Raising Godly Girls

Latest Episodes:

Ep. 342 – When Good Things Become Idols in Girlhood Mar 10, 2026

Show notes

As the Raising Godly Girls Podcast launches another week of insightful Christian parenting conversation, hosts Rachael Culpepper and Melissa Bearden dive into the world of Biblical womanhood, especially as it relates to idols. After sharing prominent women and celebrities they idolized as girls, both hosts reflect on the many different ways idolatry can seep into modern Christian life in America.

Melissa took on the potential for even a medial diagnosis to become an idol label, shifting a girl's focus onto self and limiting the resilience the Holy Spirit might seek to produce in her heart. Rachael tags in to warn against the tendency for extracurricular activities and dedication to take an idol-type place in the family calendar.

Rachael shifts into asking insightful and key questions to determine if your girl might have an unhealthy relationship with things or areas of her life, which take the place that God set up for Himself to reign. Melissa roots the discussion with a gentle reminder that idolatry in the Old Testament of the Bible is not gone today, and Christian families must always be on guard to protect our hearts and minds from that way of life.

Three Things to Consider:

Has her idol taken over the majority of her day—every day?

Is there an absence of contentment and joy in her these days?

How does she react when an idol is pulled out of her everyday life? If she can't function, that's a clear sign, something needs to change.

Scriptures Referenced in this Episode:

James 4:13-16

Exodus 20:4-6

2 Chronicles 14-15

Visit raisinggodlygirls.com for more encouragement and faith-based parenting tools.

Learn how to find or start an American Heritage Girls Troop in your community at americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 341 – How Self-Forgetfulness Leads to Sacred Freedom with Sharon Hodde Miller Mar 07, 2026

Show notes

We live in a culture that constantly urges us—and our daughters—to "find ourselves." To chase affirmation. To define our identity by looking inward. But when our gaze is fixed on the mirror, comparison, anxiety, and exhaustion often follow. For many girls growing up today, the pressure to curate a self can feel relentless. And for moms? The weight of modeling confidence while secretly wrestling with their own identity struggles can feel just as heavy.

Yet Scripture offers a radically different invitation. In Matthew 16:24, Jesus calls us to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him. Paradoxically, it's in self-forgetfulness—not self-obsession—that we discover true freedom. When we lift our eyes from ourselves and fix them on the character, goodness, and glory of God, something shifts. Peace replaces pressure. Joy displaces comparison. Identity becomes received rather than achieved.

In this special weekend conversation, Patti Garibay welcomes bestselling author and pastor Sharon Hodde Miller to the Raising Godly Girls Podcast. Sharon's newest devotional, Gazing at God, gently guides readers toward a life of humility, surrender, and sacred freedom. Together, Patti and Sharon explore what "self-forgetfulness" actually looks like in everyday motherhood, how comparison silently steals our daughters' joy, and how families can build rhythms that help everyone in the home look up instead of inward.

This episode is for the mom who sees her daughter growing weary from trying to measure up. It's for the girl who feels like she must define herself before she can belong. And it's for every parent longing to create a home atmosphere where identity is anchored not in performance, but in the steadfast love of Christ.

You'll walk away encouraged to model humility, practice surrender in the unseen work of motherhood, and help your daughter experience the deep freedom that comes from fixing her eyes on the Savior rather than on herself.

Scriptures Referenced in This Episode:

Matthew 16:24

Hebrews 12:2

Psalm 34:5

Colossians 3:1–2

To learn more about Sharon Hodde Miller and her books, including Gazing at God, visit sharonhoddemiller.com.

Visit raisinggodlygirls.com for more encouragement and faith-based parenting tools.

Learn how to find or start an American Heritage Girls Troop in your community at americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 340 - Freeing Your Girl from the Bondage of Selfish Living Mar 05, 2026

Show notes

This challenging Thursday podcast episode poses a hope-filled path to Christian parents and listeners: What does it take to free girls from the burden of self-focused living? Hosts Rachael Culpepper and Natalie Ambrose continue the layered conversation on Biblical humility, but today with a challenge to take Scripture at its word and live out Philippians 2:1-9 as Christ did.

From childhood songs to serving others, Rachael and Natalie give a personal perspective on the many ways that God has shepherded each of them over the years when it comes to humility. They also share the science behind service as a benefit to girls experiencing depression, anxiety, or even just an unhealed tendency to navel-gaze, as Rachael often says.

