Latest / LifeAudio / The Love Offering - Encountering Jesus in the Mix-Ups, Mess-Ups, and Marvelous Moments with Chelsey DeMatteis

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The Love Offering - Encountering Jesus in the Mix-Ups, Mess-Ups, and Marvelous Moments with Chelsey DeMatteis · LifeAudio

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  Speaker 1: Life Audio.
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  Speaker 2: Welcome to the Love Offering Podcast. I'm your host, Rachel Adams,
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  Speaker 2: author of Everyday Prayers for Love, Learning to Love God, Others,
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  Speaker 2: and Even Yourself. Each week we dive into meaningful conversations
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  Speaker 2: about how to live out the greatest commandment, loving God
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  Speaker 2: with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and
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  Speaker 2: loving our neighbors as ourselves. Whether through inspiring stories, practical wisdom,
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  Speaker 2: or biblical truth, my hope is to encourage you to
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  Speaker 2: love boldly, live faithfully, and reflect God's love in your
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  Speaker 2: everyday life. Today, I'm honored to welcome Chelsea DeMattis to
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  Speaker 2: the show. Chelsea is an author, speaker, wife, mother, and
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  Speaker 2: host of the Living With Less podcast. She writes devotionals
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  Speaker 2: for Lifeways Journey Magazine, Salem Media, and YouVersion, and is
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  Speaker 2: passionate about helping women experience the restoration, redemption, and freedom
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  Speaker 2: available through Jesus. In her new devotional, Mercy in the Margin,
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  Speaker 2: 52 Devotions to Encounter Jesus in the Mix-Ups, Mess-Ups, and
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  Speaker 2: Marvelous Moments of Motherhood, Chelsea invites mothers to recognize these
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  Speaker 2: seemingly insignificant moments of.
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  Speaker 1: Their days as sacred spaces.
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  Speaker 2: Through 52 Devotions, she reminds us that Jesus meets us
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  Speaker 2: in the mealtimes, mistakes, midnight prayers, mundane routines, and moments
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  Speaker 2: when we wish there were more of us to go around. Well, hello, friend,
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  Speaker 2: and welcome back to the Love Operating Podcast. I'm always
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  Speaker 2: happy to get to talk with you.
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  Speaker 1: Me too. I'm so excited to be here. I love
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  Speaker 1: you very much. I love you very much.
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  Speaker 2: And so for those that don't know you, you have
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  Speaker 2: been on and we would encourage everybody to go back
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  Speaker 2: and listen to those episodes. But give us a glimpse
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  Speaker 2: into who you are and where you are in your
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  Speaker 2: motherhood journey right now.
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  Speaker 1: Yes. Gosh, I feel like since you and I met,
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  Speaker 1: you have watched me grow up as a mom. I
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  Speaker 1: have two kiddos. Our son is about to turn nine
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  Speaker 1: and then our daughter is about to turn five. I've
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  Speaker 1: been married to my husband, Corey, for almost 12 years.
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  Speaker 1: And yes, I just love to write words about Jesus
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  Speaker 1: and talk about Jesus. and just be very real about
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  Speaker 1: what it looks like to journey through life and faith
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  Speaker 1: and motherhood with the Lord as my guide. And something
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  Speaker 1: that I think is so important is being able to
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  Speaker 1: apply scripture to everyday living. So that's just kind of
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  Speaker 1: what I always hope my writing is to people is
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  Speaker 1: they can go, oh, wow, God's still using that to
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  Speaker 1: minister to our hearts all these thousands of years later.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: Oh, for sure.
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  Speaker 2: And I will just tell everybody, you don't just write
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  Speaker 2: about it. You really do live it. You and I
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  Speaker 2: have a relationship beyond the screen and have gotten to
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  Speaker 2: meet each other in person, even though we live in
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  Speaker 2: other states and we talk frequently. And you have seen
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  Speaker 2: all of my mix-ups in motherhood because I'm like a
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  Speaker 2: stage ahead of you.
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  Speaker 1: And so you're learning from all my mistakes. Yes. Hey,
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  Speaker 1: I have said God was so kind to give me
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  Speaker 1: several women, you being one of them, that's like a
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  Speaker 1: decade ahead of me.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: And I'm like, thank you, Lord Jesus. And they all
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  Speaker 1: have boys that are like turning 18. Glory to God.
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  Speaker 1: He knew what he was doing because I needed, I
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  Speaker 1: needed you. I needed you guys. I did. Well, and
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  Speaker 1: it's been so sweet.
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  Speaker 2: So our boys have even connected our kids, which has
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  Speaker 2: just been a whole other, I don't know, just blessing
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  Speaker 2: of this relationship because they're both super athletic. And so
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  Speaker 2: it's been just a sweet friendship all the way around.
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  Speaker 2: And I can't wait to get into more of this conversation,
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  Speaker 2: but we're going to take a brief break to hear
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  Speaker 2: a word from our sponsor. And when we come back,
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  Speaker 2: We will talk about recognizing the sacred spaces hidden within
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  Speaker 2: motherhood's interruptions.
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  Speaker 1: Welcome back.
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  Speaker 2: I am talking with Chelsea DeMattis about her devotional, Mercy
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  Speaker 2: in the Margin. So talk to us about what does
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  Speaker 2: the word margin mean and what helped you begin seeing
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  Speaker 2: the overlooked fringes of motherhood as places where you could
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  Speaker 2: actually encounter Jesus?
