Marriage: Theology of the Body Interview with Monica Ashour

I couldn’t let this Election Day pass without at least MENTIONING it as we talk about peace. Know that I am praying for your peace as you deal with the chaos that is the news, politics, and this election. Draw near to God through it all and He will surely draw near to you! (James 4:8)

Finances are the #1 stress in a stressed out America right now. With inflation, job changes, and uncertainty in the economy, it’s not a surprise! But God has seen it all before, and He gives us so much guidance in the Bible. This episode does not focus on any specific budgeting philosophy, but instead focuses on three Biblical principles: Not idolizing money (through overspending, overseeing, or over-stressing) Planning where our money goes through monthly budgeting Giving, regardless of our circumstances In general, the best thing we can always do is to recognize and remember that God loves us and will always take care of us. We say the prayer with the Surrender Novena: “Oh Jesus, I surrender myself to you. Take care of everything.”

The home can be the most peace-filled place, or it can be a major stress in our lives! Where do you find yourself? Three things that cause stress in our homes are: The mess Things breaking Lack of contentment In this episode, we break down tips to help loosen the grip of each of those stresses. By creating routines of tidying and cleaning among kids, keeping up with house fixes as they come (rather than pushing them to some later date where you need to work on EVERYTHING), and practicing gratitudes for individual parts of our houses, we can claim the peace God wants to bring us in our homes. He will increase as we create a peaceful space for our families, and what more could we want in the places we spend the most amounts of our time together as a family? "Oh Jesus, I surrender myself to you. Take care of everything!"

It is well known that those the number of decisions someone makes in the day is directly related to the amount of stress the undergo... How many decisions do you think you have to make as a mother? Probably more than the average Joe, I'd venture to guess! And a lot of those decisions you have to think out have to do with scheduling! In this episode we break down three major things that bring us stress in our scheduling: Decision making Answering Questions Rushing And talk about tips to help out for each of these including: Syncing calendars with husband Weekly meetings to discuss the week ahead Writing a regular routine that is as detailed as possible to take away from regular daily decisions Being realistic about how long it takes to do each activity in the calendar and about how much it takes out of the family I never want these tips to overwhelm, but to give ideas to you! Take what works and forget about the rest! If you need it later, trust that the Holy Spirit will bring it back to mind for you! "Oh Jesus, I surrender myself to you. Take care of everything!"

Parenting is a lifelong job that is the most difficult job you will take on, and once you have it, you have it for life! No one can prepare you for the utter highs and devastating lows every parent experiences. Maybe this is why it can be so stressful and anxiety-driving! There are so many reasons parents struggle with peace, but in this episode we focus on three main points: Attachment Expectations Forecasting We remind ourselves that our children are separate people from us that are given free will by God to make their own choices. Although they will certainly encounter suffering in life, we will keep our eyes on the prize: Heaven. And we will remember that every mess, no matter how big can be cleaned and redeemed by Jesus! We offer our children and our parenting to Him! If you are dealing with a constant level of stress day to day in parenting, consider whether you are taking on too much. it could be helpful to write out everything that is currently occupying your mind and then dividing them into four quadrants: important AND pressing, important NOT pressing, NOT important but pressing, NOT important and NOT pressing. This helps me think out what I need to focus on and what I just need to cross off my list. The Holy Spirit is more than capable of reminding you of something later if you just have to say "no" to something good right now. Lastly, as moms, we are so good at predicting the way things are going to turn out and that helps us as we prepare and teach our kids. But it can also lead to a lot of stress if we are constantly forecasting the way things will eventually affect our kids and how our kids will turn out. Remember that God will continue to be with your children long after they leave your house and that every mess they run into can be cleaned!

