Mark and I have the opportunity to host marriage intensives in our home, and it is truly one of our favorite aspects of the ministry we do. Today I want to share with you why that is. Our marriage intensives are a 3-day marriage retreat spent at our home here in...
Dear Jill: Our adult daughter has chosen to walk away from the faith she was raised in and all that we taught her. She’s also come out as gay. I have grieved deeply, lost much of myself along the way, and find myself struggling to know how to connect with my daughter....
Have you ever wanted to write a book? if so, this episode is for you! Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to author 14 books (still kind of crazy to think about, honestly!) and learned quite a few lessons along the way. There is rarely a week that goes by...
Your kids are spreading their wings and starting to head out on their own… Are you ready? Do you struggle to know how to parent teens at home and young adults away from home at the same time? Is it a challenge to find a good balance between boundaries and...
Mark: Have you ever felt like your spouse is slow at making decisions? Or have you ever been on the other side feeling like your voice isn’t being heard when a decision is being made? Do you ever sit down to have a discussion and end up arguing over whose...
Dear Jill, My daughter is heading off to her freshman year of college. There’s no doubt she’s going to do well. However, it’s me who’s a mess. She and I are very close and the loss is tangible for me. I’ve ordered your Empty Nest Full...
“I had cashed in all of these blessings, all of this protection, this institution and community that God had given me to be safe in. And I exchanged that for what I wanted, for my selfishness.” – Chris Teague You know, there is nothing better than a story...
Have you ever met someone and felt like you could talk for hours and hours, and especially if you lived closer, would be great friends? Well, that’s what I experienced in this conversation I had with Maggie Graham, a homeschooling mom of 11 children that today range...
Mark: When marriage gets stale (and it does for all of us!), there’s a temptation to check out. We reason that if it feels like our spouse doesn’t care, then we won’t care. Or we tell ourselves that we’re the only one trying and we’re...
A couple weeks back, Mark and I hosted our second annual Cousin’s Camp. I shared about it over on Instagram, and had so many people reach out interested in learning how to plan their own for their grandkids! I grew up around my grandparents and spent time with...
Do you and your spouse struggle to find the time to invest in each other? Does it seem like cleaning the house, getting your kids ready for bed, or work always get in the way? If that has been you at any point in your marriage, this episode is for you! To help me talk...
“We have to rehearse God’s greatness.” Those are words of wisdom we all need to hear. If this is a hard season or even just a hard day, I want you to know that we are talking about hope in this episode. And we all need hope, don’t we? Today, I...
We have a line of trees along the west side of our country home. The previous owners wisely planted the trees to provide a hedge of protection against the winds that gust across the cornfields of central Illinois. Those trees serve as a visual picture of another hedge...
Welcome to our third bonus episode of the No More Perfect Podcast! I like to surprise you with a little extra, bite-size podcast goodness every once in a while that’s quick to listen to and helpful for your life. Just to say thank you! Today we want to share a...
Today we’re talking about how things that happened in the past sometimes can put a cloud over the future. You may sometimes wonder: Can I really heal? Can I move forward without shame? Can God really use me? My guest really understands these questions. She has not...
