Sally Clarkson's Blog, page 81

Faithful: The Secret of a Blessed Life

Faithful: Loyal, Constant, Steadfast

Trust in the Lord and do good, Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

Psalm 37: 3

Sitting in the shade of our front porch, gently rocking as we shared a sweet moment, out of the blue, one of my adult children commented, “Thanks for being faithful through all these years. It has been a gift to us in more ways than you will ever know. Not only your example, but you spared us from scars that so many of our peers have born in their lives. I know it took many choices to keep going, to be faithful to your ideals. Just wanted you to know it mattered.”

I was so surprised but so deeply grateful. Faithfulness matters, it is the hard work of the soul. It is a fruit of the spirit. It is rare in our time. As I look back over my life, I realize that so much of my blessing right now was due to the fact that somewhere along the way, I learned the value of keeping going, putting one foot in front to the other, remaining faithful through all of the dark passages.

Faithful in marriage, even when it was hard.

Faithful to my ideals as a mama, even when I didn’t feel like I was making progress.

Faithful to my God even when it felt like He was hiding.

Faithful to my children when they failed or showed their frailty and humanity.

Faithful to keep going forward, one step at a time, even when I felt I was failing.

The world gives us permission to quit, to give up, to drop our ideals. God encourages us to be faithful, to commit to being steadfast, to stay loyal.

So many eras I didn't think I would live through----crying babies with colic; ear infections and nocturnal asthma; hysterical fits and fusses and tantrums for never ending years, one day at a time, with a mysterious child with adhd, ocd and odd; marriage struggles between me, a totally romantic, relational woman married to a totally rational, organized man who had to work way too many hours to keep this family afloat; messes,  rejections from family for our ideals; 19 moves; loneliness, too little help or support systems; financial crisis; illnesses and hospitalizations and testings never ending; church splits; irrational people; and on and on.

Today, as I look back, I am still here, but God has changed me through it all. I am more patient with everyone, because I see how much I needed patience and still need compassion. I appreciate my faithful husband who has stuck with me through it all and has continued to dream of how we can change the world and write new books and keep this ministry afloat, (amidst him doing 4 loads of laundry last weekend, while I grocery shopped, bought birthday presents--again, and wedding presents for family).

The failures and mistakes I made gave me humility--a gift that allows one to be more appreciative of God's forgiveness, love and grace. Humility prepares one to minister to others with compassion and sympathy. Few leaders are wise without a dose of failure and having to submit to God's discipline. Children have a way of humbling mamas.

I see that I appreciate the Lord more, I am less attached to this world,  because after many disappointments, I have finally realized in my heart as well as my head, that this world is temporary, the broken place and heaven gives an anchor in the midst of taking our love for this world out of our hands.

I don't really care as much what other people's opinion of me is, because I know that I cannot please others and than my audience is the Lord. Only He can make me feel ok and centered with so much potential for failure in the eyes of someone who is looking and wanting to tell me their opinion.

I greatly enjoy my adult children as my best friends. After all of these years, our tastes were developed on the same food, movies, books, travel, spiritual experiences--Clay and I built our own kindred spirits and we all love being together.  (Maybe through all the struggles, my efforts at keeping going, training them, reading to them and telling them passionately about the Lord was really accomplishing eternal results in their hearts--but I didn't always feel like it mattered at the time when they were fussing over things like, "He touched my toe! or His piece of brownie was bigger than mine--and all of these very important issues.)  I am pretty relaxed with Joy  as a year old in college, because I know the Lord will faithfully guide her, teach her, speak to her and protect her--because I have seen Him be faithful three times before now.

I often didn't think I could make it through another day, depressed, exhausted, overwhelmed. Feelings were often dark. But I had no choice but to keep putting one foot in front of the other. God knew I could make it. God breathed life into my children's souls. God taught Clay and me more about unconditional love and grace. As a good Father, the Lord was training and disciplining me, as His own child. Stretching me and building into my life, by using my own children as a soul-shaping tool. He is so good and so faithful. My family and my life became the road to my ultimate joy and freedom from the things I thought would fulfill to the things that truly fulfill. He used them to surgically remove some of the rough edges, expose the immaturity, remold my values and thoughts.