American Heritage Girls resources offer age-based, practical ways for girls to learn and work out this journey of humility with God and one another.

Whether your girl has fallen into a rut of self-loathing or over-confidence, today's podcast conversation will anchor your heart in the wisdom of Scripture, the gentle way of Jesus, and the potential for your daughter to take every step of her journey growing in Christ's image.

Three Things to Consider:

Philippians 2 gives a beautiful snapshot of Godly humility…

It builds unity among Christ-followers

It seeks to serve others

It shows the world who Jesus truly is

Scriptures Referenced in this Episode:

Matthew 22:37-40

1 John 4:20-21

Philippians 2:1-9

Visit raisinggodlygirls.com for more encouragement and faith-based parenting tools.

Learn how to find or start an American Heritage Girls Troop in your community at americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 339 - What Does Humility REALLY Mean for Christian Girls? Mar 03, 2026

Show notes

In this Tuesday podcast episode, hosts Rachael and Natalie tackle the big question: is it possible for a girl to achieve humility? Through an insightful conversation anchored in Biblical wisdom, Raising Godly Girls aims for a multi-faceted approach to understand and cultivate this Christian virtue throughout a girl's journey without the pressure to live it perfectly.

Under the identity of Christ, a Christian girl's sense of pride and confidence will inherently look different. Host Rachael shares practical truths to help parents guide girls in a Biblical path apart from the need for a spotlight. Listeners will come away with a Biblically-backed sense of God's mercy on a girl's heart when she is given opportunities to grow through 'humble pie' moments. Finally, the hosts talk through humility-gone-wrong scenarios in culture—insecurity and self-deprecation.

This episode shares the solid foundation American Heritage Girls offers girls as they grow in a healthy notion of self through various resources and relationships within AHG Troops. You will leave this podcast conversation feeling both challenged and encouraged as a Christian parent.

Three Things to Consider:

Biblical Humility isn't vying for power, prestige, or position

Healthy Humility is fully aware of God's mercy and responds in gratitude

Biblical Humility doesn't involve a girl putting herself down

Scriptures Referenced in this Episode:

1 Peter 5:5-6

2 Samuel 2:28

James 4:10

Genesis 39-50

Colossians 3:12

Visit raisinggodlygirls.com for more encouragement and faith-based parenting tools. Learn how to find or start an American Heritage Girls Troop in your community at americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 338 – Shalom in the Home: Finding God's Peace & Purpose with Elizabeth Woodson Feb 28, 2026

Show notes

In a world filled with noise, pressure, and uncertainty, many families are longing for something deeper than surface-level calm—they're searching for true peace at home.

This week on the Raising Godly Girls Podcast, we've been exploring what it means to cultivate a home marked by shalom—the kind of deep, abiding peace God intends for His people. Not a peace dependent on perfect schedules or spotless kitchens, but a wholeness rooted in knowing who God is and trusting the story He is writing, even when life doesn't unfold the way we hoped.

In today's conversation, host Patti Garibay sits down with Bible teacher, theologian, and author Elizabeth Woodson to explore how understanding God's grand redemptive story—from beginning to forever—can transform the way families experience peace, purpose, and joy. Elizabeth helps parents see how theology isn't meant to stay abstract, but to shape everyday life right at home: in our expectations, our disappointments, and the way we model faith for our daughters.

This episode is for the mom who feels stretched thin, for the family navigating tension or unmet expectations, and for every parent who wants her daughter to grow up anchored in God's truth rather than the world's definition of peace. You'll be encouraged to stop striving for control and instead receive the shalom that comes from surrendering your home—and your story—to the Prince of Peace.

Scriptures referenced in this episode:

Isaiah 9:6

John 14:27

Colossians 3:15

Psalm 127:1

Genesis 1–Revelation 22

To learn more about Elizabeth Woodson's work and her book From Beginning to Forever, visit thewoodsoninstitute.org

Visit raisinggodlygirls.com for more encouragement and faith-based parenting tools.

Learn how to find or start an American Heritage Girls Troop in your community at americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 337 – Making An Environment that Invites Shalom into Your Family's Life Feb 26, 2026

Show notes

Is your home a place of refuge—or a source of overwhelm?