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  Speaker 1: So I want you to imagine if you're listening to this,
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  Speaker 1: even if you're driving in the car, picture a piece
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  Speaker 1: of paper. Okay, there is margins on both sides. It
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  Speaker 1: is set. It is fixed. There's no changing it. You
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  Speaker 1: can try and go outside the lines if you'd like to,
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  Speaker 1: but it's not going to look the way it should.
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  Speaker 1: And when I think of mercy and the margin, it
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  Speaker 1: is literally finding Jesus, seeing the mercy and grace of
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  Speaker 1: God in that time margin that he's given us. the
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  Speaker 1: sun comes up at this time, the sun sets at
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  Speaker 1: this time. And it is my responsibility to find Jesus
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  Speaker 1: there because I will either look for him or I
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  Speaker 1: will not. And I feel like especially in motherhood, time
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  Speaker 1: is so fleeting anyway, but once you become a mom,
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  Speaker 1: you suddenly feel like you don't have enough time or
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  Speaker 1: there's too much time in certain seasons and you don't
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  Speaker 1: know what to do with it. And this message is,
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  Speaker 1: finding Jesus in that, in the seasons where you're like,
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  Speaker 1: oh my gosh, Lord, am I ever going to get
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  Speaker 1: through this? And then in the seasons where you're like,
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  Speaker 1: I am actually loving life right now. Like if you're
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  Speaker 1: seeing this video, peep the toy room right here. Those
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  Speaker 1: are the seasons where it's like, it feels like it's forever. Lord,
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  Speaker 1: help me see you here. Or then there's the ones
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  Speaker 1: where it's, I'm loving this right now. Like I don't
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  Speaker 1: want it to go. So how can I find you
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  Speaker 1: there too? And so this message to me is just,
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  Speaker 1: an invitation to encounter Jesus right where you are, whatever
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  Speaker 1: that situation and circumstances. He's not looking for a perfect
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  Speaker 1: person to show up for. He's already there. He's already
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  Speaker 1: waiting for us to turn and look to Him. And
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  Speaker 1: so we just have to do that. We have to
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  Speaker 1: look to Him.
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  Speaker 2: So I should have probably led with this question. Define
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  Speaker 2: for us what mercy is and how is that different
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  Speaker 2: than grace? Because I think that's a little confusing sometimes.
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  Speaker 1: It is. So mercy and grace are so close, but
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  Speaker 1: they are actually so different. So mercy is when God
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  Speaker 1: does not give us the punishment we deserve. And then
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  Speaker 1: grace is when God gives us a blessing that we
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  Speaker 1: do not earn or deserve. So grace is unmerited favor,
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  Speaker 1: gifts like salvation, love, eternal life. Mercy is withholding judgment, wrath,
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  Speaker 1: or the bad consequences of our actions. So I actually
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  Speaker 1: always say, and this is one of the reasons why
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  Speaker 1: the word mercy is in the title, is my life
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  Speaker 1: is a literal gift of mercy. Like I, and we
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  Speaker 1: all do, but I'm just saying when I think of
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  Speaker 1: me and the way I was living before I started
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  Speaker 1: walking with Jesus, I do not deserve. He has absolutely
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  Speaker 1: withheld consequences and things for my actions. I did not
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  Speaker 1: deserve this lavish love that he's given me. And so
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  Speaker 1: for me, when I think of mercy and the margin,
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  Speaker 1: it is, a gift that He wants to spend time
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  Speaker 1: with us. Like, when you actually think about it, we
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  Speaker 1: do not deserve to sit under this lavish love and
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  Speaker 1: in this relationship with Jesus. And the fact that He
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  Speaker 1: wants to meet with us, like, we can make a
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  Speaker 1: grave mistake, like, right now, and 10 seconds later, look
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  Speaker 1: to Him and go, I cannot believe I just did that. Lord,
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  Speaker 1: I am so sorry. And he meets that with love.
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  Speaker 1: We do not deserve that. We don't. And so for me,
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  Speaker 1: when I think of mercy and the margin, it is
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  Speaker 1: a absolute gift of mercy that he delights in spending
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  Speaker 1: time with us. And as moms, that he delights in
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  Speaker 1: meeting with us when our life, and not everyone's life
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  Speaker 1: feels chaotic, but I think every single mom can say
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  Speaker 1: there have been moments where she feels very chaotic inside
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  Speaker 1: and not, I don't even know if worthy is the
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  Speaker 1: right word. but feels like how on earth can I
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  Speaker 1: come before the feet of Jesus when I really honestly
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  Speaker 1: haven't even thought about him in a couple of days? Now,
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  Speaker 1: I haven't had that happen in a really long time,
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  Speaker 1: but I've been walking with Jesus now for 15 years.
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  Speaker 1: So I do think about him all the time. But
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  Speaker 1: you know what did just happen? I'll let you all
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  Speaker 1: know that it still happens to me and I even
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  Speaker 1: write books about Jesus. On Monday morning, Monday, I literally
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  Speaker 1: went all day and it was Labor Day. I did
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  Speaker 1: not spend time in the Word. And I got to
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  Speaker 1: nighttime and I went, I didn't sit with the Lord today.