I still have my ups and downs, sometimes sadness and dark thoughts that a fallen world brings, and don't know how my children's stories will sort out, but I am more familiar with the process and the Trainer.

So, this week, though still filled with more and different kind of issues, as I face a whole new and different kind of season, as I enter into my 14 days of self-isolation in my 20th move, in a new home, in another country. But I have seen that God has companioned me wherever I have gone and I know He will be with me, once again. Through His spirit, and His help, I will seek to be faithful one more day, to follow hard after His ideals, because I know He has a new chapter for me to live for His glory.

Thank you, my sweet Lord, for your wise ways, for keeping us going, for filling our souls with that which matters. Thank you that you helped me to keep going and going and waiting and waiting. How grateful I am that it is all in your good and capable hands. The sweet memories, the hope that comforts, the work that satisfies, all the things I did not know or understand when we first started. Keep me faithful and hopeful as I continue on this path of your making.

Play Episode

Ever Feel ... Worn Out? Finding a Path Forward

Some call it burn out. Some call it age. Some just think it is inevitable with too much activity and boredom.

There have been many seasons in my life where I've felt it. Creeping tiredness that seems to seep into my very bones.. Weariness as I hear another story of a wife betrayed, a child left to his own devices and gone astray, a pastor abandoning his flock, another fire, a riot, someone ravaged by cancer or disease.. Discouragement over a long to-do list that looks just like the one I almost finished yesterday.

I can find my self-talk sounding a tad like Eeyore. Busy day with people everywhere?

"Everybody crowds around so in this Forest. There’s no Space. I never saw a more spreading lot of animals in my life, and in all the wrong places.”

And then when things quiet down and I'm left alone?

One can't complain. I have my friends. Somebody spoke to me only yesterday. And was it last week or the week before that Rabbit bumped into me and said 'Bother!' The Social Round. Always something going on."

~Eyore!

And then I realize perhaps I've drifted a bit. When the pressures of life are great and negatives loom large they sometimes take up more room in my vision than they should. A re-adjustment is in order. I must get back to my first love.

"When I first fell in love with the Lord, I was so much happier. I was willing to read my Bible for hours, hungering for understanding and truth, discussing into the wee hours of night with my college friends the wonderful truths I had never heard before. Praying fervently and eagerly awaiting miracles was the call of my heart. Enthusiastically I would foray into the lives of strangers, eager to tell them about His redemption and grace. Fellowship with other believers was sweet and intimate. My whole life was genuinely wrapped up in God, not in a religious ritual but in an excited, passionate, graceful, purposeful way.

That was the place I had left, the place from where I had fallen. Since then, mundane duty had propelled me forward through the many corridors of my life. Yes, I'd enjoyed occasional waves of excitement and a heart choosing to love him. It is the commitment of my heart. But more often I'd been just putting one foot in front of the other. I wished for the reality of God to be true, but sometimes I had difficulty believing it or grasping Him. I was living in obedience and cultivating faithful character, but often I would feel no emotion. I would drag through some of the days and give the party lines that people had come to expect from me, but I definitely was not dancing and celebrating. Now I realized I wanted so much more than a spiritual theology or a philosophy; I wanted a real, living, intimate relationship with the One I originally had learned to cherish the most.

When entering the corridors of heaven, finally meeting Jesus face to face, I do not want to arrive gasping, out of breath, desperate, barely making it over the finish line. Instead I want to enter resiliently with a hopeful, loving heart. If joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment are what God desires for me, then God created me with those capacities so that He could fill them. God disdains dry, mundane obedience as much as I do! He wants true, pure-of-heart, devoted love--to be shared in a personal, vibrant relationship. The very One who created the wild, lively winds, the intense beauty of storms, waterfalls, sunsets, and music of nature is the One who wants me to love and enjoy Him amidst the dance of my life." ~from Dancing with My Father

Over decades, I have learned that to find a path forward, I must cut things out that only drain and put things in that restore. Time alone is at a premium for me—seems someone always wants more of me. But to give more, I have to pull away and fill my soul more. And so, I find ways to tuck this in—more important than straightening, getting all of the detail work done, I can do that later. But the tending of my heart, mind and soul must happen regularly. Make a plan. What do you long for? What fills and inspires you? What gives you rest? If possible find a way to put these things into your life a little bit at a time, all seasons, and you will find the peace and beauty to live from a more restful place. It is what I am doing soon—and I can’t wait.

