Have you ever felt alone in suffering? Where can you turn when you feel completely broken from an aching heart? 

Your mind says I know God’s Word could help, but what does that look like? 

Dear friend, my heart has asked these questions too. 

One impactful resource I’ve found is the Voice Of The Martyrs. Have you heard of it? 

Their podcast called VOM Radio, their magazine, and their books have helped me realize that I'm not alone. Also, they have given me real-life examples of suffering Christians who find their hope in God. 

I always come away from VOM media in awe of God and His good work in people through incredible trials.

This past summer, we had something special happen here on the blog. We held our first Summer Book Club-Style Bible Study. I wasn’t sure how it would go. I didn’t even know if anyone would be interested in participating or if it would even work. It. Was. Awesome!

I’d do it again in a heartbeat. As a matter of fact, there are already plans in the works to do another Summer Book Club-Style Bible Study next summer! YIPPIE!!!
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One thing that happened that I wasn’t expecting is that we had several requests to make the 10 blog posts into a printable version. 

Random Thoughts from a Tired Momma:

• How many nights can you serve cereal for supper?
• The best trend ever is mix matched socks.
• I wonder what the world record is for the tallest pile of laundry, and if I am in the running?
• When is someone going to invent a bed that makes itself?
• Could I eat Krispy Kreme doughnuts in my closet without anyone finding me?
• How many days is dry shampoo good for?

This is the final post in our 5 Signs of a Functional Family series. We've looked at An Attitude of Service, Intimacy Between the Husband and Wife, Husbands Who are Loving Leaders and Parents Who Both Teach and Train Their Children. All of these are signs of functional families. While the first four signs are primarily directed to parents and must be parent lead, the fifth and final sign is one which children bear the responsibility. 

Rest...four letters that form one little word, filled with promise, but overshadowed by impossibility. Why is rest so elusive to us? Maybe you are a corporate woman with deals to make and meetings to run. Or, maybe you’re a mom with little ones, diapers, playdates, and laundry to the ceiling. Even if there are currently no little lives depending on you for existence, and you don’t have a corner office, I’m sure your days are filled with opportunities and obligations that keep you busy enough to crash when your head hits the pillow at night. No matter what is written in our individual planners, the pace we keep, the social media we take in, and the pressure to push for more can leave each of us feeling soul-drained. ​

Over the past few weeks we have been looking at signs of a functional family. We've looked at An Attitude of Service, Intimacy Between the Husband and Wife and Husbands Who Are Loving Leaders. These are all signs of functional families, however there is yet another—parents who are teaching and training their children.

In order to clearly understand the full scope of this directive, there must be an understanding of the words nurture and admonition. The ancient Greeks used to say that nurture and admonition were the two wheels on which the chariot of child-rearing rolled. While it would be ludicrous to attempt to drive a chariot with only one wheel in operation, it is equally as futile to attempt to rear children without both nurture and admonition. ​

Living with teenagers comes with a certain level of scrutiny that I never expected. Teens have an internal barometer for sorting out the genuine from the fraud. From peers to authority figures, they are all passed through the same gauge. “Are they all they say they are? Are they legit?“

Because my house is currently heavy on the teen side, and will be for many years, the desire to pass their smell test has put me on a quest to answer this question, “What does REAL look like to a teenager?” This acrostic has been born out of months of prayer, surrender, and repentance. I fail, and fail again, but having a target has guided me to a new way of walking in my daily life.