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  Speaker 1: I know I talked to him, but like I didn't
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  Speaker 1: sit with him. And you know what? If I would
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  Speaker 1: have sat with him at two o'clock in the morning,
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  Speaker 1: he would have delighted in me coming to him. And
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  Speaker 1: so that's like what I think about when I think
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  Speaker 1: of our relationship with him is it is mercy that
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  Speaker 1: he delights in being with us and wanting us to
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  Speaker 1: come to him. No matter what way we are showing up,
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  Speaker 1: He is there with open arms, ready to commune and
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  Speaker 1: be in that relationship.
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  Speaker 2: Well, talk to us about that. Spending time with the Lord.
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  Speaker 2: Sometimes it looks like a quiet time with a candle
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  Speaker 2: early in the morning, you know, for 30 minutes or
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  Speaker 2: an hour. But sometimes, and like you said, on Monday,
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  Speaker 2: life happened. And so what do we do when life
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  Speaker 2: is happening and we're in an especially busy season? I
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  Speaker 2: know for me, and when my kids were young, young
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  Speaker 2: and at home versus now as they're teenagers. It's looked
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  Speaker 2: very different over the years how I've been able to
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  Speaker 2: spend time with the Lord.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah. I actually wrote a devotion here. It's Mercy in
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  Speaker 1: the Meantime is the title. And I think especially when
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  Speaker 1: you have younger kids, there's a lot of meantime. It's like,
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  Speaker 1: all right, well, in the meantime, when I've got this
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  Speaker 1: 20 minutes before the these babies wake up from their
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  Speaker 1: nap or it's me right now. I now do a
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  Speaker 1: car car line pickup. All right. Well, in the meantime,
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  Speaker 1: I've got about 35 minutes. So let's say I don't
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  Speaker 1: have my time with the Lord in the morning. I
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  Speaker 1: can have my time with him in the car. That's
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  Speaker 1: a meantime moment. Or I think the example I actually
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  Speaker 1: give in the book is when you're making the choice.
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  Speaker 1: Do I fold the laundry? Do I put the dishes away? Like,
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  Speaker 1: do I get food ready? take one of those meantime
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  Speaker 1: activities and just devote that time to praying while you're
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  Speaker 1: doing it. Like it really can be as easy as,
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  Speaker 1: I don't, okay, this is another thing when I'm speaking
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  Speaker 1: to this that I want everyone to hear that's listening
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  Speaker 1: is you do not need to create more time to
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  Speaker 1: spend with Jesus. You need to spend time with Jesus
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  Speaker 1: right where you are. And so that means when you're
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  Speaker 1: doing the dishes, maybe pause the podcast or turn off
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  Speaker 1: the worship music and just pray. Or if you don't
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  Speaker 1: listen to worship music often, put on some worship music, pray.
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  Speaker 1: It is so much easier than we think. It is
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  Speaker 1: not just sitting down stagnant, spending time with Him that way. Yes,
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  Speaker 1: it is so good to be in the Word and
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  Speaker 1: to sit and just listen and journal and write. But
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  Speaker 1: God is in our movement too. Like we can be
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  Speaker 1: doing the dishes and talking to Jesus. And I think
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  Speaker 1: for me, some of my richest moments with the Lord
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  Speaker 1: that's happened in my home, I remember once I was
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  Speaker 1: cutting sweet potatoes for Cam and I broke down in
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  Speaker 1: tears and literally just started crying, praying to the Lord.
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  Speaker 1: And I'm like, that was so special. And it was
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  Speaker 1: three minutes of that day, but it mattered so much.
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  Speaker 1: And so that meantime activity, the prepping things, the getting somewhere,
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  Speaker 1: give one of them to the Lord and just see
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  Speaker 1: what He will do with it. Because I really think
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  Speaker 1: our faith life becomes so much more rich when we
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  Speaker 1: give Him the moments that we don't think matter. Yeah.
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  Speaker 2: When I think about motherhood and how much my children
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  Speaker 2: teach me and how much the Lord is molding me
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  Speaker 2: more into His character, I think there's nothing like motherhood
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  Speaker 2: and marriage to sanctify us and teach us how to
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  Speaker 2: be patient and love unconditionally and extend mercy and grace
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  Speaker 2: and all of the things, the sacrifice and the selflessness.
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  Speaker 2: But I often think about Him as our Heavenly Father
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  Speaker 2: and how we do sometimes put so much pressure on
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  Speaker 2: ourselves that being with Him is supposed to look exactly
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  Speaker 2: like this or like it did in one season or
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  Speaker 2: this other person is doing it. But He is a
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  Speaker 2: loving Father. So talk to us about that relationship of
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  Speaker 2: seeing Him as our parent and we are His beloved daughters, right?
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  Speaker 1: So I feel like I've learned this more this year
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  Speaker 1: than ever. And I think it's because our son is
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  Speaker 1: getting older. Like I said, Cam's about to be nine.
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  Speaker 1: And Cam is starting to have like bigger things happen.
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  Speaker 1: He's hearing different things. He's seeing different things out in
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  Speaker 1: the world, like things that are bigger than I am.
