Daily Life | Brooke McGlothlin

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Sep 22

Opened my Bible this morning to find this little treasure.

My youngest son went through a season where he left me these notes almost daily. This one in particular shows the words to a song we sing to each other from time-to-time. I have tons of his notes to me in treasured spaces, including in my grandaddy's Navy trunk (where I keep my prayer journals).

A nice way to start the day 💚

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Sep 22

Maybe I’m just a mess and need Jesus more than other people do, but I don’t think so. I AM a mess, and deeply in need, but I’m willing to bet we all are. If that’s true, the reality for us all is this:

We will never have a vibrant prayer life if we don’t know how much we need Jesus.

It starts in one of two places-obedience or desperation-and both of those require understanding our need.

I’m not talking about needing Jesus for salvation. We do. That’s a given. I’m not even talking about needing Jesus for a miracle, something we know we can’t do for ourselves.

I’m talking about needing Him on the daily. Needing Him in the moments. And truly, WANTING to need Him because we’ve tasted and seen how much richer life can be when we lay down the lie that we should be able to do everything ourselves, and admit the truth that partnering with Jesus brings the truest, deepest, best kind of life there is.

It’s the kind of understanding that will make a woman set aside time for prayer even when life is busy…even when things are going well. It will make her pray into the future for things yet unseen, because God is already there. It will stop her in the middle of her day as God lays someone on her heart and she knows she’s meant to pray.

It produces the kind of woman who goes first to God for everything, and who can be used in exciting ways to help bring in the Kingdom.

Are we there?

If not, my prayer for us today is that God would lovingly, gently show us our need. We’ll maybe want to fight it, and it might not feel nice at the time, but the good stuff that can help you (and those around you) withstand the hard stuff is on the other side waiting. Promise 💚

#prayingmombook #prayingwomen #prayingwoman #millionprayingmoms

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Sep 21

Oh guys,

I opened up my Shutterfly account this morning to order school pics and decided to scroll down. I had forgotten that I uploaded all these pictures so many years ago (swipe to see)…and I sat and smiled that biggest, soul deep mama smile that reaches to the core of who you are as I looked at my precious babies. I don’t have babies anymore 😢

Good heavens they were beautiful. MAN, they still are. The most beautiful gift God’s given me apart from Jesus and my husband.

These were the days I couldn’t keep from taking their pictures. They were also the days that I felt mostly like a failure. But now…now I see the beauty of those days and wish I could squeeze their small bodies one last time, or giggle as they make blankets into capes (maybe we should recreate that one??).

God did this for me…let me see the beauty after the mess this morning. I felt like a failure just last night and needed the reminder that the hardest place to see grace is when you’re IN the hard moment. Perspective and time allows us to see the way God provides even inside of it.

Back then I was still learning to go directly to God, taking it all to Him in prayer. Today, His lap is the place I most want to be.

Thank You, Lord, for this precious reminder of how far we’ve come. Help me live in this state of gratefulness, even as these baby days are long gone. They are proof that time passes quickly, but You are in and over each passage of time 💚

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Sep 20

I know parents who serve Christ with everything they have, living what they believe beautifully in front of their children (better than I do) who have a child not walking with the Lord…yet.

I also know kids who have come to Christ apart from a believing family of origin. They go to church alone every Sunday, and it takes a level of commitment that blows me away.

Here’s what I’m really trying to say: God’s plans aren’t ours. He works on His own time table. He brings our children to Himself when He pleases and matures them at the rate He wants for them, and it will look different for every single one of them no matter what kind of family they come from.

Does that mean we quit trying, and don’t pay attention to how we’re raising our kids? Do we stop trying to teach them about Christ? No. Absolutely not. We do it because God calls us to this holy partnership that He uses for His glory. But it does mean that we hold our kids with open hands to the God Who loves them more than we do, and trust Him to use their lives in a way that best honors Him…even if it means we have to wait and pray 💚

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Sep 16

Before children, I was in complete control of most of my life. I knew exactly what to do to produce results, & had a long list of life goals I knew I could achieve. My 1st son was the next to last check on that list. I was 27. I prayed for boys, & the Lord gave me boys. Every goal (except one), done ✅

You guys know the story by now. Having 2 children 23 months apart, combined with an achiever personality, & a husband who worked shift work, kicked my feet right out from under me. For the first time in my life, no amount of working hard or trying to do all the right things gave me the results I wanted in my children.

And please understand, when I say I tried to do all the right things to produce obedient children I could control, I absolutely mean it. Tell me something you did to “train” your children & I promise I did it.

It simply did not work.

Maybe it was a perfect storm of my own imperfections + two boys who were (are) anything but naturally compliant (I mean it. I know compliant children. I was one. I don’t have any of those). Whatever it was, God used it to strip me bare & rebuild me from scratch. Most days He’s still doing just that.

