Pardon the Mess with Courtney DeFeo - Christian Motherhood, Biblical Parenting, Raising Christian Kids

Body image is a topic that has major implications in our lives, yet we tend to avoid talking about it because it’s so personal and oftentimes sensitive.  I’m so thankful my friend Rachael Gilbert is bravely speaking into these body image issues through her new book, Image Restored. She addresses our most common body image pitfalls and, as a licensed counselor and mom, comes at it both professionally and practically.    Here’s a few of the topics we cover: Signs we’re dealing with body image concerns that need addressing Core beliefs impacting our body image Ways to reframe our body image biblically Current health trends that are red flags for healthy body image Parenting healthy body image with our kids  I hope you’ll take a few minutes to listen to this important conversation today. I also pray each of us will ask the Lord to reveal the places in our lives where we need to reframe our attitudes towards our bodies, not only for our own benefit but also for our families.      Resources from today's show:  Image Restored by Rachael Gilbert imagerestoredbook.com Every Parent Wants to Know: A Christian Parenting Digital Event When I Talk to God, I Talk about You   Pardon the Mess is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. To find practical and spiritual guidance to help you grow into the perfectly imperfect parent you want to be visit www.ChristianParenting.orgOur Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On any given day there’s a million things we could potentially tell our kids to do or not do. Some of those things are routine like do your best work or don’t touch your brother. But then there’s the things that one day come spilling out of your mouth that nobody ever warned you about. Like “you have to wear underwear to ride your bike.”    True story, sadly. 😂   Today we’re reading Psalm 37 and a few of King David’s “dos” and “don’ts” for biblical living. There’s great application as we pray for our kids to do the things that point them to Jesus and let go of the things that don’t.   If you’re looking for biblical life hacks, this week’s prayer time is just what you need!    P.S. We would be so grateful if you’d consider sharing Pardon the Mess with a friend. Encourage those you know and love to join us in praying each week by forwarding this email or sending a link to the show. Thank you!   Our Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Beth Moore is joining us today and, simply put, you just can’t miss it! I’ve admired her powerful voice in God’s Kingdom for many years and, like many of you, have learned so much from her Bible studies, books, and conferences.    I teamed up with Steph Thurling from the Christian Parenting Podcast to chat with Beth about her new memoir, All my Knotted-up Life. This book is a vulnerable and authentic offering of Beth’s hardest places in life and how God has been faithful through it all.    I think my favorite part of our conversation was hearing Beth’s routine each morning in meeting with Jesus. Not to mention she has a great word on dealing with church hurts and why we keep going back even when it feels easier to walk away.    With 100% certainty I can say you’re going to love this conversation.    Resources from today's show:  All My Knotted-Up Life: A Memoir by Beth Moore When I Talk to God, I Talk about You Your Brave Song   Pardon the Mess is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. To find practical and spiritual advice to help you grow into the parent you want to be visit www.ChristianParenting.org  Our Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

How do you measure your value?    If you’re anything like me, you’ve measured it by the square footage of your house, the size of your bank account, the number on the scale, and the accolades of your kids. Yet none of these things tell the real story of who we are to Jesus—and that’s why measuring up gets us in trouble.   Today we’re praying for our kids as they struggle with this same temptation of comparison. Growing up in a day and age inundated with social media, it’s hard not to weigh looks, grades, athleticism, and talents against those around them. So we’re focused this week on praying for our kids to look to Jesus and not the world for value and identity.    As we pray through Psalm 84, I encourage you to really consider verse 10. Take a few minutes to read this Psalm and get a jump on where we’re headed in praying for our kids.  P.S. We would be so grateful if you’d consider sharing Pardon the Mess with a friend. Encourage those you know and love to join us in praying each week by forwarding this email or sending a link to the show. Thank you!   Our Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

If you haven’t heard of Risen Motherhood, today is going to be a great day for you!    Laura Wifler is an author, podcaster, mother, and the co-founder of the amazing parenting resource, Risen Motherhood. She’s back on Pardon the Mess today helping us bridge the gap between the faith we pursue on Sunday mornings and the real-life parenting we face on Mondays. Said differently, she speaks into ways we can practically bring the Lord into all facets of our parenting.    Laura is also a mother to a child with disabilities and she encourages us to have meaningful conversations with our kids about disability, empathy, compassion, and God’s overflowing love for everyone. Her practical advice on helping our friends walk these roads well is important and something you don’t want to miss.    Can’t wait for you to hear this great conversation with Laura Wifler.   Resources from today's show:  Like Me by Laura Wifler When I Talk to God, I Talk about You  Our Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