And that's what He wants for your life, too! Let's return to our first love and dance, shall we?

Dancing with My Heavenly Father: Choosing Joy in a Less-Than-Perfect World

By Clarkson, Sally

Awaking Wonder: Resist Conforming to the World's Pattern & Jamie Martin

Walking, Talking, with my wonderful in the Colorado Mountains.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2 NIV

Walking is a metaphor all the way through scripture that suggests companionship that influences another. We are admonished not to walk in the counsel of the wicked, but to walk with the wise. Maybe this is where I got the idea of walking on a daily basis. It is a Clarkson habit for most of us. But, to pour the influence of truth requires us to build a world view that gives stability to those who walk with us. We converse and have a grid that says, “This is wisdom, walk in it.”

Foolishness abounds in the world today. Paul hit the nail on the head for admonishing us to resist conforming to the ways of the world. Often, our thoughts and the voices in our heads speak messages to us that we don't even realize are messages straight from the world’s values.

Yet, we are to conform to Jesus, His ways, His values, His actions, His words. Jesus was my ponder. The more I sought to understand his words, the more I changed from within. Jesus said, “The student will be like his teacher.” Hopefully, as I sought Him and sought to please Him, I became more like Him, little by little. And in that becoming, my children could watch me, hear his words, look at His beautiful world, and become more like Him through my life.

What an auspicious thought, that children are inclined toward becoming like those responsible for them. Traditionally, they are learning values by the ways they are taught to fit in, to conform through schedule, peer pressure, and teacher expectations. A mentoring model would move them beyond these expectations of cultural norms. We become the guides in their lives to embody integrity, humane behavior, virtue. Children imitate what they understand, see, and experience every day. How we live is how they will perceive life and act in their own lives.

Every moment, every day, children are ingesting what they see and hear as truth, rightly or wrongly. Parents can pass on what is important to them by valuing what the model for their children. Learning takes place by what is caught and by what is taught, a dual process. Both instruction and modeling are necessary to shape the values of children.

The first years of a child’s life are for building foundations of deep, unspoken virtues and the shaping of principles and standards of behavior that will establish a groundwork for what they learn to depend on as truth for the rest of their life.

What Are You Modeling and Teaching by the Way You Live?

If, as Jesus says, the student will become like his teacher, then to become a good teacher, we must examine our own lives. What have I stored inside my heart, mind, and soul? Does my character reflect the integrity I hope my child will imitate? Am I exhibiting the attitudes that I want my child to exhibit? Do I love those around me unconditionally so that my child can understand the love of God?

As I look back over the years, I understand better that when I took responsibility for the shaping of my children’s lives, it caused me to grow more into the person I wanted to be. The accountability of knowing I was being studied by my own children helped me to strain toward moral excellence, mature love, modeling what I hoped my children would copy.

One of the most important, key pieces of the learning model Clay and I embraced was the idea that we, as parent-teachers, were the most important element within that model. To teach well, then, we had to focus on our own souls—becoming more like Jesus, so we could become better teachers. Read more about it in my newest book, Awaking Wonder!

Today, I had the privilege of talking with my friend, Jamie C. Martin about the subject of education and Awaking wonder. I know you will love her heart.

Awaking Wonder: Opening Your Child's Heart to the Beauty of Learning

By Clarkson, Sally
























The Awaking Wonder Experience: A Guided Companion

By Clarkson, Sally, Clarkson, Clay























































Play Episode #474

Refresh, Relax, Restore: Life is a Marathon & podcast

Sometimes a girl just has to take care of herself. Sometimes, a girl just needs a break from the mundane responsibilities of life. Sugar cookies have been a guilty pleasure of mine since I was a little girl. (Maybe it was the Christmas cookies with all that frosting.

