October 23, 2025 • 25 mins
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Audrey (00:00):
Hello and welcome back to Grace for My Home.
I'm Audrey McCracken, and whata pleasure it is to be back with
you again this week.
I hope that you're doing well.
We've been busy and travelingevery weekend, it feels like.
About two weeks ago, my husbandand I had an opportunity to go
to Asheville, North Carolina,and we visited friends near
(00:21):
Waynesville and just had a greattime, just the two of us.
And then this past weekend, wetook our middle son, Luke, to
Newberry College to tour theirfootball facility, and that was
great.
We were able to stay for a gameand just really enjoyed that.
And if nothing else, we justreally enjoyed spending time
with him.
Because, you know, sometimeswhen you're so busy and you have
(00:45):
multiple kids, it's hard togive them one-on-one time,
especially when they're just asbusy as you are.
And he is.
He's got a lot going on.
This is his senior year of highschool.
So it gave us an excuse to getaway and spend some time
together.
The weather here is turningcooler, which is really nice.
We live in South Carolina nearthe near the coast.
So we we get seasons, we getall the seasons, but sometimes,
(01:10):
you know, when we want it to becool because it's fall, um, it's
not cool.
Sometimes it's like stillhumid, still hot, but this week
it seemed to turn the corner.
We'll see.
Some people call that falsefall, but we'll see.
Um, but overall, we're doinggreat, and I hope that you are
too.
I wanted to talk with you thisweek.
(01:32):
I'm I'm gonna ramble a littlebit, and so just bear with me.
I have a few things on my mind,and I want to share those
things with you because thethings that have popped up this
week, we are always, and I don'tjust mean me, I mean you too.
We're constantly in transition.
You know, as we when we finallythink we have things figured
out, things change, and youknow, our kids grow, and and
(01:54):
hopefully we're growing too, andwe're becoming different
people.
And so, you know, I have thesethoughts sometimes, and and I
think, man, I really want towrite that down because I want
to share that because maybe itwill help somebody else.
But I'm in this season where,you know, we've transitioned out
of homeschool.
This is the first year, thefirst school year.
(02:14):
Nope, I'm wrong.
It was this, it's the secondschool year that I have not
homeschooled.
And see, I can't even remember.
And so I'm in a transitionthere, and I'm learning who I am
without being a homeschool mom.
Um, I'm a former homeschoolmom, and that that has been a
huge transition for me becausewhen you do something for so
(02:35):
long, and we homeschooled for 12years, when you do something
for so long, it really doesbecome a part of your identity.
When people ask what you do,well, I'm a homeschool mom.
Well, I can't say that anymore.
Uh so you know, that's been atransition, and now my children,
not only am I not a homeschoolmom, but I am a mom of
(02:56):
teenagers, of all teenagers, andone that will be 20 next year.
And so it's it's a transitionagain, you know, trying to to
find my place in this family andhelp, and my and my boys are
trying to find their place inthe world.
All three of my children aretrying to figure out what what
God has for them, you know,what's the plan?
(03:17):
Where should I go to college?
What should I study?
Um, and those those are bigquestions.
I remember the transition fromhigh school to college and the
transition from college to theworkforce, the real world.
Those were two huge transitionsfor me and and for many people.
And they're right in the thickof that.
(03:39):
And so, you know, trying tohelp and guide them, it just
brings up a lot of things.
You know, it helps you to it,it helps sometimes to remember
um the choices you made and youknow, think, did I make the
right choice?
You know, I didn't always makethe right choice, but hopefully
I made enough of the rightchoices that in the end it all
washes out.
(04:00):
You know, we as moms, I thinkwe, you know, you hear a lot of
people talk about mom guilt, andthat is such a real thing.
And I think it's because in ourhearts we want the best for our
children, but there's no bookthat tells us what the best is.
Yes, we have the Bible, andpeople will say, Well, you've
(04:21):
got the Bible, you've got theword of God, but the the Bible
isn't just a is not a, itdoesn't tell me specifically
what to do in every situation.
The Bible is a book of wisdom,it's God's word, he can speak to
me through the Bible, but Istill have to pray and discern
his will for my life, and mychildren have to do the same.
(04:43):
And that's that's how we walkwith God.
You know, if he just gave usall the answers up front, then
we really wouldn't need him.
We would have all the answers.
And part of walking with theLord is that we don't have the
answers, that we have toconstantly rely on him and and
listen and be sensitive to theleading of the Holy Spirit.
(05:05):
But I've I've been aware latelythat there is a a short window
of time when God has given momsand dads, but I speak mostly to
moms, but where God has given usan open window to our
children's soul, where we arewhere we have the most influence
(05:28):
in their life.