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  Speaker 1: And the Lord has shown me he also has more freedom. Okay,
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  Speaker 1: Cam started riding his bike by himself in the neighborhood
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  Speaker 1: this summer. Like things were all of a sudden I'm like, oh,
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  Speaker 1: I have to literally trust the Lord that cam is
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  Speaker 1: going to obey the rules we've given him like and
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  Speaker 1: how he crosses the street but also that some 17
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  Speaker 1: year old isn't going to come barreling around the way
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  Speaker 1: i did when i was 17 rolling through a stop
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  Speaker 1: sign like suddenly i have to trust that god is
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  Speaker 1: the perfect parent the perfect parent the all-knowing all-seeing perfect
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  Speaker 1: parent and i am not i am not perfect And
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  Speaker 1: it's recognizing that and not just recognizing it, but being
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  Speaker 1: okay with it. I think so much of our faith,
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  Speaker 1: I just said this to somebody, I am so over
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  Speaker 1: Christians answering questions of saying, God is sovereign. That's just
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  Speaker 1: like people's go-to answer when what I think they're actually
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: saying is, I don't know why it's so hard. I
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  Speaker 1: don't know why that happens, but they just don't know
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  Speaker 1: how to be honest in that because it feels like, well,
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  Speaker 1: God knows everything and so I should just be fine
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  Speaker 1: with it. But I'm finding in this season of motherhood
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  Speaker 1: that the Lord is actually okay with me saying, I
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  Speaker 1: do not like that, Lord. But you're the perfect parent.
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  Speaker 1: And yes, saying you're the perfect parent is saying God
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  Speaker 1: is sovereign. But it's just in a way that's deepening
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  Speaker 1: my relationship with Him where I'm able to realize that
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  Speaker 1: I am not, I'm not it. I'm not the biggest
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  Speaker 1: part of my kids. Like, truly, I'm not the biggest
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  Speaker 1: part of their picture. God is. Being okay with that
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  Speaker 1: is very hard. But seeing just in the handful of
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: things that have happened, like over the summer, my daughter
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: had batteries in her mouth. I had no idea. My
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  Speaker 1: nephew happened to be in the room with her by
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  Speaker 1: the grace of God, and he told her to spit
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  Speaker 1: them out. The Lord used him as a vessel, not me.
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  Speaker 1: And I was in the house. I'm not, I can't
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  Speaker 1: be all places. And same thing with my son. We
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  Speaker 1: were in Nashville, my husband and I, and my parents
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  Speaker 1: could not find him. and he did not have his
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  Speaker 1: little gizmo watch. They had no idea where he was.
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  Speaker 1: For 20 minutes, they're driving around their neighborhood, and I'm
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  Speaker 1: on the other end of the phone call, six and
• 14:17
  Speaker 1: a half hours away, going, I can't do anything. And
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  Speaker 1: my mentor's words to me on the phone were, let's pray.
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  Speaker 1: Who knew we pray when that happens? She's like, let's pray.
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  Speaker 1: And her words were, God, you know exactly where Cam is,
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  Speaker 1: and you know exactly how to bring him home. it
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  Speaker 1: gives me chills. It makes me want to cry because
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: in that moment, all I could feel was this angst of,
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: I don't know where he is and I don't know
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  Speaker 1: how to make him come home. But yet I couldn't even,
• 14:51
  Speaker 1: I couldn't even form those words. And yet her prayer
• 14:53
  Speaker 1: was God exactly where he is and exactly how to
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  Speaker 1: bring him home. And I think that is what this
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  Speaker 1: season of motherhood is teaching me, that God knows exactly
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  Speaker 1: where they are and he knows exactly how to bring
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  Speaker 1: them home. not just in my literal home, but in
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  Speaker 1: a relationship with Him. So now I'm crying.
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  Speaker 2: Well, me too. That ministers to my heart so much.
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  Speaker 2: And it's humbling, but it's also freeing. And it takes
• 15:18
  Speaker 2: the pressure off because I think we want to control
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: everything about our kids' lives. And really, that's not the
• 15:24
  Speaker 2: way that it should be. And as you were talking,
• 15:26
  Speaker 2: I was thinking about a conversation you and I had
• 15:28
  Speaker 2: at a ball field. one day and you had just
• 15:31
  Speaker 2: attended a conference and there was a mother and a
• 15:33
  Speaker 2: daughter that were speaking at some workshop. And I don't
• 15:36
  Speaker 2: even remember who they were. And I don't know that
• 15:37
  Speaker 2: it even matters. But you were telling the story about
• 15:41
  Speaker 2: this mom praying over and maybe even journaling about specific
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: dreams for her daughter. And her daughter is actually doing
• 15:49
  Speaker 2: the very thing that she was praying for. So I
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  Speaker 2: guess where I'm going, and I want to hear that
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: whole story from your words, but our prayers and our
• 15:55
  Speaker 2: walk with the Lord are, does matter, but we may
• 15:58
  Speaker 2: not see it for generations to see it come to fruition.
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  Speaker 1: So tell us about that. Well, oh my gosh, I
• 16:05
  Speaker 1: literally have chills all over me. How did I forget that? Yes,
• 16:08
  Speaker 1: I was sitting, it was at the Gospel Coalition. It
• 16:11
  Speaker 1: was one of the breakout sessions.
• 16:12
  Speaker 2: And this Becky Thompson and her mom.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you. Yes. I was like, I can't remember her
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  Speaker 1: last name.
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  Speaker 2: Yes.
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  Speaker 1: Her and her mom. I can't remember their.
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  Speaker 2: Midnight Mom.
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  Speaker 1: Midnight Mom. Yes. Look, we can put the pieces together.
• 16:27
  Speaker 1: Together we got this. Her mother was pregnant with her.