That’s my story. It’s also why I’ve hated that my books must live in the “parenting” category. I will not teach you how to parent to get the kind of kids you want, or the Christian community tells us we need. I won’t do it. Even now, my 14 & 16 year old boys are COMPLETELY NORMAL teenagers who deal with all the teenager things. They aren’t exempt, & WE HAVE NOT ARRIVED. I haven’t produced perfect kids. My parenting has fallen short many, many times.

But I pray. A lot.

I stay connected to God as much as I know how. I let His Word keep changing me so I can do better next time. I keep short accounts. I apologize. I ask for forgiveness (from God & my sons…just did it this morning). I pursue them. I love them hard. And I absolutely refuse to give up.

So if you want practical tips for training your child, I’m not your girl.

If, on the other hand, you want a woman to walk beside you who isn’t afraid to, “boast in her weaknesses, so Christ’s power may reside in me,” (2 Cor 12:9) I’m here 💚

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Sep 15

I know there are a lot of young moms here…

Moms who understandably argue, “I have small children. I can’t even think, much less pray!” And I get that. Honestly, I do. Every mom who has ever had young children remembers how hard it is to not lose your mind just a little, no matter how much those littles are loved.

Today, I want to gently and lovingly suggest a perspective change for you. (I love you…so I said, “gently and lovingly.” See how that works 😉

Prayer isn’t one more thing to do. It’s something we can’t do without.

It’s been my experience—especially as a mom now of teenagers—that it never gets easier to create space for this vital piece of our walk with God. It just doesn’t. The challenges and issues might look different across the ages and stages, but there will always be obstacles to creating time to do the most important thing. I promise.

Don’t put it off until later, thinking you’ll have more time. I’m just as tired and worn-out now as I was when mine were little. It’s just from different things (moms of teens and young adults, back me up here).

I’m not telling you this to heap guilt on you, or make you feel like you have to somehow make time for one more thing. I’m telling you praying God’s Word for yourself and your family is THE MOST IMPORTANT thing—the only thing that helped me see straight when I was in the younger years stage of parenting—and it continues to be the only thing to this day.

Pray like your life depends on it…cause it kinda does 💚

(Excerpted from #prayingmombook).

#prayingmom #millionprayingmoms

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Sep 14

Every single thing about this #prayingmombook was crazy intentional…even the chapter titles. Can I tell you about them?

It was really important to me to have the titles be specific. Praying Mom is about addressing and overcoming the challenges that keep us from having a vibrant prayer life, and I wanted those challenges, 7 of them total, to leap off the pages. I wanted YOU to be able to see yourself in the chapters…to see YOUR challenge represented there.

But I also wanted you to be able to see a bit of the solution…that there is hope…that before you even read the first word of the first chapter, you’d know God already has a plan for how you’ll overcome what’s holding you back from what might just be the most important part of your relationship with Him.

Also, they’re in the form of a prayer 💚

The Chapters:

1. I Don’t Know if My Prayers Really Matter—“Lord, Help Me Understand My Place in Your Plan.”

2. I Don’t Know What to Pray—“Lord, Teach Me to Pray.”

3. I’m Exhausted from Trying to Trust God—“Lord, I Believe. Help My Unbelief.”

4. I Don’t Believe God Hears My Prayers—“Lord, Help Me Learn to Trust You When I Can’t See.”

5. I Can’t Pray Until I Get My Life Together—“Lord, Put Me Back Together.”

6. I Have Small Children. I Can’t Even Think, Much Less Pray!—“Lord, Teach Me to Pray in the Moments of My Day.”

7. I’m So Busy!—“Lord, Help Me Find Time for My Most Important Relationship.”

I hope you see your heart reflected here, and that you’re encouraged to believe God has the ability to heal it as you learn to share it with Him in prayer.

(If you’ve already read Praying Mom, which chapter resonated with you most)?

💚

#millionprayingmoms #prayingmom #prayingmoms #sheprays

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Sep 11

#wherewereyouwhentheworldstoppedturning

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Sep 10

When I got my first job out of grad school, working with women in unplanned pregnancy, I felt woefully unprepared & inadequate. Not because I lacked education (I had just finished a masters degree). Not because I lacked in desire to serve (I felt so called to stand in the gap for women & babies. I am 💯pro-life and 💯pro-woman, but that’s a story for another time). My heart was filled with compassion for the decisions these women faced, & even though I believed abortion would hurt them more than help them, & that it wasn’t God’s best for them, after listening to their stories I understood why many felt it was their only option.

But still, these were people’s LIVES, & not only was I to counsel them in their need, providing comfort, truth, support, provision, and the options, but I was TEACHING new counselors, training them to speak the truth in love, & to see the heart of the woman they served.