And that is such a precioustime.
You know, maybe if you haveyoung kids, maybe it annoys you
when older moms, you know, seeyou in the grocery store and
says something, and they say saysomething like, Oh, enjoy every
day.
It goes so fast.
And I just want to ask you toplease be patient with us.
(05:49):
Please give us grace if we saythings like that.
And I've heard that sometimesthat can be annoying, so I try
not to do it, but I'm thinkingit.
Because I think on our on theother side, like when kids start
growing up and that windowstarts closing, we realize how
precious that time was.
And unfortunately, and I'm surethat God designed this on
(06:13):
purpose, unfortunately, that'salso a time when there's a lot
of work to do.
There's a lot of work to do forkids.
And it seems like that windowfalls right at that time.
And so it can be, it can we caneasily get so caught up in the
things that we forget theinfluence that God has given us
(06:34):
into the lives of our children.
And, you know, it's not that Idon't have influence now, it's
not that I can't speak into mychildren's lives, but as they
mature, they naturally startmaking more of their own
decisions and they don't come tome or think about, you know,
what would mom or dad do in thissituation?
They come to us for the bigthings, hopefully they have
(06:57):
been, but there's somethingabout those young formative
years when they look to you andthink that you have all the
answers, whether you do or not.
And that's one of the reasonsthat on this podcast I talk
about relationship, because thestronger our relationship is
with our children, the more theytrust us with their heart, the
(07:17):
more they trust us with theirquestions, and the more they
draw from us what we what wegive to them.
And so that that window ofopportunity is such an important
time in the lives of ourchildren.
And I I must say all of us, andI think that's part of where
mom guilt comes from is wewonder, did we do enough?
(07:39):
I don't know a mom who doesn'twonder, did I do enough?
Did I do the right things?
And do did I do enough of theright things?
And I just want to tell youthat it's all by grace.
It's all by grace.
You know, if we didn't need Godin the raising of our children,
then um, you know, if we if wedidn't need God, if we had all
(08:00):
the answers, then it would befor our glory.
And it's not for our glory,it's for his glory.
But our goal, one of ourassignments as moms is to point
our children to God, is to pointthem to the highest good and to
give them hope that that ispossible in this world.
(08:23):
You know, we know the worldthat they're going into.
Yes, their hearts are gonna bebroken.
So do we teach them not to lovebecause people are gonna break
their hearts?
No, we teach them what reallove is, we show them what real
love is so that hopefully oneday they'll recognize that.
Um, and we teach them toforgive because their heart is
(08:45):
gonna be broken.
And we can't stop that.
We can't prevent that.
And we don't need to preventthat because if we don't let
them feel those things and letthem experience those things,
then they'll be crippled.
They have to learn those thingson their own and how to
navigate those emotions and andthose hard times so that they
(09:06):
can become mature people.
And so we teach them, but weallow them to go.
We allow them to go.
You know, they're gonna runinto people who are gonna try
and take advantage of them.
You know they are, and so do weteach them to hide?
No, we teach them wisdom and weteach them discernment, and you
(09:28):
know, we teach them to becareful, and you know, they're
gonna go into the world um intoa place where there's no moral
compass.
You know, there is no moralcompass in this world, and
they're going into that world.
And so do we keep them at homeso we can keep them safe?
No, we give them a moralcompass, we teach them right
(09:51):
from wrong, we show them the wayso that when we're no longer
with them, they still know theway.
And how do we do that?
How do we do that, Audrey?
How do we point them to thehighest good?
How do we point them to God?
You know, how do we teach themthese things?
Well, one of the biggestfactors is T-I-M-E, time.
(10:14):
You know, we impart what Godhas given to us into our
children during the time that wespend with them.
And that's why time is soimportant.
You know, I've heard peoplesay, and I must agree, that
children spell love T-I-M-E.
And when we're with them, whenwe're um when we're living with
(10:37):
them, when we're spending timewith them, then we are able in a
natural way to share with themthe truth.
We're able in a very naturalway to help them through
problems and to teach themthings.
And and that's that's our job.
You know, that's why we'rehere.
And they look to us for that.
(10:57):
And that's not something thatwe can put off on somebody else
or get someone else to do forus.
God has put us in their livesto be the biggest influence in
their lives.
And how do we do that?
Well, I just said by time withtime, by spending time with
them, but it's it's a process,it's little by little.
We talk with them, we spendtime with them, we build
(11:20):
relationships with them, youknow, so that our opinions
matter to them.
I'm sure you've heard thesaying, nobody cares how much
you know till they know how muchyou care.
And that's so true withchildren.
When they know that you havetheir back, that you love them,
that you're gonna be there forthem no matter what, then their
(11:43):
ears are open to you.
