THE AWKWARD MOM

because uncomfortable conversations are the ones worth having

Tag: devotions (page 1 of 2)

Ideas for When Quiet Time With God is Hard

Reading Time: 5 minutes

quiet time

So it’s summer, which means family rhythms tend to find their way down the Slip ‘n’ Slide,* right? Between hauling my kids to VBS and a new puppy who’s, like, 72% adorable and 28% pain in the neck (as so many puppies and toddlers are, by God’s design), some of my morning quiet times have done what frozen things do in summer.

But the thing is, when it doesn’t happen I really miss it. And I feel my need for it as I haul my day up by the bootstraps. read more

Spiritual Health When You’re Busy: 7 Easy Ways

Reading Time: 4 minutes

spiritual health

Let’s get real. You may be even a little too busy to read this post.

Or maybe you’re tired of picking up things with a lot of pieces. Or trying to find the owner of the toenail clipping on the table. (These have all been me.) read more

Questions to Take Your Relationship With God Deeper

Reading Time: 2 minutes

relationship with God

This week on a phone conversation with a friend, she asked what’s become our custom at the end of our calls: What’s one intimate prayer request I can pray for?

It was probably telling that I didn’t really know. read more

Christian Mindfulness: How It’s Changing Me

Reading Time: 7 minutes

Christian mindfulness

My father is the broad-shouldered, strong, internal teddy bear type, with fingers like sausages. In my childhood, he was a Midwestern farmer.  In his spare time, he donates his mad skills to car repairs of missionaries, single moms, people like that. He’s that kind of guy.

And it’s common for him to come back into the house with blood zigzagging down his leg or seeping through his shirt. read more

Reflection Prompts for Your Soul’s Christmas

Reading Time: 4 minutes

reflection time alone with God

I’ve shored myself in tonight for something I’ve looked forward to for a month and a half.

For my birthday, my husband got me a personal retreat. And the timing is pitch-perfect. (Well, save the fact that my body seems to have been anticipating the drop of adrenaline, welcoming in a cold.) read more

All There: Tips on Being Fully, Powerfully Present…with God (FREE PRINTABLE)

Reading Time: 5 minutes

all there present presenceYou’ve been there: Whirling into a coffee shop or dinner with friends. Or talking on the phone while your kids fight in the other room (#methisweek) and you try to remember whether you’ve added salt to the recipe you’re cooking, dang it.

But somehow, the person looking you in the eyes, or on the other end of that phone call has the ability to just…

Be there. read more

How Far You’ve Come: 20+ End-of-Year Prompts to Journal & Reflect

Reading Time: 4 minutes

As we waltz into December, it’s meaningful to me to look back on this year and ask my soul a few questions. How you doing in there?

David Benner, in The Gift of Being Yourself: The Sacred Call to Self-Discovery, writes,

Christian spirituality involves a transformation of the self that occurs only when God and self are both deeply known. Both, therefore, have an important place in Christian spirituality. There is no deep knowing of God without a deep knowing of self, and no deep knowing of self without a deep knowing of God. John Calvin wrote, “Nearly the whole of sacred doctrine consists in these two parts: knowledge of God and of ourselves.” read more

Ideas for When You’re Spiritually Distracted

Reading Time: 3 minutes
1. Acknowledge and explore it.

Why am I distracted? Am I having basic needs met, like sleep, food, exercise, and white space in my day to think? (Consider grabbing a snack or some yummy lotion to spread on your feet to make this time feel more like “you time” rather than checking a “should-do” box. Moms with young kids welded to thy knees–more ideas on that here. If you’re in need of a few minutes to settle your mind, set a timer on your phone and let your thoughts wander aimlessly. It’s…actually healthy.) What’s appealing about the rabbit of my brain’s bunny trails? Is it a fantasy? Is it feeding a need that I wish I had met right now-like comfort, security, approval, or power? Is there anything in my circumstances making me hunger for this…or is it just my natural security blanket? Commit the “holes” you’re feeling to God, and meditate on verses that direct you toward His complete comfort, security, acceptance, and power.

Spiritual Disciplines for Real Families: Fun Ways to Study God’s Word (with FREE printables)

Reading Time: 6 minutes

Missed the other posts in this series? Check out these on Prayer, Meditation and Contemplation, Simplicity, Solitude, Service, and Fasting.

Okay, so if it’s not obvious—problem numero uno may be getting our kids to study anything, right?

Maybe. read more

Guest post: Breathing Lessons

Reading Time: 2 minutes

For those of you who’ve been married: Do you remember what “just married” felt like? After the sound of the tin cans clanking behind the car faded, after you set your bags down in your together home after the honeymoon—what was it like?

Reality: No matter how much training you’ve had, one flesh takes a lotta work. My sin settled in our little 500-square-foot apartment right alongside our stacks of wedding gifts. And when my sin collided head-on with his? Well, let’s just say sometimes I wished our duplex walls were a little thicker.

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