In today's busy world, moms are carrying more than ever. Between mental load, schedules, discipleship, and daily responsibilities, the state of our homes can quietly shape the tone of family life. On this Thursday episode of the Raising Godly Girls Podcast, hosts Rachael Culpepper and Melissa Bearden turn their attention to the environment of the Christian home—and how order, stewardship, and shared responsibility can create space for peace, connection, and spiritual growth.

Together, Rachael and Melissa talk candidly about clutter, stress, and the unseen weight many moms carry. You'll hear why disorder often impacts women more deeply, how grace and realism matter when raising girls, and why a home doesn't have to be perfect to be purposeful.

You'll also hear a timely Raising Godly Girls Minute from Patti Garibay, AHG Founder & Executive Director Emeritus, reminding moms that clutter is rarely the real issue—it's the cumulative pressure of life. With biblical wisdom and practical encouragement, this episode invites families to work together toward homes that reflect peace rather than pressure.

If you're longing for a home that supports discipleship instead of competing with it—this conversation is for you.

Three Things to Consider:

Choose order over clutter. A peaceful home doesn't require perfection, but intentional stewardship creates room for connection and calm.

Give discipleship a place. Designating a consistent space for Bible reading, prayer, and faith conversations helps build lasting rhythms.

Make tidying a team effort. Moms aren't meant to do it alone—shared responsibility teaches girls leadership, service, and care for others.

Scriptures Referenced in This Episode:

Proverbs 24:3

Matthew 11:28

1 Peter 5:7

Explore more resources to raise girls rooted in Christ at raisinggodlygirls.com. To find or start an American Heritage Girls Troop in your area, visit americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 336 – How Lone Ranger Parenting Breeds Strife in the Home Feb 24, 2026

Show notes

In today's parenting conversations, one phrase keeps rising to the surface: mental load. The invisible weight of remembering, managing, anticipating, and holding everything together often lands squarely on a mother's shoulders—leaving many moms exhausted, lonely, and quietly overwhelmed.

On this episode of the Raising Godly Girls Podcast, Rachael Culpepper and Melissa Bearden step into this honest conversation with humor, empathy, and Biblical truth. Together, they explore how unseen burdens can quietly rob families of joy—and how God's design for shalom offers a better way forward. Shalom isn't just the absence of chaos; it's the deep, soul-level peace God intends to flourish inside Christian homes today.

Through candid personal stories and a powerful Raising Godly Girls Minute from AHG Founder & Executive Director Emeritus Patti Garibay, this episode addresses the loneliness many mothers feel and the lie that they're meant to carry it all alone. You'll be reminded that community isn't optional for Christian families—it's essential—and that God lovingly places "natural hedges of support" around us if we're willing to lean in.

Whether you're navigating young motherhood, carrying years of accumulated responsibility, or wondering how joy slipped out your front door, this conversation invites you to pause, pray, and reset your heart. God sees your unseen work, and He does not ask you to bear it without His strength—or without help.

Three Things to Consider from This Episode:

Be honest about the state of your heart and cry out to God for help—He meets us in our weakness.

When parenting feels overwhelming, look for the natural hedges of support God has already placed around you, and choose to lean on them.

Don't overlook the basics—hydration, nourishment, sleep, and time in the sunshine can be powerful tools against burnout and isolation.

Scriptures Referenced in This Episode:

Matthew 11:28

1 Peter 5:7

Psalm 70:5

Psalm 42:1–2

2 Corinthians 12:9

Explore more resources to raise girls rooted in Christ at raisinggodlygirls.com. To find or start an American Heritage Girls Troop in your area, visit americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 335 – Helping Your Daughter Embrace God's Design for Her Body with Lisa Whittle Feb 21, 2026

Show notes

In a culture saturated with comparison and impossible beauty standards, many girls are quietly asking a deeper question beneath body image struggles: Do I matter? This weekend edition of the Raising Godly Girls Podcast speaks directly into that ache—with truth, tenderness, and Gospel hope.

Host Melissa Bearden welcomes best-selling author and Bible teacher Lisa Whittle for a powerful conversation about body image, identity, and what Lisa calls a whole-body theology. Together, they explore how Scripture reveals the body not as a problem to be fixed, but as a gift to steward—created with intention, dignity, and purpose by a loving God. Drawing from Lisa's new Bible study Body & Soul, this episode invites families to see the physical and spiritual as beautifully connected, not competing.