Their heart is open to you, andthey they they trust you and
they want to hear what you haveto say.
As we walk with God, as weallow God to deal with our
hearts, that's so important,guys.
It has to be real in our heart,or it's not gonna be real in
their lives.
As we allow God to do a work inus, I think of it as He's
(12:04):
pouring oil into us, right?
We spend time with Jesus andHe's pouring in the oil.
As we take in Jesus, as welearn and we grow and we have a
living and a real relationshipwith Christ, then we have
something to pour into ourchildren.
And as we do that, the lifethat God gives to us, it flows
(12:25):
down to them as we share thosethings with them, as we share a
lot with them.
You know, as we tell themstories, as we read them
stories, stories are verypowerful.
The stories that we share withour children, the examples that
we we show to our children instories and in real life, those
things form their imagination.
(12:47):
It forms the way they see theworld, it forms the things that
they see as important.
You know, we we talk with themabout things that people don't
talk to too much about anymore.
You know, we use words thatpeople don't use too much
anymore.
Words like honor.
You know, we teach them what itmeans to be a man or a woman of
(13:08):
honor.
We teach them about characterand what it means to be a woman
or a man of character, and thatthat means that we are men and
women of integrity.
Those are words you you don'thear much anymore, but they
they're so important because itmatters, it may not matter to
(13:29):
their neighbor, may not matterto their friends, it matters to
God.
So we set the bar high, not sohigh that it, you know,
sometimes we can set the bar sohigh that that they just give up
because there's just no way I'mever going to reach that.
We don't set it that high.
We set it high enough to be achallenge, but not to frustrate.
(13:53):
You know, we just we encouragethem in their walk with the
Lord, we encourage them tobecome men and women of honor.
We we try to be examples ofthat.
And we teach them what Godsays, what he likes, what he is
(14:15):
like, what he wants from us,what he expects from us.
We teach him, we teach themGod's word.
And that's why that's wherestories are so helpful.
You know, the thing I loveabout stories, most stories do
not have uh, they don't come outwith a black and white moral,
right?
Um, a good story has a moral,but it doesn't come out and say,
(14:38):
now the moral of this story,you know, it it lets you figure
the moral out by what happens inthe story, by the what happens
to the characters.
The ultimate, the ultimate goalisn't to know right and wrong.
Okay, now that's a goal.
That's an important goal is foryour children, my children, our
(14:59):
children, to know right andwrong.
The ultimate goal is for themto love what is right.
And that's one of the wonderfulthings I love about stories is,
and I say stories, I mean booksand movies and you know, fairy
tales and things that we canshare with our children when
they're little, when that windowis open, and those stories go
(15:21):
in and they teach things farmore powerfully than a list of
rules.
And stories, good stories, theyfeed the soul.
They feed the soul.
You know, your child is notjust a physical creature.
We are made in the image ofGod, and we have a body, we have
a physical body, but we are somuch more than a physical body.
(15:44):
We have a mind, we have a will,we have emotions, and that part
of us, that soul nature, itneeds to be fed.
It needs to be fed spiritualfood.
It needs to be fed on thingsthat are good and true and
beautiful, so that we can desirethose things.
And, you know, I I often thinkback and and I think about the
(16:09):
stories that we read, and youknow, and and I we did a we
homeschooled for 12 years, andand I remember all of my
children when they were youngand they were learning to read,
we read Aesop's Fables.
And instead of telling them atthe end, you know, if you've
ever read Aesop's Fables, ittells you the it the fable, and
then at the end it says themoral of this story is.
(16:31):
And it was, I always, insteadof telling them what the moral
was, I would ask them, what isthe moral of the story?
You know, we'd read the storyand what is the moral of this
story?
And they would come up withsomething.
Sometimes it was close to whatthe book said or what I thought,
and sometimes it wasn't.
But that helps them to developwisdom.
(16:52):
It's not what mama says, youknow, it helps them to learn for
themselves what is right andwhat is wrong.
And I'll tell you a funny storyabout that.
And I don't know if I've sharedthis on the podcast before.
I've done like 150 episodes,over 150 episodes.
So sometimes I forget what I'veshared.
But I remember Caleb, myyoungest, when he was young, and
(17:14):
we were reading through Aesop'sFables, and we read the fable
of the little boy who criedwolf, and how you know, twice he
went out into the village andcried wolf, and everybody ran
and they were scared.
And and um, and then the thirdtime when he ran and cried wolf,
(17:34):
nobody paid attention, butthere really was a wolf.
And I remember at the end ofthat reading that parable to
him, at the end of reading thatfable to him, I said, Okay, now
what is the moral of this story?
And Caleb is so sweet.