But I ate these wonderful cookies and didn’t feel a bit of guilt.

No matter how hard we try, none of us is able to control all of the circumstances and moments of our lives.

And we are all human beings—fragile—and limited. We need to take time to refresh, relax and restore. From time to time, when my four were much younger, and I had pushed them to their limits during the day without a nap, too much activity, beyond their bedtime, too much sugar, and sometimes with lots of over-stimulation, bedtime would be impossible. Out of utter fatigue, they would wail and cry, throw little fits and not give into sleep until their bodies finally capitulated to utter exhaustion. Their reaction was equal to the level of exhaustion and abuse their bodies had taken.

I realized that there was nothing to do except let them cry and fuss until they finally fell deep into sleep. They didn't need to be disciplined--they needed to be loved and rested. Only when they caught up on their rest and their metabolism went back to a normal blood sugar level over a couple of days, were they less agitated.

Mamas do the same thing, at times. When living without enough sleep, and eating too much junk food, with work and taking care of others--who are often immature, irritating and draining, wrapping presents, cooking, life takes them to utter exhaustion, they are prone to fits expressed in different ways.

We cry, too--but in a more adult way. By being grumpy, irrationally angry, irritated or tearful at the smallest circumstances, our bodies rebel at exhaustion and show us that we have abused them.

Our hearts will not have peace until our bodies have had rest.

You matter, you are worth it, You need to take care of yourself.

Play Episode #473

Servant Leadership and Labor Day ... in the Real Sense of the Word!

Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him, Jesus,knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God, got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself.

Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded." ~John 13:1-5

Baking homemade bread over many years is a gift I give to my family. So often, we desire to make a big impact, a gallant sacrifice that will be noticed. Yet, most moments that change a heart, open the eyes of the heart, give grace come in unnoticed, quiet gifts of sacrifice and serving.

Though Labor Day is a holiday and a break from work for many, plenty of mamas around the United States spend the Labor Day “holiday” much like any other--cooking meals, cleaning up messes, wiping faces, washing laundry. Sometimes it seems a holiday only guarantees there will be more work when the party is over! And yet what a gift it is, every time we are given the opportunity to have a few extra hours to gather with friends and relax with family. As my children are off to their own adult lives once again after some summer time at home with us, I know more than ever how precious those hours are.

In order for anyone to enjoy life at all, someone has to do some work!

How could we enjoy a fun picnic if no one packed it? And lets' not imagine the way our children's bedrooms would look were all the moms to cease their labor!

Daily, my ponder is Jesus. He shows me over and over again as we read of the way He interacted with His disciples that these little things ... these unending, sometimes tiresome tasks moms face day after day ... can become holy actions as we offer them to Him. Every time we serve our children, we invest in them, building bridges from our hearts to theirs, helping their souls understand the love and grace of God.

"Jesus spent His last night on earth with His disciples in service to them. How powerful their memories of that night must have been--the King of the whole universe touching and rubbing their dusty feet and gently drying them with a towel. Their Lord and Master breaking the loaf of bread and serving each of them for the celebrated feast of the Passover.

Jesus' example of servant leadership sets Him apart from so many historical religious leaders. He was not a God who lorded it over His followers and demanded they follow Him or coerced their obedience through authoritarianism and fear. Instead, He called them to the excellence of holiness and yet lovingly served them in order to win their hearts and show them the means of reaching others' hearts as well.

As I look to the hearts of my own children, even as adults, and seek to teach them about the grace of God, I realize my love and service to them must come before any of my great words, my teaching and training. My time--staying up late at night for conversations, watching movies and discussing them, my attention, my "soft-tickling", laying in bed with my sweet ones, listening to their hearts when I would rather be in bed--even when I am tired or have other "important" things on my mind--is what builds our relationship and prepares them to listen to what I have to say. Only then, once the wells of their need are filled with the grace of being loved, will my words to them about God's grace finally make sense."                               ~ from The Ministry of Motherhood

I want my children to understand God's goodness and love. And while demonstrating patience and service to them isn't always easy, it is always my privilege. It was the walking on dusty pathways, one step at a time, in which the conversations and friendship transformed the lives of Jesus’ friends..forever. May we see each step as holy.