God met me. I still look back & see God’s hand as He gave me everything I needed to lead women who were, in most cases, old enough to be my mom. I remember feeling a bit more legit when I finally hit my 30th birthday 😉 That was 13 years ago.

Now, my leadership takes a different form. Mainly, I lead young sinners, & today, as I read this passage about Solomon, I was reminded of the pure faith I had those 13 years ago that God. Would. Show. Up. I knew it. Trusted it. Banked my life on it. I knew I wasn’t enough, but I knew God had called me & believed He would equip me.

Why do I…why do we believe less about motherhood?

Why is the leap of faith often harder with those in our own homes? Why do we focus so much on our lack instead of filling ourselves with the belief that God is more than enough?

I wish I’d been able to carry that surety of God’s ability into my young motherhood. I didn’t at first. But it was a tiny crack of remembrance of what God had accomplished in me before that inspired me to believe He could do it again.

And so I prayed.

Just like I had prayed every day of that 1st job, asking God to be strong in me so I could care for women in crisis, now I asked Him to be strong in me so I could care for the needs of my greatest blessings.

You can too 💚

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Sep 9

If you didn’t catch my interview with @phyliciamasonheimer yesterday you really should take 20 minutes and invest. It was good.

One of the things she said is that, “Prayer is progress.” It fits so beautifully with our @millionprayingmoms foundational belief that prayer is not a last resort, but the first and best response to motherhood. But here’s the thing…you don’t have to be a mom to have wondered if your prayers are actually doing anything. That’s universal. Most of us feel like prayer isn’t “the good stuff,” or, “the stuff that matters.” And the reason for that is that it isn’t tangible. We can’t control it, can’t predict the timing or outcome. We want to give our time and energy to things that produce movement, and well, sometimes answers to prayer take a while.

It doesn’t feel like we’re making any progress, but we are.

Believing that is a matter-a gift- of faith.

The pattern for it is all over scripture. See for yourself as you tune in to our conversation (it’s saved in my “Prayer Stories” highlight here and at @millionprayingmoms).

Challenge yourself in this faith walk today to believe you’re making an impact for the Kingdom when you pray 💚

#prayingmombook #millionprayingmoms #prayingmom #prayingmoms #christianmom #christianmoms

brookemcglothlin

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Sep 9

For the first time ever, I have two pair of glasses. Don’t worry, they’re from @zennioptical, so they were super affordable. I have never had a back-up pair of glasses, and after recently having to choose between broken glasses and glasses that are probably 4-5 prescriptions out of date (hello, headache!), I chose to invest.

I’m still trying to decide how I feel about the clear frames. Truthfully, they’re a bit easier to see out of. Frames blend into the background after a while, but I swear I have a wider frame of vision with these.

What do we think? Yay or nay?

Also, our Volleyball team swept their games tonight! #girlpower!

brookemcglothlin

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Sep 8

🎉GIVEAWAY 🎉

Someone once asked me what the best part of getting to write books has been for me. I didn’t have to think long at all to know that the very best part has been having the opportunity to get to know other authors…the kind of quality Christians who inspire me to be better, expand my thinking, understand God more deeply, love Jesus more.

I am so much the richer for each of them, and today I’d like to pass some of that richness on to you.

Please enter to win a copy of:

* In a Boat in the Middle of a Lake, by @patrickwschwenk and @ruthschwenk.
* I Choose Brave, by @ichoosebrave.
* Love Centered Parenting, by @themoneysavingmom (I had the chance to endorse this one. It’s sooo good).
* Brave, by @sissygoff.
* Flooded, by @nickikoziarz.
* No Better Mom for the Job, by @beckykeife.
* Raising A Modern-Day Knight, by Robert Lewis.
* Never Unfriended, by @lisajobaker.
* Awaking Wonder, by @sally.clarkson.

TO ENTER:

1. Like this post.
2. Follow me.
3. Tag some friends you think might also enjoy these books...one per comment please.

BONUS: Follow the accounts of the authors and leave a comment letting them know you appreciate all they do to encourage people like us.

Giveaway open to US Residents only. I’ll pick one winner on 9/15/21 💚

brookemcglothlin

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Sep 2

Sometimes I can’t help but pause and pray God’s Word back to Him for my children and for myself.

I’ve been reading a Proverb a day, looking for God’s wisdom as it relates to some big changes coming for me, and today, in Proverbs 2, my heart overflowed into prayer as I asked God to make the verses true in my heart and in those of my kids.

And then I wanted to share it with you.