• 16:32
  Speaker 1: They had no idea if it was a daughter or
• 16:34
  Speaker 1: a boy, son or daughter. And she had always been
• 16:37
  Speaker 1: a journaler. And so she had all of these journals
• 16:40
  Speaker 1: and she was journaling. And the day her daughter was, like,
• 16:44
  Speaker 1: it was one of the days when she was pregnant
• 16:45
  Speaker 1: with her. She had wrote very specifically about this baby girl.
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: like using her mouth for Jesus or something. It was
• 16:53
  Speaker 1: so specific. And it was like ministering to like, it wasn't,
• 16:57
  Speaker 1: I don't think she said millions of people, but whatever.
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: It was a big, it was a big thing. And
• 17:02
  Speaker 1: she said to watch her daughter in ministry and literally
• 17:08
  Speaker 1: doing the thing that she was writing about in a journal,
• 17:12
  Speaker 1: writing about this sweet baby and then seeing it 30
• 17:16
  Speaker 1: years later, Oh my gosh, there was not a dry
• 17:19
  Speaker 1: eye in that room because it reminded all of us
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: moms sitting there that the Lord knows the desires of
• 17:26
  Speaker 1: your heart. He's also speaking to you. He's already interceding
• 17:30
  Speaker 1: on behalf of your children. He's already preparing you for
• 17:34
  Speaker 1: who your children will be and who he is going
• 17:37
  Speaker 1: to chisel and mold them into. And the fact that
• 17:40
  Speaker 1: he loves us moms so much to prepare our hearts
• 17:44
  Speaker 1: and to speak to us about who our kids will
• 17:46
  Speaker 1: be Is that not so kind? There was one thing
• 17:50
  Speaker 1: that was on focus of the family, focus on the family.
• 17:53
  Speaker 1: And I wish I could think of her name because
• 17:55
  Speaker 1: I've seen this real so many times. But she was
• 17:58
  Speaker 1: talking about her son. He was six years old and
• 18:00
  Speaker 1: she went to this prayer group and she was like,
• 18:02
  Speaker 1: I can't even pray for him. He's going to end
• 18:04
  Speaker 1: up being a bum homeless man on the side of
• 18:05
  Speaker 1: the streets with all kinds of problems. He was in kindergarten.
• 18:09
  Speaker 2: Okay.
• 18:10
  Speaker 1: Kindergarten. He was so difficult. I couldn't do it. And
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: these women rallied around her and said, we know you
• 18:17
  Speaker 1: can't pray, but we can. And her son is this fantastic,
• 18:22
  Speaker 1: Jesus-loving man. And she was saying how in her season
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: of life, she could not get to the place of
• 18:31
  Speaker 1: praying anymore. But she had all of these other women
• 18:34
  Speaker 1: alongside her praying. And so I just think of both
• 18:36
  Speaker 1: of those stories, like the power of prayer in a
• 18:39
  Speaker 1: mom and the way God speaks to a mom about
• 18:41
  Speaker 1: her children. If we're listening, I had a scripture. I was,
• 18:46
  Speaker 1: Cam was at a golf tournament and I was in
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: my prayer time. Collins was still sleeping. And he told me,
• 18:53
  Speaker 1: war within his spirit. Those were the words. War within
• 18:57
  Speaker 1: his spirit. You want to talk about feeling like you're
• 19:00
  Speaker 1: going to throw up when God tells you that your
• 19:03
  Speaker 1: eight-year-old has war within his spirit. Like, what is that?
• 19:08
  Speaker 1: But in God's kindness, he took me straight to Psalm 16.
• 19:13
  Speaker 1: gave me the scriptures that I'm going to pray. And
• 19:15
  Speaker 1: I literally texted Corey. I was like, I don't know
• 19:18
  Speaker 1: what's going on, but there's war within his spirit and
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: we need to pray. And I don't know if I'll
• 19:24
  Speaker 1: ever actually fully know what was going on. I have
• 19:27
  Speaker 1: no idea. I have not a clue. But what I
• 19:30
  Speaker 1: do know is God told me something very specific about
• 19:34
  Speaker 1: Cam in that moment that it was so intimate and
• 19:39
  Speaker 1: that I'm like, I will never forget it. I even
• 19:41
  Speaker 1: wrote the date down. Not that I want to remember
• 19:44
  Speaker 1: the Lord saying that, but I think we as moms,
• 19:47
  Speaker 1: we need to have time. where we just listen to
• 19:53
  Speaker 1: what he wants to say to us about our kids.
• 19:56
  Speaker 1: We talk so much to him about our kids, don't we? Rachel,
• 19:59
  Speaker 1: how many prayers have you prayed when you're like, Lord Jesus,
• 20:02
  Speaker 1: will you please help Will? Will you please guide Will?
• 20:04
  Speaker 1: Will you please help Kate? Will you please guide Kate?
• 20:06
  Speaker 1: We're constantly telling him what they need. And I think
• 20:10
  Speaker 1: sometimes he's sitting there going like, there is war within
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: their spirit. Can you let me talk to you? And
• 20:16
  Speaker 1: that is where I was at.
• 20:18
  Speaker 2: Yeah. No, I think especially as my kids are getting
• 20:21
  Speaker 2: older and they're with me less, I'm having to continue
• 20:25
  Speaker 2: to surrender them to the Lord. And so my prayer
• 20:28
  Speaker 2: life continues to grow because I am just having to
• 20:33
  Speaker 2: release it and release them to Him. And that is
• 20:35
  Speaker 2: so hard.