If you've watched your daughter compare herself to others online, struggle with confidence, or internalize harmful messages about her worth—or if you've quietly wrestled with those same thoughts yourself—this conversation offers a compassionate starting point for healing. You'll hear practical encouragement for replacing cultural lies with Biblical truth, cultivating gratitude at home, and helping girls anchor their confidence in Christ rather than appearance.

As Scripture reminds us, our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19). When girls learn to see themselves through God's eyes, everything changes. This episode will equip and encourage you to foster a home where truth speaks louder than comparison, where body and soul are nurtured together, and where girls grow up knowing they are not mistakes—but masterpieces, made on purpose for God's glory.

Scriptures Referenced in this Episode:

1 Corinthians 6:19

Genesis 1:27

To learn more about Lisa Whittle, her work, and her books, visit www.lisawhittle.com/

To learn more about Lisa Whittle's book Body & Soul, visit https://www.lisawhittle.com/body

Visit raisinggodlygirls.com for more encouragement and faith-based parenting tools.

Learn how to find or start an American Heritage Girls Troop in your community at americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 334 – Nurturing a Healthy Body Image Amid Mixed Cultural Messages Feb 19, 2026

Show notes

On this Thursday episode of the podcast, hosts Rachael Culpepper and Natalie Ambrose continue digging deeper on body image and practical ways to instill a healthy approach for our girls today.

In a time when cultural messages and marketing language are thrown around 24 hours a day, seven days a week, girls are bombarded by plenty of ways to think about their bodies, but none of it aligns with Scripture. So how can we help our daughters take hold of the messages, strip the lies of their power and urgency, and help girls rest in the Lord content with how He designed their bodies?

It's important for girls to understand that trends come and go—and it happens lightning fast these days! So if she's going to chase trends, she will likely always feel like she can never arrive—and she'll have no money! The Bible talks about the eternal beauty of a Godly girl's life that reflects Christ. This gives a more sustainable framework for girls to confidently navigate, trusting that God is working in their hearts no matter what the outward appearance looks like. Finally, the hosts offer a sobering look at how a mom's own baggage with body image can be inadvertently passed down to a daughter without a Scripture-empowered renewed mind.

Three Things to Remember:

When trends are your girl's measuring stick for beauty, she can be left feeling less-than.

Helping your girl weigh the temporary against the eternal will guide her to order beauty in a mature way.

Since your girl is watching how you handle your own sense of body image, it's important that we model this for her in Christian maturity.

Scriptures Referenced in this Episode:

1 Timothy 4:8

1 Peter 3:4

Romans 12:1-2

Explore more resources to raise girls rooted in Christ at raisinggodlygirls.com.

To find or start an AHG Troop in your area, visit americanheritagegirls.org.

Ep. 333 – Why Body Image Reflects a Deeper Spiritual Issue in Girls Feb 17, 2026

Show notes

In this episode, hosts Rachael Culpepper and Natalie Ambrose use the analogy of parenting instincts to recognize oncoming illness in their kids as a framework to approach a girl's body image struggles. While parents are usually pretty good at connecting symptoms to oncoming illness in their kids, it's not always as clear when body image issues surface in our girls. So this week the podcast is focusing on body image, and how that is often reflective of a deeper spiritual thing happening in our girls.

Many times, girls hear negative messages about their bodies—that the body needs to be altered in order to fit in with the current notion of beauty. This can leave girls hating their bodies and measuring beauty through a lens that God never intended. How can we parent our daughters to embrace her body as a gift from God?

It's important to let a girl enjoy beauty rather than shame her for wanting to feel pretty. For a Christian girl, the key to a healthy Biblical Worldview on body image is tied to her contentment in the Lord rather than her appearance.

The AHG Ministry has a whole badge frontier designed to instill a healthy view of the body in a girl's journey. Raising Godly Girls also has the Raising Godly Girls Guide to Gender & Identity, which offers parents a great jumping off point to take these conversations into the home.

Two Things to Remember:

§ It's Okay for a Girl to Want Beauty, Yes—Even as a Christian

§ Feeling Beautiful Isn't a Good Source for Contentment, so Address This Gently but Directly in Your Girl

Scriptures Referenced in this Episode:

· Genesis 1:31a

Explore more resources to raise girls rooted in Christ at raisinggodlygirls.com. To find or start an AHG Troop in your area, visit americanheritagegirls.org.

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