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If you’re one of my readers who is a mom, are you breathing a sigh of relief that the school year is *almost* over? You can have the best kiddos in the world and still be exhausted at the end of a full year. Does this sound like you? If so, I have the perfect summer read for you. The Blog About Blogger Network gifted me with Kristin Funston’s new book, More for Mom: Living Your Whole and Holy Life this spring. And, they have provided an extra copy so that I can give it to a FINCHNWREN reader! (This is a FLASH giveaway closing 5/27/19, so enter today!)
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by your to-do list? Or just tired when you look at the laundry pile/weeds to be pulled/calendar of events for your family? Do you feel as though you could be living a successful life and ministry if you *only* could remove one thing from the stack, something that seems to interfere with the life you want to live?
Kristin Funston has life and relief to speak to you then. She, too, struggled with this “overwhelm” feeling that causes us to feel that we have to keep producing and keep striving; as the marked-out word on the book cover suggests, that life and people just want “more” from Mom. Do you ever feel like that; that people just keep asking you to do more, more, more, and that you are trying to serve out of a cup that is already emptied out; or even, a cup that is cracked already?
Maybe this is just what our culture has shaped us to believe. I’ve certainly lived life that way and had those moments. (Especially if you’re a type A person like I am.) At a recent physical, my doctor and I were talking about stamina and energy levels, and the cost of doing more than we can. He said, “Well, if you can just carve out a “reasonable” schedule…”
Yes. I actually laughed when he said that. 🙂
Sometimes in the midst of mom life a reasonable schedule isn’t always possible. We can have the orthodontist appointments, the coop classes, the driving lessons calendared. But we aren’t always able to calendar sudden colds or the flu; unexpected emergencies; or the meals you’d like to provide to a dear friend in need. And over time, that constant demand of schedule can not only wear us down physically but emotionally and spiritually as well. How can we recover from, and learn to operate from, a place where we can understand that MORE is not demanded from us, but is provided FOR us by the God who loves us?
Kristin Funston offers a different mindset for us to operate from:
“Each of us is a whole person with one whole life,
and we were designed to experience the holy of this life now, on earth.” (p. 7)
Okay, that sounds great. But what does it mean exactly? To Kristin, it means that we don’t have to live “compartmentalized” life, where changing diapers is one thing, teaching Sunday school is another section of my life, meal planning is another, work life is another. Really, our lives aren’t composed of the “important” and “non-important” parts. It’s all one life, and it’s all significant. All of the seemingly disparate parts of our lives are really all just one, whole life; one that has Him to steer us through, fill us up for, and stitch all those different parts together into one beautiful whole. One where we actually experience rest.
That’s just the first chapter. Throughout the rest of the book, Kristin unpacks these from this original “whole life” thesis statement:
- Experiencing joy, contentment, and (yes, even) a holy life
- Learning to develop a mental mindset that keeps our thoughts in a beautiful and useful path
- Showing love by engaging with others both inside and outside our families
- Dealing in a healthy manner with personal expectations and avoiding comparisons
- Really, really seeing others
- Understanding the real purpose of our lives
- And tons more!
And while all of this is so, so awesome (and trust me; this is a remarkable book that has been incredibly meaningful to me), there are two things that really made it truly life-giving for me.
- There is no expectation in this book anywhere to make me think that I need to be a perfect mom.
- It. Is. Hilarious!
While Kristin is offering readers this beautiful way of looking at our lives and engaging with God for more joy, more peace, and more contentment…she is just so real. And makes you laugh while you read it! I am definitely an anti-spoiler girl (i.e., I avoided every single news article or blog post about Marvel in the weeks heading up to “Avengers: Endgame” because I did NOT want to know what happened before I sat in that theater seat!) but I just have to share with you some of these funny moments from More for Mom:
- “If I can barely manage my life, how can I be godly?” (p. 91)
- “Yow. Not going to lie. This verse hurt my feelings.” (p. 69)
- “After a long day of (poorly) parenting my two-year-old, I find peace and even laughter when I sit and write words down in a journal or prayer book.” (p. 126)
- “I have a terrible memory and am very easily distracted. I believe this is partly because of the changes that child rearing caused in my body and mind, but I also know it’s because there are roughly twelve bazillion things running through my mind at any given time.” (p. 150)
And all of this is important to me for several reasons. First, I REALLY believe that we need to laugh more. Life is just hard sometimes, and it hurts. And we can get worn down and forget how much laughter not only lifts our spirits but also puts smiles on the faces of those we love. SO important.
Second, I love that Kristin gets down on the floor with her readers. She’s not sitting high up in the air on some podium of righteousness that we can barely see. She is right down there in the trenches with us. She has struggled with our own struggles; she has had the snarky thoughts that we have had; and she’s made some mom mistakes that are so familiar to us. She makes it funny even as she’s making it real…and that gives us hope that we can do this too.
In closing…
Has this been a rough year for you as a mom? Are you just so, so glad that we are on the cusp of summer? Do you feel as though you just can’t accomplish one more thing? Or, if none of these things is true for you (yay for you if so!), would you just like to read a book that will blow a fresh air of encouragement across your mom life? Then More for Mom: Living Your Whole and Holy Life is THE book you must read this summer. You will learn so much, focus your gaze differently on your life, and learn how to live this mom life in joy and peace.
I loved it. And so will you.
And the giveaway!
One FINCHNWREN reader will win a copy of More for Mom: Living Your Whole and Holy Life! Simply click on the pink “Enter here” link below. That will take you to a Giveaway Tools entry form where you’ll be able to enter in a variety of ways. This is a flash giveaway, so it will close on Monday, May 27. Enter now and watch your email to find out if you won on Tuesday, May 28!
Enter here
And the winner is: Leela. Congratulations, Leela!
Best wishes! And enjoy! –Wren
DISCLOSURE: From time to time, FINCHNWREN may receive a free product or service in exchange for our honest opinions expressed in our blog. We are not required to write a positive or glowing review, nor are we additionally compensated for these reviews. We share our own opinions, and our family’s opinion, of these products. We’re disclosing this in accordance with FTC regulations.
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