifically to help you know you were called? What does being a woman in ministry look like functionally for you? What have been some unique challenges you have run into as a woman in ministry? What keeps you going in ministry? You can find " A Frui...
May 20, 2025•26 min
Throughout the history of the church, there has been a tendency to fall into different ditches of emphasis. During the medieval times, singleness was celebrated, and religious movements were dedicated to convents and monasteries. But those days are far in the past of the church. Our current services and church social events are set up to cater to married couples and parents. So much so that I’ve heard from several single friends that they don’t feel like there is space made for them in the churc...
May 13, 2025•23 min
Culturally, we’ve been conditioned to believe that the pointof marriage is to make us happy. Now, no one has made me happier than my husband, but even more importantly (as in any of our relationships), marriage has been teaching me to love more like Christ. Sometimes, I watch myhusband’s positive example, and at other times I have to give up what I want for what someone else needs. The wild thing I’ve noticed is the way God’s upside-downkingdom shows up in my marriage. I’m not less happy when I ...
May 06, 2025•24 min
For our legacy of faith series, we will talk about both marriage and singleness in the church. Marriage is such a massive topic that I spent probably the most time praying over it while trying to decide whom to invite to talk to me about it. Then I remembered the conversation I had with Pastor Bob Flayhart on "Recovering from Anger in Parenting" and knew I wanted him to apply that same method for us to Marriage. Marriage is less about finding the "perfect match" and more about trying to "out do ...
Apr 29, 2025•20 min
As Christians, we want to, as the old saying goes, "Walk the walk not just talk the talk." But along the way there are often "It's not supposed to be this way" moments. The hardest ones are the ones that are entirely out of our control. Looking toward those we can either live in constant anxiety or open our hands to know that God will give us the grace to handle what comes next. When battling anxiety for the future, the most encouraging thing for me is hearing the stories of others who Christ's ...
Apr 22, 2025•26 min
Life in 21st-century America has become lonely. A lot of us long for not just friends but rich friendships that go past the surface level. Today, I’m going to talk to Hunter Beless about how she has developed rich gospel friendships even in the middle of military life, and ministry life. What was the hardest stage of life for you to make friends? How did you learn to develop relationships generally? Y’all have just worked through Titus where relationships are laid out as a huge part of disciples...
Apr 15, 2025•29 min
I don’t know what your experience has looked like, but for a lot of us, coaching our kids through the teen years makes us nervous. Especially knowing if handled well, it’s also a pivotal time of faith formation. So I'm chatting with Jen Oshman about what it's been like to raise her daughters and watch them walk forward into adult life. First off we will find out what kind of teenager Jen was What does discipleship in the teen year look like? Did you find it hard to understand your teens? What is...
Apr 08, 2025•28 min
In the next few weeks, we are digging into our faith more deeply. Last week we kicked off a brand-new project called the “Legacy of Faith” series. I've hand-picked people I respect most for each topic, so I'd love it if you invite a friend to join you, and let’s grow to be more like Christ together. I don’t know what your experience looked like, but for a lot of us middle school sucked. The proof of that will come out in some stories today. But it’s also a pivotal time of faith formation. Today ...
Apr 01, 2025•31 min•Season 2Ep. 3
We are back this week to keep talking about what itlooks like to live a Legacy of Faith. Last week we talked about what it looks like when kids love Jesus really young. If you’re like me maybe you’ve struggled with not having a “fancy” testimony. Abbey and I talked about the benefit of exposing little ones to faith from a young age and if you’re an adult in the life of a kid what a gift that is to give them. This week we are going to talk about how practically we point kids to faith! If you want...
Mar 25, 2025•23 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Today we are kicking off our series by talking about life in the early years. Jesus takes discipleship of and empathy with little ones VERY seriously. To successfully have gospel empathy with little ones, and how to effectively disciple them we have to be intentional. So let’s dig in! Welcome to Sunshine in My Nest, Abbey. Tell us about yourself and your stage of life, but more importantly what kind of kid you were. What did God use to bring you to faith? Have you always liked kids? Did you alwa...
Mar 18, 2025•27 min•Season 2Ep. 1
If you listen to this podcast, I know you’re the kind of woman who wants to dig into her faith more deeply. I want to more-systematically help you do that! I’ve been working on a brand-new project called the “Legacy of Faith” series. Over the next several episodes, we are going to walk through the life of a woman of faith womb to tomb. Walking out faith is compared in the New Testament as a race. We would never dream of waking up one morning and just going to run a marathon. We would learn about...
Mar 10, 2025•1 min
He put his Spirit on them to guide them. Before the law was taught to people and it was a standard to which they were held. Now the law of God was written on their hearts. God’s Spirit was in them to whisper conviction of sin, but also to cause his nature to grow from them. We see in Galatians 5:22-23 that what grows from a person who is marked by the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience... etc. At the creation of this new covenant, Jesus sat with his disciples, ate with them, and gave them a ne...
Mar 06, 2025•6 min
The other day someone posted something like "If you'll just take the time to get organized, life will be easier." Usually, I would find that to be true and agree with it. When I read the post, I had spent 6 hours the day before cleaning, and looked around me; kid clutter was everywhere. The daily demands of motherhood at face value don't seem like much, but like a steady dripping, it can become overwhelming. I've followed Whitney for a while and know not everything has been easy for her, but it'...