Where are you in your personal peace? Do you find yourself as a peaceful person? Or do you feel like you're constantly plagued by worries and stress? Or are you somewhere in between? As said in the last episode, God is the source of all peace, but we can sometimes place barriers that keep us from receiving His peace. In this episode we discuss common barries ones of: Health (Poor health or making health an idol) Inputs (news, media, social media, etc.) Fear (catastrophic thinking or woundedness) Practical ideas for your life that are shared are: Writing down the catastrophes you imagine (maybe in a note in your phone) and checking back on them to see how true they were Evaluating your worries for patterns Asking yourself questions to find the roots of your major stresses Memorizing scripture to combat lies you tell yourself and posting that around your house/memorizing it In a stressful time, physically slow down your movements Resources mentioned in this episode: Think Like a Monk by Jay Shetty Gregory Popcak: Catholic psychologist To yourself after this episode, pray this nine more times: "Oh Jesus, I surrender myself to you. Take care of everything."

What does peace mean to you? To me, it is contentment, fulfillment, and being seen, known, and loved by my Father in Heaven. When I am close to Jesus, I am filled with these feelings and all of life gets easier. There is less pressure on anything to work out the way I want or expect, because I am already filled and fulfilled by Jesus. The Bible talks ALL about peace because people of all ages have dealt with fear and anxiety. But God tells us through John that "There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear" 1 John 4:18a. God wants to take our anxieties and replace them with His love! But if all that is true, how can it be that even when I am praying regularly and trying to stay in communion with God, I can still sometimes be filled with stress and anxiety? God always wants to give us the fruits of the Holy Spirit (including peace!), but sometimes we are: Not open to it Actively doing things that are in opposition to peace Acting in ways that are not good for us and God allows a lack of peace to push us away In this series we will go through many aspects of motherhood and see how we can make ourselves more open to the peace God wants to bring us.

We are starting a brand new series based on PEACE! Could you use more peace in your life? I think we all could! God wants to grant us this fruit of the Holy Spirit, but sometimes we have trouble receiving it. Why? In this series, we will dive into the answer to this question concerning all sorts of topics like: motherhood, marriage, finances, making decisions, and MORE! Join me for the next 9 weeks as we explore peace and learn how to receive it more from God who wants to give us every good and perfect gift.

This is the last episode before we start a new series next week! The last but not least thing that has been helping me grow in faith lately has been THIS PODCAST! Getting vulnerable about what Jesus means to me in a public way has helped me be accountable to "live in a manner worthy of the call [I] have received," (Ephesians 4:1) and to continue sharing about my faith in other ways. Through the podcast, I have also been asked to share in deeper ways to those I may have never crossed paths with, some of whom do not have any relationship with Christ. Though not every person is called to start a podcast, is there a way Jesus is calling you to step out in faith and be a little more "public" with your testimony? Is there a way you can proclaim your identity as a daughter of Christ a little louder or in a different sphere than you have in the past? Stepping out to share about your relationship with Jesus could be all it takes to change someone's life--and maybe even change yours! I encourage you to ask Jesus in prayer if He has a specific calling for you in your life, and do not be afraid of what that can bring! "The world offers you comfort. But you were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness" -Pope Benedict XVI

"Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor; for if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up! Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone?" Ecclesiastes 4:9-11 When God created Adam, it says He saw that he was alone. Even though Adam was surrounded by animals and had 24/7 access to his Father in Heaven, God knew that Adam needed a companion. In my life, I have seen how good friendships not only give me companionship, comfort, and joy, but they help bring me closer to God. A godly friendship can inspire you toward God and help you see the areas in which you need to grow. They can also call you to higher when you may be falling for the lies of the world. If you don't have good friends who are bringing you up in your faith, pray for God to light the way for you to find some! He will provide! Check out moms groups at local churches, join, a Bible study, or reach out to others you may not know well yet. If you need some more inspiration, check out this interview my dear friend, Kristen Combo, did on the More of What Matters podcast. She is the QUEEN of community and has such beautiful wisdom on the subject. You can only gain from hearing what she has to say! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/more-of-what-matters/id1620249249?i=1000663905432