The Laundry Basket Liturgy

Ep. 13: Motherhood & a Theology of the Body

Welcome to the thirteenth episode of The Laundry Basket Liturgy, a devotional companion for Christian mothers longing to embody shalom in the midst of their real, ordinary, everyday calling. We continue venturing into the second season of the podcast, called The Quotidian Mysteries — inspired by the reflections of Kathleen Norris [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/108679.The_Quotidian_Mysteries?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=dPweEmuCNg&rank=1] and centered on living into the sacredness hidden within ordinary life. In this episode, we explore a theology of the body through the lens of motherhood, embodiment, and the Incarnation. Together, we consider what it means that Christianity is not a disembodied faith, but one rooted in flesh, breath, touch, limits, and ordinary embodied existence. We reflect on how many mothers quietly experience their bodies as burdens to overcome, rather than places where God desires to dwell and commune with them. This episode is an invitation to receive your body not as an obstacle to holiness, but as part of your humanity before God. + In this episode, we explore: — 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 & what it means to glorify God in your body — the sacredness of creaturely life — motherhood as profoundly embodied vocation — the difference between the body and the flesh — the Incarnation and what it reveals about God’s view of the body — embodied awareness as communion rather than self-fixation — how ordinary embodied care becomes holy ground + Embodied Practice: Place one hand over your heart and one over your abdomen. Notice: — the warmth of your body — the movement of your breath — the quiet evidence of life within you And whisper gently: “God meets me here too.” If discomfort or judgment rises, notice it without shame. Your body is not interrupting your spiritual life. Your embodied life is one of the primary places where God desires to meet you. + Domestic Liturgy for Today As you care for your body today — washing your hands,stretching your back,eating a meal,resting for a moment,taking a breath — whisper: “Lord, receive this body in love.” Let even bodily care become a form of prayer. + If this episode blessed you, consider sharing it with another mother who might appreciate it as well. + To receive future episodes, devotionals, and spiritual formation resources straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Kingdom Mother on Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. You'll even receive some gifts when you do. + If you’d like to help sustain this ministry, you can become a paid subscriber on The Kingdom Mother Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. Your generosity helps support the writing, podcasting, and spiritual formation resources shared that serve mothers with truth, beauty, and embodied peace right in the midst of the ordinary. Get full access to The Kingdom Mother at rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe [https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Ep. 12: Acedia & the housewife

Welcome to the second season & twelfth episode of The Laundry Basket Liturgy, a devotional companion for Christian mothers longing to embody shalom in the midst of their real, ordinary, everyday calling. Today we begin a brand new season of the podcast together, what I am calling The Quotidian Mysteries — inspired by the reflections of Kathleen Norris [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/108679.The_Quotidian_Mysteries?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=dPweEmuCNg&rank=1] and centered on living into the sacredness hidden within ordinary life. In this episode, I introduce the Christian spiritual concept of acedia — what the desert fathers once called the noonday demon. We examine the restless dissatisfaction that tempts us to flee ordinary faithfulness through distraction, fantasy, numbing, busyness, or endless searching for “elsewhere.” This episode is an invitation to remain lovingly present to the life God has actually given you. + In this episode, we explore: — what acedia actually is (restlessness, spiritual weariness, resistance to reality) — how repetitive domestic labor exposes the soul — the temptation to escape ordinary motherhood — modern technology and fragmented attention — embodied presence as resistance to distraction — the sacredness hidden within small acts of faithfulness — the desert fathers’ wisdom on stability, prayer, and remaining + Embodied Practice: For one quiet moment: Do not reach for stimulation.Do not scroll.Do not multitask.Do not rush to fix or escape. Simply remain. Notice: — the sounds around you — the sensations in your body — the texture of the present moment And quietly whisper: “Lord, help me remain here and now, with You.” If discomfort rises, notice it gently. Acedia often reveals itself through the urge to escape. But you do not need to flee this moment. Because God is here too. + Domestic Liturgy for Today: As you do one repetitive, seemingly mindless task today —folding, sweeping, washing, wiping — whisper: “Lord, meet me in this small faithfulness.” Let attention become prayer. Let love return to the small acts of care you engage in. + If this episode blessed you, consider sharing it with another mother who might appreciate it as well. + To receive future episodes, devotionals, and spiritual formation resources straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Kingdom Mother on Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. You'll even receive some gifts when you do. + If you’d like to help sustain this ministry, you can become a paid subscriber on The Kingdom Mother Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. Your generosity helps support the writing, podcasting, and spiritual formation resources shared that serve mothers with truth, beauty, and embodied peace right in the midst of the ordinary. Get full access to The Kingdom Mother at rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe [https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Ep. 11: When you Fall or Forget