Even on a holiday!

How about you? What kind of weekend did you have?

The Ministry of Motherhood: Following Christ's Example in Reaching the Hearts of Our Children

By Clarkson, Sally

Awaking Wonder: Giving The Gift of Faith & Cookies!

Wonderful news! A generous friend, (an artist with baking and a commercial baker) wrote to me and offered to give away 2 sets of 6 cookies to someone in my arena. Yumm! I have tasted these wondrous cookies! Such a fun giveaway.

Play Episode on iTunes & Stitcher

Do you have a generous, compassionate heart?

“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Matthew 9:36

Gentle mounting breezes lightly danced through our wooden deck today as Joel and I munched on delectable lemon bread spread with tangy lemon frosting. Sipping our tea between bites, I asked him what was on his mind.

“You have never gotten over Poland, mama, have you?”

“What do you mean?” I was surprised by his question.

“It seems when you lived in Europe, you were around people who were willing to give everything for the sake of sharing their faith, bringing light to a very dark region of the world. I think you have never found that kind of spiritual fellowship again. So maybe you will have the opportunity to be involved in more ministry like that when you move for a bit to the UK again.:

Your children are always watching you and taking in what is going on in your heart even when you aren’t aware of it.

One of the reasons I wrote Awaking Wonder was that I wanted to deeply impress on the hearts of parents how deeply and profoundly important it is to help light a fire of vision in the hearts and minds of their children. Jesus felt deep compassion and sorrow for those who longed for love, leadership, purpose and didn’t have anyone to help them. He knew that they were made for his kingdom, but the leadership amongst the Jewish people had become corrupt and did not even see the needs of the people, the sheep in their own flock.

Jesus goes on to say, “The harvest is plentiful the workers are few, therefore beseech the Lord of the Harvest to send laborers into the harvest.” Matt 9: 37

In other words, the harvest, those who long for the Lord, who hunger to know Him, who were made to be a part of His purpose in the world, are floundering about without people to have compassion on them, without those who would love them and bring them light.

If we know Jesus, we are to be His words, HIs love, His hands that comfort and soothe and our willingness to work hard, to give our lives that others might know Him, And our children need to be raised knowing that they, too, are called.

Today, on my podcast, I will read a portion of Awaking Wonder, that gets to the heart of this message. This world is hostile to the gospel love and message of Jesus, in general. But each person you see was made to know God. As we get to know Him, our hearts will change. He will fill us with His love, His generosity, a willingness to lay down our lives, our pride and to humbly reach out to others. Today, we must respond and teach our children, our neighbors, our friends, to respond to Christ, to find HIs truth and leadership and purpose, that they might have eternal purpose to live every day. This is central to the heart of Christ. If we are to please Him, we must give our lives to reach out to those in our lives who deeply need to know Him. This is the central call of those who have believed Christ and vowed to serve Him.

Today, my giveaway will be to all of you who have purchased a copy of Awaking Wonder. Leave a comment where you purchased the book and tag a friend in your comment. You will love these amazing cookies. I will also choose 2 winners to receive a copy of Awaking Wonder to give to one of your friends.

Happy Thursday.

Awaking Wonder: Opening Your Child's Heart to the Beauty of Learning

By Clarkson, Sally



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The Awaking Wonder Experience: A Guided Companion

By Clarkson, Sally, Clarkson, Clay



Buy on Amazon









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Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.

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Share with others. My prayer is that this podcast brings encouragement to women and families, and I would be honored for you to tell others about it.

Join my friends and me in membership at Life with Sally, a place for me to share more teaching from the Bible and messages on education, motherhood, discipleship, and more!

