sin Archives - The Mom Initiative

Ways to Help Your Children Remember God

In my new book, releasing today, Forsaken God?: Remembering the Goodness of God Our Culture Has Forgotten, I discuss the vital importance of raising up the next generation to not only know God, but insure they have a relationship with Jesus. That means parents must follow biblical guidelines in raising their children. The results will be immediate. parents must follow biblical guidelines in raising their children. The results will be immediate. Click To Tweet Ways to Implement Deuteronomy 6:6-9 in Your Home In the Generation to Generation section of Forsaken God?, I discuss Deuteronomy 6:6-9, where Moses instructed the Israelites …

How to raise kids with holy hearts

Venomous words came out of my small mouth without even thinking. When the church lady asked how I liked my new baby sister, I answered her with jealous words of a displaced youngest who was suddenly in the middle after 7 years. My mother’s wounded glance awakened my prideful spirit as we walked to the car. Back home, she handed me the phone to apologize for my words. I apologized with my mouth, but my heart was angry. I felt far away from my changing family and from the God we had worshiped that morning at the church building. An …

Simple Change

“Say you’re sorry, Riley.” “Sorrrrrreeeeee.” “She doesn’t mean it! She’s not sorry.” A common exchange among siblings. a challenging situation for moms and dads. Saying sorry is sometimes just saying words. Kids can spot an insincere apology a mile away. My sister-in-law was once a member of a cult called Eckankar. The sect taught that Christians were all hypocrites; a believer could do whatever he wanted, ask for forgiveness, and then do it again later. Hyper-grace. Giving an insincere apology is a lot like seeking hyper-grace. Giving an insincere apology is a lot like seeking hyper-grace. Click To Tweet So, …

No Yeast in the House!

Time to clean out the closets. Scrub the walls. Mop the kitchen floor. Wipe out all the cabinets and drawers. Scour every utensil. Passover is coming. Why all the cleaning? Because the Law said no yeast shall be found in the house. Not even a tiny particle. All leaven was expelled from the house and kept out of the house for seven days. To the Hebrew/Jewish mind, fermentation meant uncleanness and corruption and was to be purged out, as it was synonymous with sin. It was to be spotless! However, one house did not remain spotless; it was the House …

Emotions, Hormones, and Sin

Ever since my children were small I’ve noticed that it can be easy to make excuses for sinful behavior. When they are two we call it “the terrible two’s“. Many behaviors are excused because it is said that they “are normal for that age“. When they turn 13 “their bodies are changing!”. When they are 16 “it’s hormonal” or “they are teenagers“. When they are college age “they are just immature…it’s ‘normal’ to act that way ‘at their age“! What I find interesting is that it doesn’t stop there. Women blame sinful behavior on hormones. When we’re pregnant, “it’s hormones“. …

The Suffocating Wake of Porn

The day my husband’s struggle with porn came to light, a new, unwanted battle twisted to life inside me. The wicked pictures that once held my husband hostage now try to shove me under their suffocating wake. Each moment of the day painful reminders of my husband’s unfaithfulness surface through: Billboards along the roads flaunting airbrushed bodies causing my heart and stomach to sink. Living room- turned harsh environment- as I tensely wait for the next perfect body flashed at just the right angle (over and over) on our family TV making my skin crawl. Church services… I learned years …