In this episode of The Hope + Help Project, Christine Chappell interviews author/writer Sara Wallace on the topic anxiety in motherhood and her new book, Created to Care: God's Truth for Anxious Moms. Sara discusses God’s good design for our “mother bear” instincts, the heart struggles that take place when fear dominates our parenting, how to approach concerns over our children’s salvation, and how the gospel of Jesus Christ offers anxious moms the necessary resources to learn how to trust God with their children’s lives. She also highlights some of the ways moms can fall into guilt-ridden performance traps and control idolatry, offering anxious mothers words of encouragement and comfort for the weary—but priceless—privilege of raising children.
Our anxiety has a tendency to smother our joy in motherhood, but it's not just because we're control freaks. It's because [motherhood] is a difficult, monumental task, and it's okay to struggle—it's okay for every moment not to be enjoyable. It's very difficult for us to let go of that control, where we say, "This is what I need for motherhood to be right—this is what I need to make this work."
About the Podcast
The Hope + Help Project podcast offers compassionate biblical conversations about life's challenging problems. The purpose of the podcast is to share Christ-centered comfort and clarity for those seeking biblical solutions for the struggles they face. The podcast accomplishes this by offering a mix of interviews with seasoned biblical counseling professionals and ministry leaders on a variety of topics. Listeners can expect to receive biblical wisdom as well as practical steps for facing suffering, struggling and sin with courage and grace. Hosted by author/writer Christine M. Chappell.
About the Guest
Sara Wallace is author of the Bible study The Gospel-Centered Mom, For the Love of Discipline, and has written articles for the Gospel Coalition and RELEVANT magazine. She and her husband have five sons.
About the Book
Created to Care: God's Truth for Anxious Moms • Young motherhood is a flurry of activity and endless laundry. But beyond the din of the busyness, a small, persistent voice beckons our thoughts to follow: "What if . . ."
God created moms with a heightened sense of awareness in this precious season. Our hearts are uniquely vulnerable to joy and fear at the same time. Between experiencing real trials and just-as-stressful hypothetical ones, we're a mess. We need an anchor. We need something to tether our minds to when the waves of anxiety threaten our joy.
If you struggle with anxiety as a mom, Sara Wallace wants you to know you're not alone. What's more, God's Word has specific, practical comfort that will help you to embrace this season with peace and confidence. Sara shows how we can learn to have peace in ten critical areas‚ from our personal insecurities to the spiritual well-being of our children‚ and provides practical tips from other moms.
God created moms with a heightened sense of awareness in this precious season. Our hearts are uniquely vulnerable to joy and fear at the same time. Between experiencing real trials and just-as-stressful hypothetical ones, we're a mess. We need an anchor. We need something to tether our minds to when the waves of anxiety threaten our joy.
If you struggle with anxiety as a mom, Sara Wallace wants you to know you're not alone. What's more, God's Word has specific, practical comfort that will help you to embrace this season with peace and confidence. Sara shows how we can learn to have peace in ten critical areas‚ from our personal insecurities to the spiritual well-being of our children‚ and provides practical tips from other moms.
Helpful Articles from Sara
When Trusting God isn’t Warm and Fuzzy
Trusting God doesn’t mean having all the warm and fuzzy feelings, or suddenly knowing exactly how everything is going to work out. Trusting God means acknowledging who He is. When you can’t think of any possible resolution to the trial you are in, say, “You are God.”
Don’t be a Snowplow Parent
It’s not easy to teach kids how to embrace suffering in a world that says suffering should be avoided at all costs. Snowplowing teaches our kids, “If you see difficulties coming your way, run. Find the back door. Do whatever you can to get out of it. Shift the blame, make excuses. Don’t sacrifice for anyone unless it directly benefits you. Look out for number one.”
About Your Host
Christine M. Chappell
Author • Writer • Podcast Host • Speaker
Christine Chappell is the author of Clean Home, Messy Heart, Help! My Teen is Depressed, and is the host of IBCD's Hope + Help Podcast. She is passionate about advocating for biblical one-another care and discipleship in the context of the local church. Her writing has been featured at Desiring God, The Gospel Coalition, Risen Motherhood, Servants of Grace, and other Christian platforms. Christine blogs regularly at christinemchappell.com and lives in South Carolina with her husband and three children.
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