Mar 04, 2025•22 min
In David, we find a “type.” God sets him up as king and a good kingdom on earth to show us what he wants to do in Heaven. Under the first half of David’s rule, people find peace, prosperity, and justice. But we also see David sin dramatically and the peace is broken. We are left longing for a true and better king! When we understand this promise of “kingdom” to David it allows us to better understand our longing for perfect leadership. But we realize we can’t ever find this fulfilled in human fo...
Feb 27, 2025•7 min
I did not grow up in a tradition that practiced Lent, and honestly, I've not read or studied anything about it as a practice. What I do know is a lot of people announce they are giving social media up for Lent, and I know it is the time that leads up to Easter. It seems kind of like Advent, but I could be totally off. When I saw Amy Gannett had written a resource for lent I wanted to learn all about it, but rather than just voice messaging her all my questions I thought it might be fun to learn ...
Feb 25, 2025•28 min
The beautiful thing about the law is that it gives a glimpse of what God values. In it is love, justice, and peace. It leads us to a better relationship with God and one another. But we can’t live it perfectly. What Romans shows us is that the law does something even more beautiful for us now. It shows us the gifts we are given in Christ. We are no longer held back by the law alone but empowered into growth by the Holy Spirit. Through God’s work, we more naturally produce the Fruit of the Spirit...
Feb 20, 2025•5 min
Last time Amber and I talked she taught me the concept of literature being "mirrors and windows." That means the gift we get through books is our own experiences reflected(mirrors), but they also allow us to peek into someone else's world (windows). Viewing books this way has made me better balance the selections I'm choosing to read, so they feel like they belong, but also develop empathy! I noticed you've featured in your work "mirrors and windows" again but now you've also added "sliding glas...
Feb 18, 2025•22 min
As our verse reveals, on this side of eternity we feel homeless. We long for something, someone, or someplace better. Jesus’ death to take the punishment of the broken covenant, allows us the favor of all that was promised. Believers can now look forward to eternal belonging in a heavenly land. SHOW NOTES: - Dig Deeper - get the verse card and study questions here. -Go to the "Get Started" page for all the information on how to use this study ...
Feb 13, 2025•5 min
Our homes have become places where we go to escape the rest of the world. A phrase I heard a few weeks ago has stuck with me as we are experiencing "self-imposed solitude." With that mentality has come rising depression. Our homes have gotten bigger, but the entertaining spaces aren't. Our private areas are expanding. Let's explore what it would look like to reclaim the historic view of discipleship would mean for modern believers! You can find Phylicia Masonheimer book " Every Home a Foundation...
Feb 11, 2025•26 min
The Psalm you read this week points to the promise of preservation. The continuation of days reveals that we are held by the one who holds the world. God has not held our sins against us but placed them on his son. We are sent with the great commission to “Go tell all the world...” SHOW NOTES: - Dig Deeper - get the verse card and study questions here. -Go to the "Get Started" page for all the information on how to use this study - ...
Feb 06, 2025•6 min
I don't know about you, but I'm a full-fledged history nerd, especially when it comes in story form! I've invited Leah Boden take us through Charlotte Mason's story! Leah has dedicated her career to applying Charlotte Mason's philosophy, but who was she as a person? How did you first "meet" Charlotte Mason? Can you start at the beginning of her story? What was Charlotte Mason's life like for her as a girl? How did Charlotte Mason become a teacher? Why is it important for our kids to have to have...
Feb 04, 2025•20 min
When God came in the cool of the evening he told them their rebellion would bring death, pain, and corruption. Then God killed a lamb (sacrifice), provided clothes to cover them(memorial), and made a promise. One would come who would defeat the power of the serpent. Because of Genesis 3:25, Psalm 91 makes sense. God isn’t promising we will never face trouble, but that he will be our ultimate deliverer. He did the work of conquering evil on our behalf and the cost fell on him. He was bruised so w...
Jan 30, 2025•5 min
Sometimes my passion for being in the Word starts to wilt a little bit. Chatting with people who love Jesus and reading his word encourages me to see it in a new light, or inspire me to dig in deeper. I've met with Maggie a couple of times in person at conferences and I'm always inspired by her passion for studying the Bible! I Most of what we have talked about is Bible stuff and fashion (one thing listeners should know is Maggie has an amazing sense of style) But she also lives on a farm, how d...
Jan 28, 2025•21 min
The past couple of months I’ve found myself constantly overstimulated. Then I started to notice that every time I had a quiet moment I popped my air pods in to listen to an audio book, or podcast. I started to wonder if I was stealing from myself all of the moments of silence that would naturally have occurred in my day and filled them with noise. I picked up Sarah’s newest book and found the words were exactly what I needed. In your opening, you said you’ve found beauty in the contemplatives, e...
Jan 21, 2025•20 min
Meditation is a cultural buzzword, that a lot of Christians have a knee-jerk reaction toward. Yet, we are called to meditate all through the Bible. Meditation is something I've felt a pull toward studying this year. So I've invited Quina on to talk to us about it! How is meditation a different spiritual discipline than prayer? When did meditation become important to you? I've read your children's books and they give such good truth to ponder. How has the topics you've chosen allowed you to mull ...
Jan 14, 2025•25 min
On Risen Motherhood Laura has talked about how motherhood is joy-filled and hard. The two are so intertwined it can feel a bit like a moment-to-moment rollercoaster. (I'm the best/I'm the worst) Laura reminds us that hard life circumstances can lead us back to the foot of the cross. When we are weak it shows how desperately we need Jesus. But how? When we are already sipping cold coffee while doing the sink full of dirty dishes? How do we cultivate a deeper relationship with Jesus? How has life ...
Jan 07, 2025•23 min
