Have you ever been afraid to let your kids see you fail because you don’t want to lose control? I’ve been afraid to mess up in front of my kids; to stop being their hero. But when my son Jacob pointed out a failure I couldn’t deny, and I was faced with a choice. I could lie and try to change his perception. I could get mad and scare him out of drawing attention to my faults. Or, I could confess and let him see me in all my imperfect glory.

In one of her podcasts, Dr. Caroline Leaf suggested that stress is a warning signal from the body telling us that something is going wrong. Our stressful feelings are meant to teach us to adjust our behavior, habits or situation before we bring harm to ourselves. In the same way, comparison can also be a useful emotion, but if we don’t process this emotion correctly we can fall into comparison’s trap- just like stress.

When we shift all the focus onto our actions, we tie ourselves down and miss out on the pure, loving grace that God offers us, no strings attached. God doesn’t expect us to be perfect, but he does call us to become perfect. Perfection, in and of itself, isn’t wrong (It’s the exact opposite, in fact). It’s all about how you pursue it. Friends, I hope you take encouragement today as we discuss what pursuing perfection in Christ (the right way) looks like.

Any perfectionists out there? This one’s for you, and for me. Because as much as I like to think I’ve conquered my propensity for perfectionism, there’s still a part of me that falls prey to it. In my roles as a wife, mom, friend, neighbor, and believer, I sometimes face the temptation to base my self-worth on a checklist of characteristics instead of checking in with a God who cherishes me in my highs and my lows.

I've noticed something about human nature, while we have been created equal, we are certainly not all created the same. For some of us, shame rolls off our shoulders without a passing thought while others of us take days, weeks or years to rid ourselves of it. We might have been created equal, but we are not the same. Shame can be emotionally tricky, so I want to share with you the biggest tool, or rather mindset, I've learned to conquer shame. Before we can conquer shame, we have to understand what it is, why we feel it.

When I was in middle school, our TV busted. We decided not to replace it because Christian culture was preaching that television was a tool of Satan to destroy the universe. It would be tempting to say that social media is also a tool of Satan, but but I don't think we have to throw the baby out with the bathwater. So, I want to provide you with three ways you can fight against social media addiction. 

Perhaps I'm too introspective, but as I celebrated the 4th of July this year, I began to ask myself, "What is true freedom?" When I think about our culture, freedom seems to mean the ability to live unfettered, unattached and unencumbered. The word freedom seems to currently carry the connotation that we can live how we want with no strings attached, and anything less is oppressive. What comes to mind when you hear the word, Freedom?

When we label people by their sin, we take away their humanity. But every person who exists, or has ever existed, is God's creation made in His image. Objectification is evil and offensive because we turn someone God has created into an object for our own amusement, frustration, or pleasure. If we were to truly examine our hearts, I believe we would see that we are all objectifiers like the Pharisee above. Why do we do it?

I wonder how many American women feel unjustified to wear the suit they love because they are out-of-shape, white as snow, or simply don't look as good as that girl in that picture. The Struggle is Real. Why? I think because we've grown up in a culture which has taught us to do this. But, I can't completely blame culture because I've chosen to think this way; to believe I am how I look instead of believing I am who I am inside…let’s talk about objectification.

Today, I want to introduce you to my friend, Jess Brock. I've known Jess has been a part of our Clayton King Ministries family for over 10 years. She is currently a stay at home mom of two, married to the love of her life, enjoys yoga, traveling, and gathering people around her table. If you're in the toddler stage of life, you know that mom life can feel slightly stifling. If you're wondering about your future, this blog is perfect for you.

Holly is a sweet friend from Greenwood SC. She serves as the assistant to the Campus Pastor and heads up women’s groups for the NewSpring Church satellite camps. In this week’s blog, Holly shares how she overcame legalism and learned how to love Jesus more than striving to be perfect.

Today's blog is brought to you by my wonderfully wise sister, Elisabeth Harper. She shares tips on how to love Jesus more than our dreams, in our community, with our future and more than ourselves. Her Tips and Tricks can be heard every week on the  Overcoming Monday Podcast. Today’s tips are her favorites from from my book ILYM.

This blog is composed of responses from Megan Hibbard in an interview about the the chapter I Love You More in My Community from Sharie's Book I Love You More. This interview will be available soon in video format along with the Study Guide for I Love You More.

One of the biggest problems I’ve noticed with comparison is that I can feel like I’m constantly laying it down, putting it behind me, only to catch myself a few minutes later digging it back up, returning to old mindsets. The good news, of course, is that God isn’t doing the same. I love the picture of Him in this verse:
He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. (Ps. 103:12 NLT)

As I sit, thinking about writing this blog to you, dear mom, I admit I am a little intimidated. I want to write a blog to you, but this world is made up of so many different kinds of women with so many different personalities and life stages. Some of you are married, some of you are single moms doing it alone and some of you have the help of a parent. By the time I consider your individual temperament, add in a husband's (or helper's) nature, and each of your children's disposition along with each of your life stages and economic situations...I might give up on it altogether! So, from the very beginning, I want to confess that I don't know everything about you or your situation, but I still have a desire to help you find your "strong" as a mom. I don't know if I can, but I hope you will give me permission to try.

Do you feel guilty because you know you should be faithfully training and instructing your children in righteousness but you’re not sure how? Are you spinning your wheels with ineffective parenting methods such as bribing, counting to three, and threatening punishment in an attempt to get your children to mind? Are you frustrated because it seems no matter what you do, you just can’t reach the hearts of your children?

If any of you have met my husband, you know he is a strong man. He is strong in his build, in his voice, and in his confidence. He is extremely extroverted, and so engaging that he makes fast friends. But underneath his confident exterior, there are weaknesses the everyday person doesn't see. His deep love for others and willingness to help them pursue their dreams often blinds him to their disingenuous motives. He is sometimes loyal to a fault. His deep love for me makes him defensive and angry when someone takes advantage of me. His deep love for our children sometimes spoils them (which they don't mind).

Recently I spent some time with one of my favorite friends. Whenever we catch up, I am always amazed at her faithfulness to love Jesus with her whole heart, surrendering the parts of herself which feel broken so Jesus can heal her from the inside out. I want to share with you what she shared with me. Here's paraphrase of what she said: 

Genesis 2:18 says, "Then the Lord God said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him. "When I was a little girl, teenager and young women, this word helper felt unimportant. I wondered why God would give Adam so much significance, and the woman less? I felt like scripture was teaching that women were to find their significance in man. Little did I know my understanding was a demeaning version of the truth. Woman, God not design you to be second, but to be strong.

Hope swelled in my heart as I watched the 2017 Wonder Woman movie directed by Patty Jenkins. A young girl grows up on an island filled with brave, strong, female warriors. She wanted to be a warrior too, but her mother wanted to protect her. But, she couldn’t hold back this hunger, so her mother agrees to let her train, but says, “You will train her harder than any Amazon before her. Five times harder. Ten times harder. Until she is better than even you, but she must never know the truth about who she is or how she came to be.”