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: It is so hard.
• 20:37
  Speaker 2: All of motherhood is hard, but it's such a gift.
• 20:40
  Speaker 2: So I can't wait to continue today's conversation, but we're
• 20:42
  Speaker 2: going to take another brief break to hear a word
• 20:44
  Speaker 2: from our sponsor. And when we come back, we'll talk
• 20:46
  Speaker 2: about releasing unrealistic expectations, finding Jesus in ordinary routines, and
• 20:51
  Speaker 2: allowing His mercy to transform our hearts and homes.
• 20:56
  Speaker 1: Welcome back.
• 20:57
  Speaker 2: I'm talking with Chelsea DeMattis about her book, Mercy in
• 21:01
  Speaker 2: the Margin. So your tagline is all about mix-ups and
• 21:06
  Speaker 2: mess-ups and marvelous moments. So I just thought it might
• 21:08
  Speaker 2: be fun if you could just give us, let's start
• 21:11
  Speaker 2: with the mix-ups. Give us one of the mix-ups that
• 21:14
  Speaker 2: have happened in your journey of motherhood.
• 21:16
  Speaker 1: Wow. Well, I feel like so many, I would say
• 21:19
  Speaker 1: the mix-up, the funny one, I actually shared a funny
• 21:21
  Speaker 1: story about the mix-up in the book, but I thought
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: I was so prepared. It was spirit week at school
• 21:26
  Speaker 1: and I sent Cam dressed up head to toe, like wacky.
• 21:31
  Speaker 1: And he goes to a private school. So like you
• 21:33
  Speaker 1: have to wear your uniform and he goes to school
• 21:36
  Speaker 1: and he's wacky all day. Okay. So I'm in the
• 21:39
  Speaker 1: pickup line and I'm on the phone with one of
• 21:41
  Speaker 1: my girlfriends. It's also in the pickup line. I was like,
• 21:43
  Speaker 1: I can't find white pants for tomorrow. And she's like,
• 21:46
  Speaker 1: what are you talking about? And I was like, spirit week.
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: She's like, that's in two weeks. I'm like, oh my gosh.
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: So here, Cam, thank God. He is like the kid
• 21:54
  Speaker 1: that's like, whatever, I do not care. Then I'm like,
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: all day long, my kid was dressed like a wackadoo
• 22:02
  Speaker 1: at school, head to toe. His teacher didn't send me
• 22:06
  Speaker 1: a message. The principal, I'm sure, just looked at him
• 22:08
  Speaker 1: and thought, oh, bless Chelsea. He cried so hard. But
• 22:12
  Speaker 1: it's just those are little mix-ups where there are moms, though,
• 22:15
  Speaker 1: that would be like, I am such an idiot. A failure. Yeah.
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: I can't believe I did that. My child was ostracized
• 22:21
  Speaker 1: all day. And I am just here to tell you, like,
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: just laugh at yourself. That will be like a fan
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: favorite story at the dinner table when they're 18. And
• 22:30
  Speaker 1: you're like, do you remember the day I sent you
• 22:32
  Speaker 1: a wackadoo and a sea full of blue, red and
• 22:36
  Speaker 1: white polos? Like, it was funny. The mess ups. I
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: have a couple, obviously, that I wrote about in there,
• 22:43
  Speaker 1: but one in particular that I think the mess ups
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: are they're like the most crucial part of motherhood because
• 22:49
  Speaker 1: mix ups can be funny. You're kind of like, whoopsie.
• 22:52
  Speaker 1: A mess up is when you're like, I have really
• 22:55
  Speaker 1: messed up and I need to make it right with
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: probably my kids. But with if it didn't just hurt
• 23:01
  Speaker 1: them like the other person. And I talk about two
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: stories where the one was another one at the school.
• 23:08
  Speaker 1: My school's probably like, I can't believe she's an author.
• 23:12
  Speaker 1: I even told her, I was like, Angela, I totally
• 23:15
  Speaker 1: wrote about this in my book. I'm going to give
• 23:17
  Speaker 1: her a copy. The school drop-off line, it was the
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: first day of school. My cam, if you are on time,
• 23:24
  Speaker 1: you are late. He wants to be early. His wife
• 23:28
  Speaker 1: will either love him or be really mad at him
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: for that someday. So we get there and the line,
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: they didn't do the staggered start yet. So the line
• 23:36
  Speaker 1: was crazy. We couldn't get through. When I tell you
• 23:39
  Speaker 1: I whipped my car around in that pickup line, like
• 23:42
  Speaker 1: a NASCAR driver, it was a show. And I'm sure
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: everybody was like, who is that woman? And I pulled
• 23:49
  Speaker 1: her from front office and I walked through the doors
• 23:51
  Speaker 1: and you're not allowed to bring your kids in that way.
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: And I was like, I will be bringing my kids
• 23:57
  Speaker 1: in through this office until you people fix this. And
• 24:00
  Speaker 1: they're looking at me like, Who is this woman? I
• 24:04
  Speaker 1: did not know. It was our front desk person's first
• 24:06
  Speaker 1: day on the job. What a rude person she just
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: had to deal with. And I'm like fuming because I'm
• 24:13
  Speaker 1: thinking my first grader, kindergartner, kindergartner is going to be
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: beside himself because we're late. And so praise the Lord.