He looked up and he said, Comewhen you're called, no matter
(17:55):
how many times.
And I just I I tried not tolaugh, but I just thought that
was the sweetest thing.
I thought, yes, honey, that isif that's what you think the
moral is, then that's what it istoday.
And you know, and I didn'tcorrect him because that's what
he got from that parable.
But that's how that's how welearn, you know, that's how we
(18:16):
learn is we see the thingsaround us, we observe the things
around us, and we learn by whatwe see, and we learn by the
experiences we have and thestories we hear.
And it determines who you knowwho we are.
And we as parents have thatwonderful opportunity to put
before our children the best,the good things, those things
(18:37):
that are that are good, thosethings that will help them to
desire to be the person Godcalled them to be.
And so you may hear all thisand you may think, oh, dude,
this is just way too much.
This is just way too much.
Well, I want to tell you,nobody does this perfectly, but
there's something about having agoal that is good, that is
(18:58):
above average, that is that isis aiming high, that even if you
don't hit the goal, you've donebetter than you would be if you
were just hit if you were justaiming for average.
And so my my philosophy hasalways been let's aim for Jesus,
right?
Let's just believe God formiracles.
(19:21):
And if I don't get miracles, atleast I'll get something good.
And so that was my goal andstill is my goal.
Lord, you know my heart.
Um, I want to put before mychildren good things.
Um, are they gonna go out inthe world and see ugly things?
Yes, but I want them to knowthat there is good in the world
(19:41):
and that Jesus is that good.
For years we used a CharlotteMason curriculum, and one of my
favorite quotes by her, and I'mnot gonna get it exactly right,
I didn't look it up, but I I'mgoing off of memory here, was
that education is a lot likefaith.
It's the evidence of things notseen.
And I I love that because foryears as a homeschool mom, I
(20:08):
just sewed.
And I wondered, is this makingany difference?
Is this making any difference?
But I continued to sow becauseI believed.
And that's a lot like faith.
You know, we do things by faitheven when we don't see.
You know, faith is the evidenceof things not seen.
So we do the right things, weteach the right things, we plant
(20:32):
the right seeds, and we trustGod for the right outcome.
You know, if you rode by afield that had been freshly
planted with seed, it may notlook any different from a field
that has no seed.
Because the only thingdifferent is the seed that's
(20:54):
buried that you can't see.
But over time, you know,there's that word again, time.
In time, that seed will growand it will pop its head out of
the soil, and it will grow andyou will see the difference.
And eventually one field willhave fruit and one field will
(21:14):
not.
And that's what it's like to bea mom.
That's what it's like to sowinto our children that we are
planting seeds, they seeminsignificant, they seem small.
At first, you can't even tellthe difference, but eventually,
if we don't give up, what doesthe scripture says?
(21:35):
We will reap a harvest ofrighteousness.
And time makes all thedifference.
But you can't give up, youcan't faint.
Whatever you sow, you willreap.
You are a farmer, preciousmama.
You're planting today what willonly be seen later.
(21:57):
And what you're planning isfaith and hope and love.
You're planting good seed.
Don't stop, don't give up.
Your children need you tobelieve in them before they are
able to believe in themselves.
We believe for our childrenbefore they are able to believe
(22:18):
for themselves.
You know, God has a good plan.
He has a good plan for you, foryour family.
Pray for your family.
Don't give up on your family,don't give up on yourself.
I hope that in all of myrambling today, I said something
that was encouraging to you.
I love you and I I cheer youon.
I cheer you on doing the workof the Lord, doing what God's
(22:40):
called you to do in your home,in your family, in your
community, in your churches,wherever your area of influence
is.
I pray that you would beencouraged today.
Before you go, I'd like to saya prayer for you.
Father, I thank you for theseprecious ones that they give so
(23:02):
generously, Lord, of theirstrength, of their energy, of
their time, Lord, of theirresources.
God, it it seems, Lord, hidden,but I thank you that it's not
hidden to your eyes.
And I pray for hope.
I pray, Lord, that hope wouldarise.
Lord, I pray for faith.
I pray, Lord, for, Lord, freshwind in their cells today.
(23:23):
That Lord, they would berenewed with the hope that
comes, Lord, by walking infaith.
Lord, I pray that they wouldhear your voice again, that
Lord, where it seems like you'vebeen silent, that Lord, you
would just so speak to theirhearts and give them clarity and
direction.
And Lord, we just thank you.
We thank you for Jesus.
We thank you that you gaveeverything, Lord, so that we
(23:45):
could be yours, so you couldredeem us.
And I pray, Lord, that we wouldlive a life worthy of all
you've paid for.
And Lord, we just we give youhonor in Jesus' name.
