Podcast Episode 17: 31 Days of Prayer for Estranged Family & Friends

Pip: Pollywog’s Place Blog is the kind of corner of the internet that hands you something genuinely useful and asks nothing dramatic in return.

Mara: Susie at Pollywog’s Place Blog has put together a thirty-one-day prayer devotional for anyone carrying the weight of an estranged relationship — and that’s the territory we’re covering today.

Pip: Let’s start with the devotional itself and what it’s actually asking of the person who picks it up.

Continue reading “Podcast Episode 17: 31 Days of Prayer for Estranged Family & Friends” →

New Release: The Weekly Sabbath Family Guide (Your Guide to Rest)

Hello, friends! 

If you have been looking for a simple, stress-free way to bring the peace of the Sabbath into your home each week, I have some wonderful news. I have officially finished putting together the Weekly Sabbath Family Guide, and it is ready for your family—completely free! 

My heart in creating this guide was to take away the overwhelm. Keeping the Sabbath shouldn’t feel like a rigid checklist of rules; it should be a weekly highlight that your entire family looks forward to with joy. It is my prayer that this guide can you help you create memories that will last a lifetime and bring your family closer to GOD.

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Podcast Episode 07: Gratitude And Grace

Pip: Welcome back to Pollywog’s Place Blog — where the car breaking down is actually a blessing in disguise, and the tow truck driver’s daughter gets her dental work done.

Mara: Susie at Pollywog’s Place Blog has been writing about gratitude this week — what it costs us when we skip it, and how a mother’s morning attitude can set the temperature for an entire household. Let’s start with the roots of thankfulness itself.

Continue reading “Podcast Episode 07: Gratitude And Grace” →

Ten Days of Returning to God: A Children’s Devotional

The days between Yom Teruah and Yom Kippur provide a meaningful opportunity for families to slow down, listen to God, and prepare their hearts together.

Yom Teruah is associated with the sound of trumpets—a call to awaken and pay attention. Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, reminds us of our need for forgiveness and points us toward the perfect sacrifice of Jesus.

Ten Days of Returning to God is a simplified children’s devotional designed to help families explore these truths together. Each day includes a short Bible reading, a child-friendly lesson, a discussion question, a simple activity, and a prayer.

Throughout the ten days, children will learn what it means to:

  • Listen for God’s direction
  • Ask God to search their hearts
  • Turn away from wrong choices
  • Confess their sins honestly
  • Apologize and make things right
  • Forgive others
  • Show God’s love through kindness
  • Draw near to God through Jesus
  • Trust in Christ’s sacrifice
  • Begin again with God
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Ten Days of Returning to God: A Devotional Journey from Yom Teruah to Yom Kippur

Hello friends,

There are seasons when God calls us to keep moving forward, faithfully tending the work He has placed before us. There are also seasons when He calls us to become still—to examine our hearts, mend what has been broken, and return to Him.

Lately God has been calling me to share what I’ve been learning with others. I won’t pretend to be any kind of expert so I do encourage you to do your own research whenever you may have questions or doubts about things. My biggest reason for sharing is that observing the feasts have allowed me to become close to GOD, delve deeper in HIS WORD, and they allow me to remember HIS PROMISES.

The period from Yom Teruah to Yom Kippur offers a beautiful opportunity for this kind of quiet reflection. This devotional can be done by anyone at any time though!

Yom Teruah, sometimes called the Feast of Trumpets, begins with the biblical image of a trumpet blast. In Scripture, the sound of a trumpet could announce a gathering, warn of danger, prepare people for action, or call God’s people to attention. It was a sound that could not easily be ignored.

Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, comes ten days later. It is a solemn day associated with repentance, cleansing, and restoration before God.

Together, these days form a meaningful journey: awakening, examining, returning, confessing, forgiving, and resting in God’s mercy.

“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.”
—James 4:8

Continue reading “Ten Days of Returning to God: A Devotional Journey from Yom Teruah to Yom Kippur” →