Swipe to see the entire prayer. Feel free to make it your own. If you’d like a version of the prayer that is for your children, head over to the @millionprayingmoms IG. It’s there 💚

#prayingmombook #prayerwarrior #prayerispowerful #prayerworks #prayerlife #prayerjournal #dailyprayer #morningprayer #powerinprayer #prayertime #powerofprayer #prayingwomen #prayingmom #prayingmoms #prayingwoman #praywithoutceasing #prayerful #prayerchangesthings #alwayspray #prayedup #prayersup #christianmom #christianliving #christianlife #millionprayingmoms

brookemcglothlin

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Sep 1

When your receiver coach is just as excited as you are about that first interception 💚💛

Excuse me while I go wipe my eyes a bit 😭🥰

brookemcglothlin

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Sep 1

If you want an affirmation, something to speak over yourself that orients your heart and mind to Truth, and influences your day, this is a good one.

Say, “I am the place where God chooses to dwell in power,” and then thank Jesus for making that gift possible, remembering that the power doesn’t come from you, but from Him.

According to Romans 8, WE are the place where the Spirit of God lives. And not just where He lives, but where He dwells in power.

Me. You. Our hearts are where the power of God lives. Not because our hearts are enticing to Him on their own…no…they’re only filled with sin. He chooses to live in our hearts because it’s His power that changes our hearts. That’s humbling. And exciting.

I’ve been tempted for the last couple weeks to dwell on all that I am not, focusing on what I lack, skill sets I just don’t have. But this morning, as I read in Romans 8, I was reminded that all the Power I need has taken up residence in my heart. Because of Jesus, and what He did for me on the cross, the Power of God dwells within me. I carry Him around all the time! He never leaves me. In my weakness, I can literally access the Power of God (the Holy Spirit) at all times. He isn’t just WITH me, He is IN me. All I have to do is acknowledge Him. Talk to Him. Pray.

Prayer. Tapping into the powerful Holy Spirit of God, the same Spirit that set me free in Christ. The same Spirit Who raised Christ from the dead. What greater amount or kind of power could we need?

Come Holy Spirit make me Your home, that all the world may see…the power of the Living God at work, living in me.

Amen.

Welcome September 💚

#prayingmombook #millionprayingmoms #prayingwoman #prayingwomen #prayingmom #prayingmoms #christianwomen #christianwoman

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Aug 31

In some ways I feel like this mug accurately represents the sum total of absolutely everything I’m feeling right now.

*Afghanistan
*Ida
*Covid
*Raising Teenagers 🤷🏼‍♀️

She prays.

In response to all the things, in all the places, and all the people who are hurting, trying, left behind, and trying to function in a world turned upside down…

She prays 💚

(The mug is available in the Christian Mom Shop. There’s a link in my bio).

#sheprays

brookemcglothlin

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Aug 30

Knowing who I AM should be secondary to knowing the GREAT I AM, for it’s only when I truly know Him that I can know myself.

And how else can I know Him but by talking to Him and reading His Word?

Praying God’s Word is arguably THE best way to get to know who God is, and by default, me💚

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Aug 28

Can I be a happy mama on a Saturday morning?

This week has been heavy, no? So I’m going to take joy where I can get it and tell you what happened to my oldest at last night’s Varsity football game. Ok?

He’s a Junior this year, and just started playing football last year. He played JV and learned a lot, and has spent the last year growing like a weed. Despite that, he is still among the smallest on the team. Nothing small about his heart, and grit, and determination though!

His two cousins (all 3 born within 2 months of each other) are the Varsity QBs so there were 3 McGlothlins on the field last night (4 if you count my youngest, who did a fantastic job of doing absolutely nothing on the sidelines…he’s an 8th grader 🤪 Swipe to see them).

In the second half, @maxmcglothlin had a touchdown saving tackle (see video…it’s the second tackle) and had TWO…TWO INTERCEPTIONS (end of video)!! Be sure to notice the way his teammates surrounded him after he was tackled. One of them picked him up on his shoulders in celebration and mama about lost it in the stands 😩

My cousins were there, as well as my parents (swipe to see my dad), and my big brother. All of us went crazy and I don’t regret ringing my cowbell like a mad woman even one bit!

Icing on the cake? He made the news for Friday night football extra. Aaaaaannddd my heart is full 💚💛

Tell me something good from your last week?

brookemcglothlin

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Aug 27

So many valuable lives at stake in these times, but today, I want to pause and remember these.

Lord, bring comfort to the families of those lost as only You can. Our hearts break for them. We sit with them in their loss. We lift their arms and ask You, the God of angel armies, to provide for their every need.

Come quickly, Lord Jesus, and put evil to rest 💚

(Note: I am not, in any way, making a political statement with this post. Please keep it that way. Thank you).

brookemcglothlin

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Aug 26

#nationaldogday

Sir Toby the Yellow and Lady Siri the Chocolate of the McGlothlin Home for Boys 💚

#labsofinstagram

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