Amen.
God bless.
Hello and welcome back to Grace for My Home.
I'm Audrey McCracken, and whata pleasure it is to be back with
you again this week.
I hope that you're doing well.
We've been busy and travelingevery weekend, it feels like.
About two weeks ago, my husbandand I had an opportunity to go
to Asheville, North Carolina,and we visited friends near
(00:21):
Waynesville and just had a greattime, just the two of us.
And then this past weekend, wetook our middle son, Luke, to
Newberry College to tour theirfootball facility, and that was
great.
We were able to stay for a gameand just really enjoyed that.
And if nothing else, we justreally enjoyed spending time
with him.
Because, you know, sometimeswhen you're so busy and you have
(00:45):
multiple kids, it's hard togive them one-on-one time,
especially when they're just asbusy as you are.
And he is.
He's got a lot going on.
This is his senior year of highschool.
So it gave us an excuse to getaway and spend some time
together.
The weather here is turningcooler, which is really nice.
We live in South Carolina nearthe near the coast.
So we we get seasons, we getall the seasons, but sometimes,
(01:10):
you know, when we want it to becool because it's fall, um, it's
not cool.
Sometimes it's like stillhumid, still hot, but this week
it seemed to turn the corner.
We'll see.
Some people call that falsefall, but we'll see.
Um, but overall, we're doinggreat, and I hope that you are
too.
I wanted to talk with you thisweek.
(01:32):
I'm I'm gonna ramble a littlebit, and so just bear with me.
I have a few things on my mind,and I want to share those
things with you because thethings that have popped up this
week, we are always, and I don'tjust mean me, I mean you too.
We're constantly in transition.
You know, as we when we finallythink we have things figured
out, things change, and youknow, our kids grow, and and
(01:54):
hopefully we're growing too, andwe're becoming different
people.
And so, you know, I have thesethoughts sometimes, and and I
think, man, I really want towrite that down because I want
to share that because maybe itwill help somebody else.
But I'm in this season where,you know, we've transitioned out
of homeschool.
This is the first year, thefirst school year.
(02:14):
Nope, I'm wrong.
It was this, it's the secondschool year that I have not
homeschooled.
And see, I can't even remember.
And so I'm in a transitionthere, and I'm learning who I am
without being a homeschool mom.
Um, I'm a former homeschoolmom, and that that has been a
huge transition for me becausewhen you do something for so
(02:35):
long, and we homeschooled for 12years, when you do something
for so long, it really doesbecome a part of your identity.
When people ask what you do,well, I'm a homeschool mom.
Well, I can't say that anymore.
Uh so you know, that's been atransition, and now my children,
not only am I not a homeschoolmom, but I am a mom of
(02:56):
teenagers, of all teenagers, andone that will be 20 next year.
And so it's it's a transitionagain, you know, trying to to
find my place in this family andhelp, and my and my boys are
trying to find their place inthe world.
All three of my children aretrying to figure out what what
God has for them, you know,what's the plan?
(03:17):
Where should I go to college?
What should I study?
Um, and those those are bigquestions.
I remember the transition fromhigh school to college and the
transition from college to theworkforce, the real world.
Those were two huge transitionsfor me and and for many people.
And they're right in the thickof that.
(03:39):
And so, you know, trying tohelp and guide them, it just
brings up a lot of things.
You know, it helps you to it,it helps sometimes to remember
um the choices you made and youknow, think, did I make the
right choice?
You know, I didn't always makethe right choice, but hopefully
I made enough of the rightchoices that in the end it all
washes out.
(04:00):
You know, we as moms, I thinkwe, you know, you hear a lot of
people talk about mom guilt, andthat is such a real thing.
And I think it's because in ourhearts we want the best for our
children, but there's no bookthat tells us what the best is.
Yes, we have the Bible, andpeople will say, Well, you've
(04:21):
got the Bible, you've got theword of God, but the the Bible
isn't just a is not a, itdoesn't tell me specifically
what to do in every situation.
The Bible is a book of wisdom,it's God's word, he can speak to
me through the Bible, but Istill have to pray and discern
his will for my life, and mychildren have to do the same.
(04:43):
And that's that's how we walkwith God.
You know, if he just gave usall the answers up front, then
we really wouldn't need him.
We would have all the answers.
And part of walking with theLord is that we don't have the
answers, that we have toconstantly rely on him and and
listen and be sensitive to theleading of the Holy Spirit.
(05:05):
But I've I've been aware latelythat there is a a short window
of time when God has given momsand dads, but I speak mostly to
moms, but where God has given usan open window to our
children's soul, where we arewhere we have the most influence
(05:28):
in their life.
And that is such a precioustime.