My youngest son, JB, is home from school today because I thought he was coming down with the same cold I’ve been struggling with all week. We kicked-off his “sick day” with a precautionary dose of Ibuprofen and breakfast in bed. By 8:10 a.m. I realized I had made a grave mistake in keeping him home. It’s been Ferris Bueller’s Day Off over here, and he’s Ferris and I’m the sickly sidekick friend trying to keep him from burning the place down.    But in this midst of his craziness I’ve noticed how quick he is to apologize. He loses his mind, apologizes, asks for forgiveness and moves forward with his next adventure. I love that he doesn’t overthink my forgiveness, wondering if I’m still angry or somehow going to think less of him or love him differently with each indiscretion.    It’s this same type of forgiveness (times a million) that God offers to each of us. It’s a forgiveness that extends as far as “the east is from the west” that we’re praying our kids will fully grasp and lean into with their Savior.    Let’s take a few minutes and pray for our kids to confess their sin so they can live fully in God’s overwhelming forgiveness. And then let’s also pray for this mom who should know better than to give a gratuitous day off to a kid with more energy than the sun.  P.S. We would be so grateful if you’d consider sharing Pardon the Mess with a friend. Encourage those you know and love to join us in praying each week by forwarding this email or sending a link to the show. Thank you!    Pardon the Mess is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. To find practical and spiritual advice to help you grow into the parent you want to be visit www.ChristianParenting.orgOur Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

I’m guessing the title of today’s show caught your eye? Definitely not a title I’ve put together for a podcast show until today!    Yes, I recently went to see Bruno Mars with my hubs, and I can’t wait to weigh in on that a bit. But more importantly, Erica Renaud is joining us to chat about praying with our kids and how to get that rolling if it’s not a part of our regular routine.   Erica has a new book releasing soon that walks us through praying with our kids. Today she’s sharing some practical advice with us on how to physically engage in prayer with our kids, how to walk through unanswered prayer requests, and appropriate theology on prayer no matter the age.   We talk a lot about praying for our kids on Pardon the Mess, but today I’m excited to talk about praying with our kids. Don’t miss it.    Resources from today's show:  Pray with me: Help Your Children Engage in Authentic and Powerful Prayer Erica Renaud The Parent’s Guide to Social Media by Axis The Christian Parenting Podcast   Pardon The Mess is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. To find practical and spiritual advice to help you grow into the parent you want to be visit www.ChristianParenting.org  Our Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

This week we’re praying for godly families. More specifically, we’re praying for our families to be built on the foundation of Jesus. In Psalm 127, Solomon very pointedly reminds us that even our best work and greatest successes are nothing if the Lord isn’t in them.    The key to building godly families comes in the day by day and week by week decisions of choosing Jesus instead of chasing after earthly success, financial gain, and the other things this world so often points us to.    Jesus talked about building our foundation on rock so that the storms of life won’t destroy our homes. Let’s pray today for our families to be storm-proof so that we can share the gospel effectively to a world so desperately needing the good news.    Can’t wait to pray with you this week!   In this with you,   Cynthia Yanof | Pardon the Mess  P.S. We would be so grateful if you’d consider sharing Pardon the Mess with a friend. Encourage those you know and love to join us in praying each week by forwarding this email or sending a link to the show. Thank you!  Pardon the Mess is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. To find practical and spiritual guidance to help you grow into the perfectly imperfect parent you want to be visit www.ChristianParenting.org Our Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Did you grow up believing certain things like I did?  Things like . . .  You can’t swim for an hour after eating Cracking your knuckles will give you arthritis Swallowed gum stays in your stomach seven years Crossed eyes will get stuck that way  These aren’t monumental to our belief systems, but it turns out they really aren’t even true.    We all have things we’ve bought into from our culture, our internal narratives, or even our families. Although the examples above are fairly silly, there are more significant lies we may believe that can impact our parenting, our faith walks, and our identity.    Today I’m getting personal and sharing three of the lies I’ve been prone to believe in my own life (don’t worry, they are deeper than the ones listed above). Although these lies began as fairly harmless, they snowballed into an underlying philosophy that needed to be called out and examined with a lens of biblical truth.    Take a few minutes with me today to consider the three lies we all need to stop believing in 2023.    P.S. If you enjoy Pardon the Mess will you take a minute to share it with a friend? There’s no better way to encourage others than to share biblical truth with them. Parenting is hard so let’s help others walk the parenting road together.Our Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Failure fast tracks growth.   This is a principle I’ve learned very personally at various times throughout my life. In the midst of what we may perceive as a failure—God shows up and names it success.   That’s exactly why we’re considering failure as we’re praying for our kids this week. Yes, there are places where our kids will fall flat on their face from poor decisions, and we need to pray they will repent and turn back to God. But sometimes our kids simply “fail,” and often what the world calls failure is actually God’s road to Kingdom success.    If we’re in it for the long game of parenting, we’ve got to get comfortable when our kids fail, knowing God is willing and able to use all things to grow them into who he designed them to be.    Can’t wait to pray with you this week!   P.S. We would be so grateful if you’d consider sharing Pardon the Mess with a friend. Encourage those you know and love to join us in praying each week by forwarding this email or sending a link to the show. Thank you! Our Sponsors:* Check out IXL and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.ixl.comPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy