I can quickly loose sight of what is important.  I’m not sure any of us truly like to admit shortcomings.  However, the more I lean into Jesus the more I am ok with relinquishing my faults and embracing his grace.  Reading through Psalm in just the last short two weeks, I feel as though I find the sacred places of my heart laid bare.  It is as if the writer knows me.  With every word, sentence, and lyric penned out I find myself there alone, yet not forsaken. 

There are quiet moments when I see His faithfulness swirling all around me then like the flip of a switch there are deafening moments where all I can hear is the roar of lies and doubt.  This is where I frequently find myself between faithfulness and doubt.  I feel like the boy’s father in Mark 9:24, “I believe, but help my unbelief.”

Maybe you are in the same place as the writer here in Psalm, yet again feeling trapped by unbelief, left devastated by an unexpected outcome, or just plain tired of even trying to hold onto faith.  Perhaps, like me, you seem to fumble around grasping at even the slightest bit of faith. 

I often feel like a delirious woman, in the night, trying to find her way.  As fog fills her mind she desperately reaches out trying to steady herself, before she falls.  In my walk I even as a “pastor’s wife” struggle not to loose sight, and to hold tight to the promises of God. 

BUT……

Psalm 13:5

I trust in your unfailing love. 

I will rejoice because you have rescued me.

I will sing to the Lord because he is good to me.

Do you often loose sight of what is important?

List three things you can look back on and see how God was faithful.

Share a favorite song you listen to when you feel discouraged.

   

I have had the privilege of getting to know Wendy Speake over the last year and a half via her Facebook Group (click here).  She is filled with wisdom, gracious, and kind.  I recently had the honor of meeting Amber Lia, who is also knowledgeable, fears the Lord, and who is generous with her insight into raising children.  These two ladies are the forerunners of a movement, leading women out of frustration and anger, into love and kindness enabling us as mothers to lead our children to Christ and repentance.  

I have been able to work behind the scenes with many others as they prepare to release their book TRIGGERS.  Humbled is an understatement when I was invited to participate in a pre release study with them.   As they dissected chapter after chapter and led hundreds of women through TRIGGERS, (we all have or will face at some point in our parenting journey) I slowly found the atmosphere of my heart transforming along with countless other mothers.  It is with great joy that I join in celebrating their labor of love.  Prayers have been whispered tears have been shed and our greatest desire is that TRIGGERS will empower you as a mother, restore the joy and honor of parenting, and transform your heart and home.

Would you welcome Amber and Wendy today as we get an inside look into their hearts and lives.

WHICH OF THE TRIGGERS IN THIS BOOK CHALLENGES YOU THE MOST?

Wendy: Without a doubt, it’s chapter 15, sometimes daily. It’s easy for me to get into a negative pattern, wondering, “When will my children ever change?!” Writing this chapter was absolutely me preaching to my own heart. What I’ve learned is that I’m the one in need of change, over and over again. Does anyone remember the song, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me”? Yes, that!

Amber: Sibling Rivalry in chapter 7! I feel myself immediately tense and prone to react when they fight amongst themselves, especially if they get physical with one another. It sets me off like nothing else can. I think that the hardest part is taking the time to calmly investigate, and to release the old pattern of thinking that I have to fix everything. Instead of rushing in with a quick punishment, I want to take the time to ask them probing questions that get them thinking about their behavior and reach their hearts. I don’t want them to get along to avoid my angry reactions. I want them to have harmony in their relationships as siblings because they love and respect one another. That can often take an entire childhood.

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU MESS UP?

Wendy: Goodness, couldn’t this be a whole chapter in a whole other book? Of course, the right answer is that I confess my sin to the Lord, and remember that this is why He came — to die for my sin-stained tendencies. Then I humbly go to my kiddos and ask them for their forgiveness, too. We talk about how to treat one another better and then we work to shift our gaze away from those problematic trigger areas and turn purposefully back to the light of our very blessed days! That’s the Sunday School answer, the parenting book answer. However, in real life, sometimes I forget, and I have to put myself in time-out for a bit so that I can calm down first. This is huge for me. When I sit in my “time-out chair,” I can meditate on what is true and lovely and right and pure in our sweet family.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO WRITE THIS BOOK?

Amber: Wendy and I were leading a series about the most common triggers toward anger in our private Facebook group for moms who struggle with anger and yelling. It was clear from the get-go that this was a huge need! Moms needed a good balance of biblical insights and practical helps to combat their most common triggers—like back talking, messy houses, and exhaustion. We all needed to rewire our thinking to consider that triggers could equal opportunities instead of temptations that set us off and harm our kids.  Every day, we felt the Holy Spirit moving in the group, and the women responded so transparently and honestly to our encouragement that we knew early on that we wanted women outside this group to be blessed by Triggers, too. As soon as I mentioned the idea to Wendy, she immediately agreed, and Triggers was born!

AMBER LIA

A former high school English teacher, Amber is a work-at-home mom of 3 little boys under the age of 8. She and her husband Guy own Storehouse Media Group, a faith-friendly and family-friendly TV and Film production company in Los Angeles, CA. When she’s not building sand castles with her boys on the beach, or searching for Nerf darts all over her house, you can find Amber writing to encourage families on her blog at Mother of Knights.

WENDY SPEAKE

Wendy Speake is a trained actress and heartfelt Bible teacher. She tells stories both on page and stage that allow her to point women toward Jesus on their hardest mothering days. You can follow along at WendySpeake.com or find her regularly as a guest at The MOB Society. Wendy resides in sunny San Diego with her handsome husband and their three ruddy boys. 

I hope you have enjoyed getting to know the authors a little bit better.  Don't forget to purchase your copy at any of the links below, and share with another mom.  

To purchase your copy you can go to: 

The Mob Society
Amazon
(all links to purchase book are affiliate links)

Join me tomorrow as I share another inside look, Chapter 16: Lack of Faith, and how lack of faith can diminish our influence over our children and how we lead our homes.  Did you know your lack of faith could be one of the main TRIGGERS in your heart and home?

It’s LAUNCH DAY for my friends Wendy and Amber.  I have been praying, planning, and preparing for this day alongside my friends for a few months now.  I wanted to give all my readers an inside peak into some of my favorite quotes from their book and provide all the links you need to get your copy today!

“As mothers, we forget that our kids are immature.  Yes, they will also be out rightly defiant at times; but I find that often we are dealing with our own unreasonable expectations for obedience.  These expectations lead to biting and cutting punishment, instead of training our children in the way they should go by pointing them to Christ.”

“Whining is not a sin, it’s merely a sign: 

A sign that they still have a few things to learn.”

“Peacemaking moms produce peacemaking kids."

Each chapter is jammed packed full of scriptures and sound wisdom on how to direct our hearts and our children’s hearts to the Lord.  I also love that every chapter ends with a prayer to help navigate our overwhelmed hearts into His presence.

Here is one of the prayers from the book,

 “Dear God, You want all of Your children to be obedient.  I know that when we obey You, we receive blessing and You are glorified.  Father, I want to raise obedient children, but I also want to model obedience to You in my own life.  Help me to see my kids through Your eyes and to be their enthusiastic coach, lovingly pointing them to Your standards with grace and truth, instead of anger.  Replace my frustrations with mercy.  Make me slow to anger!  Help me to run alongside my children, championing them and loving them well, even when they disobey.  May we all be more like You, Lord Jesus!  Thank You for Your promises to help me 

become a godly mom!

In Jesus’ name,

Amen!”

Join me back here tomorrow for an exclusive interview with the authors of TRIGGERS.  And don’t forget to get your copy today.  Join us as we start a movement of transforming the way we mother our children as we learn how to exchange our anger for gentle Biblical responses.

Purchase your copy

Here at The Mob Society

Here at Amazon

(All links to purchase books are affiliate links.  I did not receive any pay from the authors to write this post.)

“In the silence you are speaking in the quiet I can feel the fire and its burning, burning deeply.”  This is one of my favorite lines from a Jason Upton song "In the silence" Click HERE. 

With all the noise and business it is so hard to really listen.  Someone once told me there is a difference between hearing and listening.  “You hear me, but you are not listening.”  It is easy to hear a lot of different sounds and voices these days.  Seems like there is always noise.  Kids, TV, Phones, Music, people talking, thoughts whirling. 

I want to encourage you to really try to make five or ten minutes of quiet.  Quiet.  Just peace.  Quiet is the sound of nothing, but it is also the sound of something refreshing. 

In the silence He is speaking.  Listen.  Quiet your mind, heart, and soul and listen.  He is there in the stillness in the quiet burning.  

STOP

Every Friday Kate Montaung host a beautiful twitter party. #fmfparty You should really stop over and check out all the other incredible ladies post who going us. AH -mazing writers over at her place.  She gives a prompt word and we get to write for five minutes.  Free of any restrictions, just write.