Play Episode #472

Awaking Wonder: Beauty Ignites A Desire to Learn & podcast

“Just think,” I had whispered in the moment of seeing a shooting star sprinting across the darkness of our night sky, “Job tells us that when God created the world, the stars all sang. Can you imagine it? Stars singing? You can almost hear singing as you look up now into the night sky! And then in response, the angels shouted with joy, probably a lot like a crowd cheering enthusiastically at a ball game. It must have been quite the celebration.”

Sarah’s soft voice emerged from her hiddenness. “David wrote that the heavens are declaring the glory of God,” she remembered aloud.

“Mama,” quipped Joy innocently, “I want to ask God what it was like when He painted the stars gold, silver, and blue and how He decided on those colors. I want to tell Him I love what He made!” And then she snuggled closer to me and sighed with a release of the adrenaline she had carried through her little-girl day.

“I wish I could harness a shooting star and ride through the heavens,” Nathan pronounced.
My imagination, alive with thoughts swirling, started working on ideas popping into my own mind for the next morning. Light, space, infinitude of the stars, galaxies, constellations; “Let there be light.”

Joel suggested, “I want to read about stars tomorrow.”
“I want to draw us all lying here with the mountains and trees and Milky Way all around us,” said Nathan, our relational prince.

Over the next few days, we read a book about constellations, and Joel found a video online that showed the extent of our galaxy. Nathan borrowed a telescope from a friend. Researching the Milky Way, stars, and constellations filled hours of our days. We found a book that explained and displayed the major planets, the solar system, nebulas. At our dinner table, the older three spoke with excitement and reported what they had learned while Joy colored her own picture of the night sky.

This led to that, and Galileo, Copernicus, gravity, orbiting, black holes, and comets became subjects of research. Nightly dinner-table discussion from what Clay had found to read aloud combined with “Daddy, listen to what I learned today.” We memorized Psalm 19:1–6 and heartily agreed that the heavens were indeed declaring the glory of God and imagined David the shepherd crafting this from his own perch on a desert mountain while guarding sheep. Sarah and Joel composed a little poem, expressing their delight and thoughts about what had impressed them these weeks we spent in the company of the heavens.

Once again, as the summer came to an end, we returned to the beauty of our deck, the silence speaking to our hearts, and submitted to the breezes blowing, the sky dancing, and the sleep that eventually enveloped us all.

Awaking Wonder, for us, was often simply opening our eyes to the beauty around us, then diving into whatever that beauty caused us to wonder about!

Have you ever thought about learning like this? Read more about it in my newest book, Awaking Wonder!

Awaking Wonder: Opening Your Child's Heart to the Beauty of Learning

By Clarkson, Sally





































































The Awaking Wonder Experience: A Guided Companion

By Clarkson, Sally, Clarkson, Clay

Be sure to watch the 12 Awaking Wonder videos. Free for 5 more days.

Play Episode

Finding A Way Forward: Misfits in the Storms of Life

"For even when we came into Macedonia our flesh had no rest, but we were afflicted on every side: conflicts without, fears within.  But God, who comforts the depressed, comforted us by the coming of Titus; and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in you, as he reported to us your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me; so that I rejoiced even more."  2 Corinthians 7:5-7

Play Episode on iTunes & Stitcher

Almost everyone I talk to is, in some way, weary, down or discouraged or downright depressed. We were made to be able to refuel, to have community, to gather as believers to encourage one another, to be able to go out and about freely. This is a time when many of us feel the stress pressing down on us.

Feeling like a misfit is also something I have dealt with for many years. I am an idealist and passionate about living life purposefully in a world that is violent, relentless, filled with conflict and argumentative. This drains me to my toenails. And yet, from feeling this way before, I know that I am in good company—Job despaired of his life while being one of the godliest men on earth, same with Elijah, Jeremiah and more.

As a "good Christian woman" I used to think that if I was truly loving God and walking with Him, I would have a positive, faith-filled attitude all the time. Guilt for disappointing God would occasionally stand pointing it's finger of accusation and I would feel disappointed in myself in an existential way. 