• 24:25
  Speaker 1: By the time I got to the car, I was
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: so convicted. I was like, I cannot believe I just
• 24:29
  Speaker 1: acted that way. not only in front of my kids,
• 24:32
  Speaker 1: but to two other women that are just trying to
• 24:35
  Speaker 1: have a day that's already stressful at the school. And
• 24:38
  Speaker 1: so I called the school and I was like, hello,
• 24:40
  Speaker 1: Miss Angela, Chelsea DeMattis, the mom that just was yelling
• 24:45
  Speaker 1: at you all in the office. And I'm really sorry.
• 24:48
  Speaker 1: Will you please forgive me? And I will be talking
• 24:51
  Speaker 1: with my kids about how we do not treat people
• 24:53
  Speaker 1: like that. And I did. I had to apologize to
• 24:56
  Speaker 1: the school people. I had to apologize to my kids
• 24:59
  Speaker 1: and not only apologize, but tell them like, you just
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: got to see how we don't treat people. Like we
• 25:05
  Speaker 1: don't do that. And as moms, we are going to
• 25:08
  Speaker 1: do that. We are going to treat our kids in
• 25:10
  Speaker 1: ways we shouldn't. And also they're going to see us
• 25:12
  Speaker 1: treat other people in ways that we should not. And
• 25:15
  Speaker 1: God gives us an opportunity to rewrite that, show what
• 25:20
  Speaker 1: forgiveness looks like on both sides, asking it and giving it,
• 25:24
  Speaker 1: receiving it, all of that. So the mess ups, I think,
• 25:27
  Speaker 1: is really where they get to see that we are
• 25:29
  Speaker 1: not perfect and we need Jesus. And so you're in
• 25:33
  Speaker 1: good company if you've had mess ups. And then the marvelous, honestly,
• 25:37
  Speaker 1: I love that word so much. My grandpa used to
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: say all the time, my mom says it a lot.
• 25:42
  Speaker 1: I think a lot of moms get to the end
• 25:43
  Speaker 1: of the day and they think nothing marvelous happened. I'm
• 25:46
  Speaker 1: sure some people read that and go, I'm sorry, marvelous? Yeah, right.
• 25:51
  Speaker 1: And what my hope is, is like by the end
• 25:54
  Speaker 1: of the book, they'll realize that the marvelous is literally
• 25:57
  Speaker 1: just marveling at what God has done every day. And
• 26:01
  Speaker 1: the ordinary, the fact that your kids woke up today
• 26:04
  Speaker 1: and you got to do life with them again, that's
• 26:08
  Speaker 1: a marvelous thing. Like that is a gift and it's
• 26:10
  Speaker 1: something to sit and look at with awe and wonder.
• 26:13
  Speaker 1: And I think when we do that and we realize
• 26:15
  Speaker 1: like the gift that just that is, it changes. It
• 26:19
  Speaker 1: just gives us some joy back, like joy that we've missed.
• 26:23
  Speaker 1: So yeah, just marveling at what God's done and trusting,
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: which that's preaching to my own heart, but trusting what
• 26:30
  Speaker 1: He will do that I will again get to marvel
• 26:33
  Speaker 1: at down the road.
• 26:34
  Speaker 2: I love that you're just so honest and real and relatable.
• 26:38
  Speaker 2: Every single person listening right now is like, okay, I've
• 26:41
  Speaker 2: had a moment like that. And then too, I just saw,
• 26:43
  Speaker 2: I just listened to a quote that they were talking
• 26:46
  Speaker 2: about when babies are born, it is evidence that God
• 26:50
  Speaker 2: is not done yet. Oh, isn't that powerful to think
• 26:54
  Speaker 2: about that he still wants a relationship with humanity? And
• 26:58
  Speaker 2: I think that's just so encouraging. So, okay, you've talked
• 27:01
  Speaker 2: a lot about the Lord already, but is there a
• 27:03
  Speaker 2: biblical concept of love that you think applies to this
• 27:06
  Speaker 2: topic today?
• 27:08
  Speaker 1: I am thinking of Psalm 23 and specifically in the
• 27:12
  Speaker 1: rod and staff and how they comfort me. How the
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: rod is the discipline and the staff is that gentle pullback.
• 27:21
  Speaker 1: And we need both. And we definitely need to do
• 27:23
  Speaker 1: both in mothering. We see how the Lord does that
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: in our own life. And so that would be that's
• 27:28
  Speaker 1: like the thing that I go to is the discipline,
• 27:31
  Speaker 1: but also that watch and that care. It goes hand
• 27:35
  Speaker 1: in hand. You only discipline someone because you're trying to
• 27:39
  Speaker 1: care for them. And so that's really what I would
• 27:43
  Speaker 1: go to and think of.
• 27:45
  Speaker 2: Yeah, the Lord disciplines those that He loves.
• 27:47
  Speaker 1: He loves, yeah.
• 27:48
  Speaker 2: And so we're being disciplined as He's our Heavenly Father
• 27:51
  Speaker 2: as we then go and do the same for our
• 27:53
  Speaker 2: children as their mother. So that's good. I don't think
• 27:56
  Speaker 2: anybody's ever said that. So that was something new. So
• 27:58
  Speaker 2: I enjoyed that. Okay, so tell us something you are
• 28:01
  Speaker 2: loving right now.
• 28:02
  Speaker 1: Well, we got a puppy. I love my little lab.
• 28:06
  Speaker 1: She's a yellow lab. Her name is Summer. She's adorable.