You know, maybe if you haveyoung kids, maybe it annoys you
when older moms, you know, seeyou in the grocery store and
says something, and they say saysomething like, Oh, enjoy every
day.
It goes so fast.
And I just want to ask you toplease be patient with us.
(05:49):
Please give us grace if we saythings like that.
And I've heard that sometimesthat can be annoying, so I try
not to do it, but I'm thinkingit.
Because I think on our on theother side, like when kids start
growing up and that windowstarts closing, we realize how
precious that time was.
And unfortunately, and I'm surethat God designed this on
(06:13):
purpose, unfortunately, that'salso a time when there's a lot
of work to do.
There's a lot of work to do forkids.
And it seems like that windowfalls right at that time.
And so it can be, it can we caneasily get so caught up in the
things that we forget theinfluence that God has given us
(06:34):
into the lives of our children.
And, you know, it's not that Idon't have influence now, it's
not that I can't speak into mychildren's lives, but as they
mature, they naturally startmaking more of their own
decisions and they don't come tome or think about, you know,
what would mom or dad do in thissituation?
They come to us for the bigthings, hopefully they have
(06:57):
been, but there's somethingabout those young formative
years when they look to you andthink that you have all the
answers, whether you do or not.
And that's one of the reasonsthat on this podcast I talk
about relationship, because thestronger our relationship is
with our children, the more theytrust us with their heart, the
(07:17):
more they trust us with theirquestions, and the more they
draw from us what we what wegive to them.
And so that that window ofopportunity is such an important
time in the lives of ourchildren.
And I I must say all of us, andI think that's part of where
mom guilt comes from is wewonder, did we do enough?
(07:39):
I don't know a mom who doesn'twonder, did I do enough?
Did I do the right things?
And do did I do enough of theright things?
And I just want to tell youthat it's all by grace.
It's all by grace.
You know, if we didn't need Godin the raising of our children,
then um, you know, if we if wedidn't need God, if we had all
(08:00):
the answers, then it would befor our glory.
And it's not for our glory,it's for his glory.
But our goal, one of ourassignments as moms is to point
our children to God, is to pointthem to the highest good and to
give them hope that that ispossible in this world.
(08:23):
You know, we know the worldthat they're going into.
Yes, their hearts are gonna bebroken.
So do we teach them not to lovebecause people are gonna break
their hearts?
No, we teach them what reallove is, we show them what real
love is so that hopefully oneday they'll recognize that.
Um, and we teach them toforgive because their heart is
(08:45):
gonna be broken.
And we can't stop that.
We can't prevent that.
And we don't need to preventthat because if we don't let
them feel those things and letthem experience those things,
then they'll be crippled.
They have to learn those thingson their own and how to
navigate those emotions and andthose hard times so that they
(09:06):
can become mature people.
And so we teach them, but weallow them to go.
We allow them to go.
You know, they're gonna runinto people who are gonna try
and take advantage of them.
You know they are, and so do weteach them to hide?
No, we teach them wisdom and weteach them discernment, and you
(09:28):
know, we teach them to becareful, and you know, they're
gonna go into the world um intoa place where there's no moral
compass.
You know, there is no moralcompass in this world, and
they're going into that world.
And so do we keep them at homeso we can keep them safe?
No, we give them a moralcompass, we teach them right
(09:51):
from wrong, we show them the wayso that when we're no longer
with them, they still know theway.
And how do we do that?
How do we do that, Audrey?
How do we point them to thehighest good?
How do we point them to God?
You know, how do we teach themthese things?
Well, one of the biggestfactors is T-I-M-E, time.
(10:14):
You know, we impart what Godhas given to us into our
children during the time that wespend with them.
And that's why time is soimportant.
You know, I've heard peoplesay, and I must agree, that
children spell love T-I-M-E.
And when we're with them, whenwe're um when we're living with
(10:37):
them, when we're spending timewith them, then we are able in a
natural way to share with themthe truth.
We're able in a very naturalway to help them through
problems and to teach themthings.
And and that's that's our job.
You know, that's why we'rehere.
And they look to us for that.
(10:57):
And that's not something thatwe can put off on somebody else
or get someone else to do forus.
God has put us in their livesto be the biggest influence in
their lives.
And how do we do that?
Well, I just said by time withtime, by spending time with
them, but it's it's a process,it's little by little.
We talk with them, we spendtime with them, we build
(11:20):
relationships with them, youknow, so that our opinions
matter to them.
I'm sure you've heard thesaying, nobody cares how much
you know till they know how muchyou care.
And that's so true withchildren.
When they know that you havetheir back, that you love them,
that you're gonna be there forthem no matter what, then their
(11:43):
ears are open to you.