Yet, as an older woman, I have become intimately acquainted with the seasons of life and have come to realize that disappointment in others, disgust with the world's values, despair with some of the raging darkness in the international as well as personal arena of my life, was a common experience through my years and also for many through out scripture. 

Many years ago, many storms back, I wrote: The joy-filled life is not found by diminishing my God-given responsibilities as a woman, wife, and mother, nor can I find joy merely by refusing to face the hard realities of life in a fallen world. There is a tension that God is asking me to acknowledge and accept ~ the tension between ideals and realities. True joy is found by living somewhere between the ideal life and daily realities. That is where Jesus meets me, where His Holy Spirit empowers, and where I learn how to live the Christian life with supernatural joy. To celebrate life is simply a choice." -Seasons of a Mother's Heart

Hebrews 11 is a chapter in the Bible I come to again and again. Here we see the heroes of faith, those who have lived boldly, stepped out in faith, “conquered kingdoms, closed the mouths of lions,” and more. But we read, finally, that these were not looking for satisfaction or fulfillment in this world, but waiting expectantly for God to reveal His kingdom that would not be shaken. We see in the list Moses, David, Gideon, Daniel and so many more:

By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions,  quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight.  Women received their loved ones back again from death.

But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. Hebrews 11: 33-35

May we be like these heroes of faith, looking to God, investing in His kingdom ways, even now amidst the darkness, and may we live for our lives after the resurrection.

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FOR MORE

Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.

Leave an iTunes Review These are so important as they help our podcast reach more women with messages of encouragement.

Follow on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news and updates.

Share with others. My prayer is that this podcast brings encouragement to women and families, and I would be honored for you to tell others about it.

Join my friends and me in membership at Life with Sally, a place for me to share more teaching from the Bible and messages on education, motherhood, discipleship, and more!

Play Episode #470

Overprotecting Our Children--Is It Really a Bad Thing?

When I see a photo of my precious little granddaughter, Lily, innocently, and with full heart, exploring her world, my heart melts. I long for her to feel the freedom to imagine, to play, to wonder. about her worlds, free of the darkness. and stupidity of what is rolling around in the news and in a broken world. She can only grow strong inside if she is able to establish her foundations on that which is beautiful and sure. I want to protect her from all that is draining, dark, false, so that she can have an opportunity to lay foundations of love, goodness, true ideas and thought. I want to protect her from the dark world until she has had time to grow roots, or to find footing in what is true. I am one of her guardians, along with Sarah and Thomas, and the rest of our family, to watch over her heart, mind and soul.

Have you ever been accused of being "overprotective?" I often wonder what exactly people would prefer us to do; to "under-protect," perhaps? And of course, whatever is less than what they personally do would be underprotective and whatever goes beyond what they're comfortable with would be overprotective.

"Parents are often criticized for being overprotective of their children, an apparently bad thing to do in the world's way of thinking. That caricature, though, originates in a culture of passive parental neglect that is almost dysfunctionally underprotective of its children. Even though it is a pejorative term in secular parenting lingo, you should not be reluctant to bear it as a badge of honor as a caring and committed Christian parent. God wants you to be an overprotective parent! Your children, by God's design, need an overprotector, a parent who will stand over them to protect them--to guard their innocence and purity, to prevent spiritual wounds and sinful footholds, and teach discernment and sensitivity to sin. In God's design for families, overprotecting your children is a good thing.

Still, the enemy is very good at infiltrating even good Christian homes with corrupting influences ... With technologies such as cable and satellite TV, computers and the Internet, a constant river of information, images, and ideas can flow freely into your home, much of it good, but too much of it ungodly and corrupt. You can control that flow, but when your children interact in the community with other children, those children all too often are deeply influenced, informed and indoctrinated by the same river--often without controls on its flow of the worst that culture has to offer--and they will offer it freely to your children. The only thing that is standing between those and other influences, and your child's heart and mind, is a committed overprotector--you! If you don't have a heart that beats strongly with a passion to protect your children against unhealthy appetites, unwise relationships, and ungodly secular media, you can be certain that the enemy stands ready to take full advantage of any holes in your commitment and to exploit your children's innocence, vulnerability, and receptiveness. Diligence is the price you pay for staying safe on the path."

