Gospel Centered Encouragement for Homemakers – The Ministry of Homemaking Conference 2015

Ladies I am so excited to finally be able to share with you a project I've been working on these past several months.  Jami from a Young Wife's Guide has put together a sweet team of bloggers in an online conference to encourage you in your role as a wife and mother and homemaker. It is the Ministry of Homemaking Conference and it takes place from October 27-29th this year.

Quick note: There is a lot of information in this post but please don't feel overwhelmed.  Take the time to read through it all and please know if you decide to participate in the conference you will have a special link that will take you to all these details in one spot ;).  

It has been a joy and delight to work with and learn so much from these ladies.  They are bloggers you know and love and read on a regular basis and we have all come together to encourage and spur one another on in our role as homemakers. (See all the sessions and speakers towards the bottom of the post.)

Each blogger has done a video session in an area that she too is continuing to learn more and grow in and the beauty of it is we can do it together.

Last years conference was a huge blessing to many women and one of the favorite parts was being able to connect live on Facebook with the bloggers after each session.  I missed out on that part as my husband and I were in Africa but this year I am going to be available after each session to connect with you and answer questions and get to hear areas where you struggle and could use some encouragement.

Enough with the intro let me give you all the details below. If you have any questions or aren't clear please interact with me on my Facebook page or leave a comment below and I will get you an answer asap.

I am hoping you all will join me and take part in the conference along with me.

Homemaking Ministry Online Conference 2015 Details:

The years theme is: The Ministry of Homemaking

What does it mean to be a homemaker that brings glory to God from within her home? The second annual Homemaking Ministries Online Conference 2015 is designed to encourage you in Gospel-Centered Homemaking and promises to give you the tools you need to thrive in your home. Do you want to learn how to better balance it all? Join us this year for a blend of Biblical and encouraging content mixed with practical and hands-on advice for effectively and efficiently managing your home for God’s Glory!

Some Quick Details:

The Conference is held on October 27-29th – Each video session will go live at various times depending on the schedule (see below) and after the video you will have access to interact with the speaker in the Facebook group immediately following their video session.  If you can't watch live you can watch them anytime at your own leisure. You have access to the videos – forever!  Check out the video below to answer more questions you may have:

(If you're reading this in your email you will have to click through to the blog here to watch the video)

Take a sneak peek at one of my sessions below:

(If you're reading this in your email you will have to click through to the blog here to see the video)

If you buy your ticket before the conference starts you get a special price of only $29.95 (this is $5.00 off the regular pricing of $34.95)

There are some fabulous pre-conference bonus items (see below) but you have to purchase the conference before October 27th to qualify for them.

Everyone conference attendee receives a beautiful homemaking binder, a 2016 calendar and a conference notebook in a PDF download.

Check out the Awesome Speakers and Sessions!

(Please note each session title is linked to a preview video of the session – all times listed are EST and each speaker will be available to chat with live in the Facebook group with conference attendees.)

Tuesday, October 27th:

Session #1 – 10:00am: The Ministry of Homemaking – by Jami Balmet at Young Wife's Guide
Do you need some help in your homemaking? What does it mean to glorify God from within your home? In this first session, we are going to cover what it means to have a ministry of homemaking. With all the different things we have to juggle day in and day out, it can be really hard to know what we need to set as priorities within our days. We don’t want to look back in 30 years and regret the way we’ve spent our time. To kick off the conference, join Jami as she dives in deep to discover what it means to view our homemaking as a ministry and how this an affect our homes, our families, and our lives – all for God’s glory!

Session #2 – 12:00pm: Recovering Biblical Homemaking  by Me 🙂                                              The position of a wife, mother, and homemaking is not one that is treasured in our culture. In this session, Marci takes a look at Scripture to discover what it really means to be Christian wives, mothers, and homemakers. How can we rediscover the joy and calling of a Biblical homemaker? What does Titus 2 mean when it calls us to be “keepers of our homes”? Is there a greater purpose in mopping our floors and washing dishes? Join Marci as she takes a journey to find out.

Session #3 – 2:00pm: Homemaking and Working from Home – Is it Possible to Do Both by Caroline Allen at The Modest Mom      
Are you interested in working from home, or do you currently balance working from home and being a wife, mom, or homemaker? Caroline knows what it means to be a busy work-at-home-mom. Together with her husband Sean, they have six children, they homeschool, and manage several businesses together. So how do they balance it all? Is it even possible to be a homemaker and work from home? In this session, Caroline gives some really practical advice on managing it all, encouragement for the tough days, and even ideas for some ways you can work from home.

Session #4 – 4:00pm: Homemaking – The Juggling Act by Jennifer Ross at The Focused Homemaker
As homemakers – we juggle SO much. From cooking, to cleaning, to raising kids, to nurturing a marriage and more! It’s so easy to get overwhelmed and feel like we are constantly playing catch up. Join Jennifer in this session as she shares the secrets to learning how to juggle it all! As a mom of 11 kids, a wife, and a busy homemaker, Jennifer knows what it means to be torn in a hundred different directions. She walks us through how to set priorities within our days and how we can start to learn what this juggling act looks like!