Their heart is open to you, andthey they they trust you and
they want to hear what you haveto say.
As we walk with God, as weallow God to deal with our
hearts, that's so important,guys.
It has to be real in our heart,or it's not gonna be real in
their lives.
As we allow God to do a work inus, I think of it as He's
(12:04):
pouring oil into us, right?
We spend time with Jesus andHe's pouring in the oil.
As we take in Jesus, as welearn and we grow and we have a
living and a real relationshipwith Christ, then we have
something to pour into ourchildren.
And as we do that, the lifethat God gives to us, it flows
(12:25):
down to them as we share thosethings with them, as we share a
lot with them.
You know, as we tell themstories, as we read them
stories, stories are verypowerful.
The stories that we share withour children, the examples that
we we show to our children instories and in real life, those
things form their imagination.
(12:47):
It forms the way they see theworld, it forms the things that
they see as important.
You know, we we talk with themabout things that people don't
talk to too much about anymore.
You know, we use words thatpeople don't use too much
anymore.
Words like honor.
You know, we teach them what itmeans to be a man or a woman of
(13:08):
honor.
We teach them about characterand what it means to be a woman
or a man of character, and thatthat means that we are men and
women of integrity.
Those are words you you don'thear much anymore, but they
they're so important because itmatters, it may not matter to
(13:29):
their neighbor, may not matterto their friends, it matters to
God.
So we set the bar high, not sohigh that it, you know,
sometimes we can set the bar sohigh that that they just give up
because there's just no way I'mever going to reach that.
We don't set it that high.
We set it high enough to be achallenge, but not to frustrate.
(13:53):
You know, we just we encouragethem in their walk with the
Lord, we encourage them tobecome men and women of honor.
We we try to be examples ofthat.
And we teach them what Godsays, what he likes, what he is
(14:15):
like, what he wants from us,what he expects from us.
We teach him, we teach themGod's word.
And that's why that's wherestories are so helpful.
You know, the thing I loveabout stories, most stories do
not have uh, they don't come outwith a black and white moral,
right?
Um, a good story has a moral,but it doesn't come out and say,
(14:38):
now the moral of this story,you know, it it lets you figure
the moral out by what happens inthe story, by the what happens
to the characters.
The ultimate, the ultimate goalisn't to know right and wrong.
Okay, now that's a goal.
That's an important goal is foryour children, my children, our
(14:59):
children, to know right andwrong.
The ultimate goal is for themto love what is right.
And that's one of the wonderfulthings I love about stories is,
and I say stories, I mean booksand movies and you know, fairy
tales and things that we canshare with our children when
they're little, when that windowis open, and those stories go
(15:21):
in and they teach things farmore powerfully than a list of
rules.
And stories, good stories, theyfeed the soul.
They feed the soul.
You know, your child is notjust a physical creature.
We are made in the image ofGod, and we have a body, we have
a physical body, but we are somuch more than a physical body.
(15:44):
We have a mind, we have a will,we have emotions, and that part
of us, that soul nature, itneeds to be fed.
It needs to be fed spiritualfood.
It needs to be fed on thingsthat are good and true and
beautiful, so that we can desirethose things.
And, you know, I I often thinkback and and I think about the
(16:09):
stories that we read, and youknow, and and I we did a we
homeschooled for 12 years, andand I remember all of my
children when they were youngand they were learning to read,
we read Aesop's Fables.
And instead of telling them atthe end, you know, if you've
ever read Aesop's Fables, ittells you the it the fable, and
then at the end it says themoral of this story is.
(16:31):
And it was, I always, insteadof telling them what the moral
was, I would ask them, what isthe moral of the story?
You know, we'd read the storyand what is the moral of this
story?
And they would come up withsomething.
Sometimes it was close to whatthe book said or what I thought,
and sometimes it wasn't.
But that helps them to developwisdom.
(16:52):
It's not what mama says, youknow, it helps them to learn for
themselves what is right andwhat is wrong.
And I'll tell you a funny storyabout that.
And I don't know if I've sharedthis on the podcast before.
I've done like 150 episodes,over 150 episodes.
So sometimes I forget what I'veshared.
But I remember Caleb, myyoungest, when he was young, and
(17:14):
we were reading through Aesop'sFables, and we read the fable
of the little boy who criedwolf, and how you know, twice he
went out into the village andcried wolf, and everybody ran
and they were scared.
And and um, and then the thirdtime when he ran and cried wolf,
(17:34):
nobody paid attention, butthere really was a wolf.
And I remember at the end ofthat reading that parable to
him, at the end of reading thatfable to him, I said, Okay, now
what is the moral of this story?
And Caleb is so sweet.
