Spiritual Formation & Motherhood: Interview w/ John Mark Comer at the Intentional Motherhood Retreat
The Intentional Parents Podcast
Intentional
4.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 28 January 2026
⏱️ 44 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
During the Intentional Motherhood Retreat 2025, Elizabeth sat down with her older brother, John Mark Comer, for a deeply honest and encouraging conversation about spiritual formation in the thick of motherhood. For so many mothers, life feels crowded with the dailyness and busyness of caring for little ones, making it easy to believe the lie that we must do more or try harder to grow spiritually. But what if spiritual formation isn’t something you add to your already overloaded life — what if it’s already happening?
John Mark and Elizabeth explore how every mom is being spiritually formed through the ordinary moments of motherhood, becoming a certain kind of person through how she lives, responds, and loves. Drawing from Dallas Willard’s teachings on practices of engagement vs. abstinence, they talk about removing rather than adding — taking an honest audit of your life and recognizing that so much of motherhood is already shaping your soul. They discuss the difference between active and passive spirituality, the surprising ways pain and sacrifice become places of growth, the generational shift in how we view parenting, and what it means to join Christ in His suffering. They also reflect on Jacques Philippe’s idea of “choosing what you have not chosen” and learning to respond to life’s constant interruptions with consent rather than contempt.
Ultimately, this conversation is an invitation back to relationship — with God, with others, and with your own soul. It’s about noticing and naming what you’re feeling, staying responsive instead of reactive, and returning again and again to the cross in the ordinary rhythms of your day.
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Intentional Fatherhood Retreat: February 19-21, 2026 in Costa Mesa, CA
Intentional Motherhood Retreat: April 23-25, 2026 in Franklin, TN
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Attention mothers. We have the intentional motherhood retreat in Franklin, Tennessee in April, April 23rd, through the 25th to be exact. And if you haven't gotten tickets yet, we want to remind you, grab some tickets. We have group rates. We also have volunteer tickets. So if you're looking for a discounted ticket and want to come help a little bit, go to our website, Intentionalparents.org, get your tickets. Megan Fait Marshman's going to be there. Correta Eskridge is going to be there. Elizabeth and Diana sharing and other guests that you don't even know about. Plus, incredible worship. Can't wait to have you all there. And also, for the fathers, we have our first ever intentional fatherhood retreat in Costa Mesa, February 19 through 21. So if you have not gotten your tickets for that, |
| 0:38.7 | we also have group rates. We also have volunteer tickets. All you need to do is go to |
| 0:42.4 | Intentionalfatherhood.org, grab your tickets. Can't wait to see you all in Costa Mesa or Nashville. |
| 0:47.9 | See you soon. |
| 0:53.1 | You're listening to the Intentional Parents podcast, brought to you by Intentional. |
| 0:58.1 | Intentional is all about spiritual formation in the family. |
| 1:01.8 | We desire to bring biblical hope and practical hope. |
| 1:05.4 | Enjoy this week's conversation. |
| 1:21.6 | Today on the show, we have a really fun conversation between Elizabeth and her brother, John Mark, from our most recent Motherhood retreat in October. And we originally released this only on YouTube. And the conversation just went so well that we decided, you know what, |
| 1:28.6 | I think people that love just listening, not watching, need this conversation. I know you'll be |
| 1:34.3 | encouraged and helped, and I also know that you will be absolutely challenged in the best ways to |
| 1:40.1 | follow Jesus and serve your family in a deeper way. Now, if you're wondering, why does this |
| 1:44.0 | sound scratchy? |
| 1:45.0 | Why does it sound different than normal? |
| 1:46.7 | Well, Elizabeth and I are on the road speaking at a few events, |
| 1:49.5 | and we are just sitting by a phone and simply recording this in a casual way |
| 1:54.7 | because we wanted to make sure you knew that this conversation was important enough |
| 1:58.6 | to get out this week. |
| 2:00.5 | So enjoy this conversation. |
| 2:02.2 | And if you haven't had a chance to rate, subscribe, even leave a comment. |
| 2:05.0 | I just want to remind you, that helps us more than you know. |
| 2:08.4 | It helps let other people know and get the word out and help more families, help more marriages, |
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