~ Clay Clarkson, Educating the Wholehearted Child

Protecting our children is such an important thing to consider as we live well with them for the time they are under our complete care. While many push parents to give their children more autonomy early in life, which seems to somehow apply mostly to online environments and media choices these days, ultimately, it is important to remember that our children are just that--children. They are in need of protection, which is why God gave them to parents who are charged to guard and protect them until such time as they can stand on their own. Even then, we are to speak words of life and wisdom to them, encouraging them to follow God's precepts and listen for His voice of direction.

I'm grateful for my own Shepherd, who watches over and protects me, guiding me with His staff, leading me beside still waters and making me lie down in green pastures. How wonderful that He has given me this image and example to follow as I care for and nurture my own children. And if that's being overprotective ... I'll take it!

Are you often accused of being an overprotective parent? What’s a way you could respond to that accusation with grace and truth?

Awaking Wonder: Opening Your Child's Heart to the Beauty of Learning

By Clarkson, Sally
























Educating the Wholehearted Child

By Clarkson, Clay, Clarkson, Sally
























The Awaking Wonder Experience: A Guided Companion

By Clarkson, Sally, Clarkson, Clay

Home Sweet Home: The Place That Holds & Embraces Me & podcast

"The task of building our homes into places of beauty and life that will feed the hearts, souls, and minds of our children is the most comprehensive task to which God has called us as mothers. We are called quite literally to be "home makers" - to plan and shape a home environment that provides our families with both a safe resting place and a launching pad for everything they do in the world." -The Mission of Motherhood

I’ve only been away on a speaking trip, my first one since covid, since Monday, two days ago, but during this weary time of book launching and life, as I walked in my door today, my home embraced me warmly and said, “Hello, Sally mama, You belong here!”

As I walked in, Clay yelled from the kitchen, “I have the tea kettle on and will pour our tea in a minute. Fresh bread is cut and we can have tea and toast out on the deck.”

For the next lovely hour, I was with my boys, (and Nathan even came up in the conversation a few times.).

We are the ones left at home. We belong to one another. We have our life rituals that have been carved out of the stuff of life to bring civilization, order, dimension, beauty, goodness, companionship and LIFE within our walls and time. Home supports the goodness of our work, our love, our faith. It is the holding place for all that we cherish.

As I have been pondering Awaking Wonder, I cannot wait to get back to my normal discipleship themes. That is where my home came from—following the heart of Christ and shaping a place that celebrates his life, creativity, love and messages. Can’t wait in the days ahead to talk to you about what has been bubbling up in my heart.

So, tonight, my podcast and blog post will be shorter because I am going to “sup” on breakfast for dinner as Joel makes me an egg scramble with bacon, eggs, onions, cheese and avocado—it is what we do when we don’t want to think of what to cook. This, too, is home and we know what to expect and how to live this ritual because it is a repeated life liturgy of Clarkson.

What are your home liturgies? Your values? What does your home say about you? Your faith? Your creativity? Your life.

When I think of home, I think of...

Candles flickering... Familiar Music playing from the other room...

My four children discussing... Plenty of giggling...

The aroma of freshly baked cookies... Various books in baskets on shelves in every room,

Calligraphy of verses, quotes sprinkled on tables around the house

magazines, Bibles, art prints, family photos...

Strong cups of tea...

Strong Coffee with half and half foam

Fresh flowers on display...

Musical instruments-guitar, piano, dulcimer,

A Basketball backboard

Rocking Chairs, art pencils scattered amongst drawings and sketch books Kelsey the golden retriever stealing goodies off of someone's plate, tail wagging as she runs off...

Awaken Your Own Wonder and Imagine What personality your home has and how are you building a place where you belong and that supports your life.

The Awaking Wonder Experience: A Guided Companion

By Clarkson, Sally, Clarkson, Clay



Buy on Amazon


























Awaking Wonder: Opening Your Child's Heart to the Beauty of Learning

By Clarkson, Sally



Buy on Amazon

























































Play Episode #469