He looked up and he said, Comewhen you're called, no matter
(17:55):
how many times.
And I just I I tried not tolaugh, but I just thought that
was the sweetest thing.
I thought, yes, honey, that isif that's what you think the
moral is, then that's what it istoday.
And you know, and I didn'tcorrect him because that's what
he got from that parable.
But that's how that's how welearn, you know, that's how we
(18:16):
learn is we see the thingsaround us, we observe the things
around us, and we learn by whatwe see, and we learn by the
experiences we have and thestories we hear.
And it determines who you knowwho we are.
And we as parents have thatwonderful opportunity to put
before our children the best,the good things, those things
(18:37):
that are that are good, thosethings that will help them to
desire to be the person Godcalled them to be.
And so you may hear all thisand you may think, oh, dude,
this is just way too much.
This is just way too much.
Well, I want to tell you,nobody does this perfectly, but
there's something about having agoal that is good, that is
(18:58):
above average, that is that isis aiming high, that even if you
don't hit the goal, you've donebetter than you would be if you
were just hit if you were justaiming for average.
And so my my philosophy hasalways been let's aim for Jesus,
right?
Let's just believe God formiracles.
(19:21):
And if I don't get miracles, atleast I'll get something good.
And so that was my goal andstill is my goal.
Lord, you know my heart.
Um, I want to put before mychildren good things.
Um, are they gonna go out inthe world and see ugly things?
Yes, but I want them to knowthat there is good in the world
(19:41):
and that Jesus is that good.
For years we used a CharlotteMason curriculum, and one of my
favorite quotes by her, and I'mnot gonna get it exactly right,
I didn't look it up, but I I'mgoing off of memory here, was
that education is a lot likefaith.
It's the evidence of things notseen.
And I I love that because foryears as a homeschool mom, I
(20:08):
just sewed.
And I wondered, is this makingany difference?
Is this making any difference?
But I continued to sow becauseI believed.
And that's a lot like faith.
You know, we do things by faitheven when we don't see.
You know, faith is the evidenceof things not seen.
So we do the right things, weteach the right things, we plant
(20:32):
the right seeds, and we trustGod for the right outcome.
You know, if you rode by afield that had been freshly
planted with seed, it may notlook any different from a field
that has no seed.
Because the only thingdifferent is the seed that's
(20:54):
buried that you can't see.
But over time, you know,there's that word again, time.
In time, that seed will growand it will pop its head out of
the soil, and it will grow andyou will see the difference.
And eventually one field willhave fruit and one field will
(21:14):
not.
And that's what it's like to bea mom.
That's what it's like to sowinto our children that we are
planting seeds, they seeminsignificant, they seem small.
At first, you can't even tellthe difference, but eventually,
if we don't give up, what doesthe scripture says?
(21:35):
We will reap a harvest ofrighteousness.
And time makes all thedifference.
But you can't give up, youcan't faint.
Whatever you sow, you willreap.
You are a farmer, preciousmama.
You're planting today what willonly be seen later.
(21:57):
And what you're planning isfaith and hope and love.
You're planting good seed.
Don't stop, don't give up.
Your children need you tobelieve in them before they are
able to believe in themselves.
We believe for our childrenbefore they are able to believe
(22:18):
for themselves.
You know, God has a good plan.
He has a good plan for you, foryour family.
Pray for your family.
Don't give up on your family,don't give up on yourself.
I hope that in all of myrambling today, I said something
that was encouraging to you.
I love you and I I cheer youon.
I cheer you on doing the workof the Lord, doing what God's
(22:40):
called you to do in your home,in your family, in your
community, in your churches,wherever your area of influence
is.
I pray that you would beencouraged today.
Before you go, I'd like to saya prayer for you.
Father, I thank you for theseprecious ones that they give so
(23:02):
generously, Lord, of theirstrength, of their energy, of
their time, Lord, of theirresources.
God, it it seems, Lord, hidden,but I thank you that it's not
hidden to your eyes.
And I pray for hope.
I pray, Lord, that hope wouldarise.
Lord, I pray for faith.
I pray, Lord, for, Lord, freshwind in their cells today.
(23:23):
That Lord, they would berenewed with the hope that
comes, Lord, by walking infaith.
Lord, I pray that they wouldhear your voice again, that
Lord, where it seems like you'vebeen silent, that Lord, you
would just so speak to theirhearts and give them clarity and
direction.
And Lord, we just thank you.
We thank you for Jesus.
We thank you that you gaveeverything, Lord, so that we
(23:45):
could be yours, so you couldredeem us.
And I pray, Lord, that we wouldlive a life worthy of all
you've paid for.
And Lord, we just we give youhonor in Jesus' name.
Amen.
God bless.
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