• 28:09
  Speaker 1: And then I would say the other thing that I'm
• 28:10
  Speaker 1: loving is we are getting into fall and the mornings
• 28:13
  Speaker 1: have been cool. And I am so ready for a
• 28:18
  Speaker 1: chill in the air. Ready for it.
• 28:20
  Speaker 2: Yeah, your new puppy has been our guest today as well.
• 28:23
  Speaker 2: Just sitting with you. It's been so good. Do you
• 28:27
  Speaker 2: want to come say hi?
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: Come say hi? My goodness. So, so sweet. So sweet.
• 28:37
  Speaker 2: Okay. Well, I know I want to stay connected with you.
• 28:39
  Speaker 2: I'm sure listeners want to. So tell us how we
• 28:42
  Speaker 2: can best do that and grab a copy of your
• 28:43
  Speaker 2: new book.
• 28:44
  Speaker 1: Oh my gosh. Yes. You can follow me on Instagram.
• 28:47
  Speaker 1: I actually don't like to say follow me. Just come join.
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: Come listen. Come be a friend over there. It's just
• 28:52
  Speaker 1: at Chelsea DeMattis. And then my website is ChelseaDeMattis.com. And
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: you can get my books anywhere books are sold.
• 29:00
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we all need a friend that is in this
• 29:02
  Speaker 2: motherhood journey with us. You've talked about that quite a bit,
• 29:04
  Speaker 2: how mentor moms and people have been praying and like
• 29:08
  Speaker 2: just hearing other people's stories. It is just so helpful
• 29:10
  Speaker 2: to help us to continue on and not give up
• 29:13
  Speaker 2: in our motherhood journey. So important to have community. Well, OK,
• 29:17
  Speaker 2: as we come to a close, would you just pray
• 29:20
  Speaker 2: for us and over us?
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: Yes, I will. Lord Jesus, we thank you so much
• 29:24
  Speaker 1: for today. God, we just thank you for the gift
• 29:27
  Speaker 1: of being mothers. Lord, I pray for every mom listening
• 29:32
  Speaker 1: that she would just know that you delight in spending
• 29:35
  Speaker 1: time with her, that she can come to you no
• 29:36
  Speaker 1: matter what the circumstances and situations are in her home.
• 29:40
  Speaker 1: and her spirit. Like she is welcome to come and
• 29:43
  Speaker 1: sit at your feet. And so I pray that she
• 29:45
  Speaker 1: would do that today. Lord, I just thank you for
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: Rachel and the vessel that she is and the way
• 29:51
  Speaker 1: that she just stewards your love, Lord, and just encourages
• 29:55
  Speaker 1: people to offer it up. in a world that desperately,
• 29:58
  Speaker 1: desperately needs to know you. And so we thank you
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: for today. And I just pray that your word continues
• 30:05
  Speaker 1: to go far and wide and reach depths of people's
• 30:07
  Speaker 1: hearts that are just unfathomable to us. In Jesus' name
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: we pray, amen.
• 30:12
  Speaker 2: Amen. Well, thank you, friend, for joining us. You're always
• 30:15
  Speaker 2: a joy to get to talk to. I'd appreciate you
• 30:18
  Speaker 2: encouraging us in our motherhood journey and helping us to
• 30:21
  Speaker 2: realize there is mercy in the margin. And we can
• 30:24
  Speaker 2: encounter Jesus in the mix-ups, mess-ups, and marvelous moments.
• 30:28
  Speaker 1: Yes, we can. Thanks, Rachel.
• 30:31
  Speaker 2: Thank you so much for listening to the Love Offering Podcast.
• 30:33
  Speaker 2: I hope today's conversation reminded you that you don't have
• 30:36
  Speaker 2: to wait for a quiet house, a perfect routine, or
• 30:38
  Speaker 2: a less demanding season to encounter Jesus. He is already
• 30:41
  Speaker 2: present in the mix-ups, mess-ups, and marvelous moments of your motherhood.
• 30:44
  Speaker 2: The interruptions you didn't plan, the mistakes you wish you
• 30:47
  Speaker 2: could undo, and the ordinary tasks no one else notices
• 30:50
  Speaker 2: can become sacred spaces where God meets you with exactly
• 30:53
  Speaker 2: the grace you need. His mercy is available in every margin,
• 30:57
  Speaker 2: and no act of love offered to Him is ever insignificant.
• 31:01
  Speaker 2: If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a
• 31:02
  Speaker 2: friend and leave a review. It helps others find the
• 31:04
  Speaker 2: show and spreads the message of love even further. To
• 31:07
  Speaker 2: connect with me, visit me on my website at rachelkadams.com
• 31:10
  Speaker 2: where you can download the Love Always devotional, a free
• 31:13
  Speaker 2: resource to help you realize how beloved you already are.
• 31:16
  Speaker 2: Be sure to check out Mercy in the Margin, 52
• 31:18
  Speaker 2: Devotions to Encounter Jesus in the Mix-Ups, Mess-Ups, and Marvelous
• 31:22
  Speaker 2: Moments of Motherhood by Chelsea DeMattis. A special thank you
• 31:25
  Speaker 2: to Life Audio for supporting this podcast and making it possible.
• 31:29
  Speaker 2: To find more great podcasts, visit lifeaudio.com. Until next time,
• 31:33
  Speaker 2: let's make our lives an offering of love.