Wednesday, October 28th:

Session #5 – 10:00am: Saving Time and Money in the Kitchen by Jami Balmet at Young Wife's Guide
The kitchen is an area in our home that can really make or break our budget and send us over the edge on feeling overwhelmed. It’s so easy to let our grocery and eating out budget get out of control and we can quickly spend large amounts of our time in the kitchen. It often feels like we are just spinning our wheels with the same chores over and over again – cook, clean up, cook, clean up, go grocery shopping, cook some more, clean up some more… Jami is not an expert chef, but she has learned a few tricks within her kitchen that allow her to save both time and money within her kitchen while still feeding her family healthy, from-scratch meals. In this session, she shares tips on buying in bulk, shopping online, freezer cooking, meal planning, and more!

Session #6- 12:00pm:

Having a Plan for Keeping Your Home Clean by Me 🙂
There’s nothing like the advice of a seasoned homemaker in developing a plan for keeping your home clean. That’s the biggest thing that so many of us struggle with in our homes – how do we balance all of our responsibilities while also trying to keep up on our homes? Marci shares her experience and wisdom in this area as she walks us through her housekeeping routines and goes from room to room explaining how she keeps up on everything while also giving ourselves grace and remembering to focus on the truly important things in life.

Session #7 – 2:00pm:

Prayer in Homemaking – Gaining Vision, Finding Time, and Praying with our Children by Katie Bennett at Embracing a Simpler Life
One of the most important things we can do as homemakers is set the Spiritual climate within our homes. And the best way we can do that is by really pushing into a deep relationship with the Lord. In this session, Katie shares her wisdom into how we can have a deeper relationship with God through our activities within our homes and especially in our prayer life. She shares the Biblical basis for prayer, how to find the time (and motivation) to pray, and how you can pray with your children.

Session #8 – 4:00pm: Finding Joy in Homemaking by Hilary Bernstein at No Place Like Home
We all know the feeling of being bogged down by running and managing our home. Especially when it comes to the tasks that we don’t love – like cleaning toilets or sorting through the mountains of laundry. Hilary is familiar with feelings of getting overwhelmed and losing her joy in homemaking. In this session, she explores some reasons why we might lose that joy in homemaking and then also takes a heart look at how we can rediscover our joy in homemaking. Coupled with practical ideas on finding joy within our days, Hilary provides some much needed encouragement to all women!

Thursday, October 29th:

Session #9 – 10:00am: Spiritual Disciplines for the Busy Homemaker by Jami Balmet at Young Wife's Guide
Often the very last things on our to-do lists each day (those to-do’s that never seem to get done) are the most important ones: our Spiritual Disciplines. Jami is no stranger to being a busy homemaker – as a wife, mom to 4 kids under 3 years old, homemaker, and blogger, she knows what it means to neglect the Spiritual Disciplines that are so important to the Christian life – specifically those of daily Bible reading, prayer, and memorizing Scripture. Join Jami as she covers Biblical wisdom from far wiser Christians and some practical ways that we can make Bible reading, prayer, and Scripture memorization a priority amidst our busy days – the importance of doing so!

Session #10 – 12:00pm: Calm Your Chaos by Kayse Pratt at The Only Hope I've Got
Does your house ever feel like it’s in chaos? Or like you just need a little extra help in know how to plan your days? Kayse has been working for years trying to figure out the key to effectively planning – and the tools you might need to accomplish this. Join her as she shares what this looks like within her home and the systems she has put into place to help her plan so that she can wisely use her time and organize their lives to live the life God has called them too.

Session #11 – 2:00pm: Unrealistic Expectations, Communicating Your Needs, and Dealing with Differences by Marlene Griffith at A Diligent Heart
Marriage is really hard work sometimes! Amidst a sea of unrealistic and unmet expectations, not communicating our needs, and have difficulty dealing with our differences – so days (and seasons) are just plain hard! In this session, Marlene gets REAL about what marriage really looks like sometimes between two sinners. How can we deal with selfishness, impatience, and other sins in our lives when it relates to our marriage? Join Marlene to discuss how we should handle all of this and more!

Session #12 – 4:00pm: Bible Memorization- 5 Minutes a Day, Lifetime Benefits for the Entire Family by Trisha Gilkerson at Intoxicated on Life
Most of us know that we should be memorizing Scripture – or maybe we’ve never really thought about it much before? In this session, Trisha covers the benefits of memorizing Scripture, choosing which scripture we should memorize, and different memory techniques. Memorizing Scripture is important for all believer’s lives, but especially as Christian parents it’s important to focus on and teach our children. This is one of the biggest questions we had from last year’s conference: How can we focus on the Gospel more within our homes and teach our children? One answer: Memorizing Scripture!

If you're wondering how you will get time to watch the videos I encourage you to watch this cute video here with some creative ideas.  I also want to remind you that you have lifetime access to the video sessions.  If there is a particular topic or blogger you want to interact with make sure to clear your calendar so you can take part in the live interaction that day.  The speakers will be available to chat immediately following their sessions.

To find out more details or to purchase the conference click on the picture below.

I hope to see you there!