Explore current offerings—FROM CONTROL TO COMMUNION, and RETURNING & REST—over at The Kingdom Mother Substack, https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/p/offerings [https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/p/offerings] + Welcome to the eleventh episode of The Laundry Basket Liturgy, a devotional companion for Christian mothers longing to embody shalom in the midst of their real, ordinary, everyday calling. In this episode, I share what happens when growth feels cyclical... When you’ve released, trusted, softened, and then find yourself tightening again. We remember what Scripture teaches about mercy that does not run out. This episode is an invitation into grace that meets you in the mess of falling or forgetting — not just in your progress. + In this episode, we explore: — a reflection on formation as cyclical, not linear — nervous-system awareness around falling and forgetting — an embodied practice for meeting mercy in the moment — a domestic liturgy for beginning again — a benediction for mothers who feel like they’re “back at square one” + Embodied Practice: When you notice yourself tightening again: Pause. Notice what your body is doing. And whisper: “His mercy is here too.” You are not starting over. You are being held again. If at any point this practice feels overwhelming, you may soften, shift your attention, or stop entirely — God’s nearness does not depend on how well you do this. + Domestic Liturgy for Today: When you wake tomorrow, before your feet hit the floor, whisper: “New mercy.” Let mercy meet you before performance does. And when you find yourself gripping again throughout the day: “New mercy.” + If this episode blessed you, consider sharing it with another mother who might enjoy listening. + To receive future episodes, devotionals, and spiritual formation resources straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Kingdom Mother on Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. You'll even receive some gifts when you do. + If you’d like to help sustain this ministry, you can become a paid subscriber on The Kingdom Mother Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. Your generosity helps support the writing, podcasting, and spiritual formation resources shared that serve mothers with truth, beauty, and embodied peace right in the midst of the ordinary. Get full access to The Kingdom Mother at rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe [https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Ep. 10: Returning & Rest

Explore current offerings—FROM CONTROL TO COMMUNION, and RETURNING & REST—over at The Kingdom Mother Substack, https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/p/offerings [https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/p/offerings] + Welcome to the tenth episode of The Laundry Basket Liturgy, a devotional companion for Christian mothers longing to embody shalom in the midst of their real, ordinary, everyday calling. This episode closes out a five-part series on building secure attachment and embodied faith, with Christ at the center. If you’d like to begin at the start of the series, you can listen to Episode 6: From Control to Communion first. Over the last several episodes, we’ve moved gently together: - from control to communion - from grasping to release - from striving to staying - from momentary peace to being kept Today, we listen for the invitation that gathers it all together. + In this episode, we explore: — Why returning is not failure, but relationship — How Scripture frames return as the normal rhythm of faith — The difference between collapse and true rest — Why rest flows naturally from re-alignment with God — How trust produces a quiet, steady strength — Why mothers especially need a faith that allows for return + Embodied Practice: In this episode, you’re guided through a gentle embodied practice of returning—using breath, touch, and attention to re-orient toward God’s presence. Returning is not something you perfect. It is something you practice. Again and again. Without shame. + Domestic Liturgy for Today: When you notice: - tension rising - urgency tightening - control creeping back in Pause and whisper: “I return to You.” Not as apology. Not as failure. But as trust. Returning is prayer. Returning is rest. Returning is how love stays alive. + If this episode blessed you, consider sharing it with another mother who might enjoy listening. + To receive future episodes, devotionals, and spiritual formation resources straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Kingdom Mother on Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. You'll even receive some gifts when you do. + If you’d like to help sustain this ministry, you can become a paid subscriber on The Kingdom Mother Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. Your generosity helps support the writing, podcasting, and spiritual formation resources shared that serve mothers with truth, beauty, and embodied peace right in the midst of the ordinary. Get full access to The Kingdom Mother at rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe [https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Ep. 9: Kept in Peace

Explore current offerings—FROM CONTROL TO COMMUNION, and RETURNING & REST—over at The Kingdom Mother Substack, https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/p/offerings [https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/p/offerings] + Welcome to the ninth episode of The Laundry Basket Liturgy, a devotional companion for Christian mothers longing to embody shalom in the midst of their real, ordinary, everyday calling. This episode is nestled within a five-part series on building secure attachment and embodied faith, with Christ at the center. If you’d like to begin at the start of the series, you can listen to Episode 6: From Control to Communion first. In the previous episode, we practiced loosening our grip — opening our hands and remembering who God is. In this episode, we listen for what happens after release. + In this episode, we explore: — What perfect peace (shalom shalom) actually means in Scripture — Why peace is something God keeps, not something we maintain — The difference between release and ongoing reliance — What it means to have a steadfast mind — not rigid, but stayed upon God — How trust functions as a direction, not a feeling — Why anxious minds need a place to stay, not a command to stop thinking + Embodied Practice: In this episode, you’re guided through an embodied practice of staying — remaining present with discomfort without fixing, numbing, or fleeing. By staying with sensation and with God, capacity gently grows.Peace deepens not through escape, but through being kept. You are not asked to do this perfectly.God’s nearness does not depend on your performance. + Domestic Liturgy for Today: When your thoughts spiral… when worries multiply… when you feel pulled out of the present moment… Pause and whisper: “I stay with You.” Not: I figure this out I get ahead of this I manage this perfectly But simply: I stay. + If this episode blessed you, consider sharing it with another mother who might enjoy listening. + To receive future episodes, devotionals, and spiritual formation resources straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Kingdom Mother on Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. You'll even receive some gifts when you do. + If you’d like to help sustain this ministry, you can become a paid subscriber on The Kingdom Mother Substack [http://rachaelalaia.substack.com]. Your generosity helps support the writing, podcasting, and spiritual formation resources shared that serve mothers with truth, beauty, and embodied peace right in the midst of the ordinary. Get full access to The Kingdom Mother at rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe [https://rachaelalaia.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]