Ep. 129: Do You Know How to Gracefully Defend Your Faith? with Liz Cobo
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
Release Date: 05/20/2025
The Power of an Underdog Story: Faith, Grit, and Becoming Who You’re Called to Be with Mary Marantz
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
Mary Marantz knows how fear can hold us back. Even though she was able to leave the musty single-wide trailer of her childhood in West Virginia and make her way to Yale Law School, she always carried the fear that she would be found out. Even though she had worked hard and earned every grade and scholarship she received she thought others saw her as an imposter. So, she strove to be the best at everything she did, and she was. But the life of perfection has a way of draining the joy out of you. Mary finally realized that fear was holding her hostage to a life that didn't provide freedom and...
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Why Your Story Matters — And Why the Flourish Retreat Could Be Your Turning Point with Carol Roper Bonus Episode
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
If you’ve ever wondered whether your story really matters — or questioned how your past, your personality, and your experiences fit into God’s calling for your life — this episode is for you. I’m sharing the behind‑the‑scenes story of how I stepped into women’s ministry, the unexpected ways God used my past to shape my purpose, and why I believe so deeply in helping women discover their own calling. Many Christian women love God, love their families, and genuinely want to be obedient… but still feel unsure, unqualified, or unclear about what God is asking them to do next....
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Unsure What's Next? Start Here: Bonus Episode with Julie Bagwell Ep. 171
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
If you’ve been feeling stuck, restless, or unsure what God is asking of you in this season, the Flourish Retreat might be the turning point you’ve been praying for. This 3‑day Christian women’s retreat on Kiawah Island is designed to help you find clarity, purpose, and direction through powerful teaching, personalized coaching, and deeply meaningful community. In this episode, Julie Bagwell shares what she’ll be teaching at the retreat — including discovering your God‑given wiring, understanding your strengths through a full DISC assessment, and learning how to step...
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From Queer to Christ: A Candid Conversation on Identity, Scripture and What This Story Means for the Church with George Carneal Ep. 170
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
Please be aware that this content is not suitable for young children. George Carneal grew up in the ’70s, raised by a Southern Baptist minister in the ultra-conservative Bible Belt where his world revolved around the church, country fried chicken and trying to fit in with other boys. As disco music pulsated through the speakers in his bedroom, he plotted his escape from the misery and boredom of Southern suburbia before landing in Los Angeles; a city of glitz and hedonism. Much like Alice as she traveled through the looking glass, this is George’s journey through a queer culture...
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No One is Too Far Gone for God to Use with Glen and Kelly Daigle Ep. 169 Summer Throwback
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
Some stories don’t just inspire you — they reroute your whole calling. This summer, I’m bringing back one of the episodes that changed everything for me. If you listened to Fear Is a Liar back in June, you remember the couple whose testimony stopped me from shutting this podcast down altogether. When I was ready to pack up the mic and call it quits, their story reminded me why Building Strong Homes exists in the first place — so real people can share real God stories that strengthen all of us. Today we’re revisiting Glen and Kelly Daigle’s journey — a story that proves God...
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Giddy Up, Eunice: Because Women Need Each Other with Sophie Hudson Ep. 168 Summer Throwback
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
Today we’re kicking off our Summer Throwback Series — a little every‑other‑week tradition where I’m pulling some of the most loved episodes from the archives, dusting them off and letting them bring encouragement to you again. And I knew exactly which one needed to go first. My conversation with Sophie Hudson, based on her book Giddy Up, Eunice, is one of those episodes that feels like a deep breath and a belly laugh all at once. If you’ve read any of her books, you already know Sophie has this uncanny way of reminding us that women need each other — not in a Pinterest‑perfect,...
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Is Comfort Killing Your Calling? One Brave Step Could Open the Door to Your Dream with Carol Roper Ep. 167
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
In this deeply personal episode, I share the story of how my writing journey began—during a season when the empty nest was approaching, purpose felt uncertain, and God whispered a new calling into my heart. Fourteen years ago, I took a trembling step of faith and attended my first writers conference alone. What followed was a rollercoaster of fear, embarrassment, and a moment so humiliating I nearly packed my bags and drove home. But God intervened through two women—Celeste and LaTan—who showed up at the exact moments I needed courage, belonging, and a reminder that I wasn’t alone....
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How a Single Mom Paid Off $64,000: Creative Debt Hacks from a Financial Coach with Tiffany Miliander Ep. 166
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
If you’re walking a difficult journey through what may feel like insurmountable debt right now and see no way out, my guest today will give you hope. Tiffany Miliander was a single mom who was left with $64,000 in debt when she divorced. But she was determined not to let that debt linger and paid all of it off in four short years. Debt can feel like a mountain you never asked to climb, but Tiffany stood exactly where you might be standing—and refused to stay there. She didn’t wait for perfect circumstances. She didn’t wait to feel ready. She took one creative step, then another, and...
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A Wake Up Call for Wives: Don't Let Fear Steal Your Yes with Carol Roper Ep. 165
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
Have you ever looked back and realized comfort kept you from saying yes to something that mattered? In this episode, I’m sharing how a moment from Taylor Sheridan’s new series The Madison stopped me in my tracks and reminded me what it really means to love well — especially in marriage. This isn’t a review of the show, and I’m not endorsing all its content. But there’s a powerful theme woven through the story that every Christian wife needs to hear. Spoiler alert: I’ll be talking about the premise of the series, so listen with that in mind. If fear, comfort, or “maybe...
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Finding Hope in the Unknown: Tommy Jennings Fight with Cancer Ep. 163
Building Strong Homes: Blueprints to Strengthen Your Faith and Family podcast
When you’re facing a diagnosis, a fear, or a season of waiting, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the unknown. In today’s episode, Tommy Jennings shares a powerful testimony of courage, peace, and unshakable faith as he battles Hodgkin’s Lymphoma — a fight he’s been in for six years. Tommy’s story is raw, honest, and deeply hope‑filled. After exhausting every treatment option, he now lives in the tension of uncertainty — yet his confidence in Jesus has only grown stronger. His words, “Either way it goes, I win,” will challenge and inspire you to trust God in your own...
info_outlineLiz Cobo says that nothing has deepened her faith and changed her walk with Jesus like studying the Bible. Studying God's Word literally changed her life. Things that were once important priorities aren’t anymore. Things that were once afterthoughts are now at the top of her list.
Scripture is God's self-revelation and is available to anyone willing to take the time and make the effort to read and study. Liz understands that now. God promises in his Word that he will give us greater understanding of His Word when we read it.
Liz always believed in God, but didn’t always know Jesus and lived a lot of her life not knowing what the Bible says and doesn't say.
Maybe you’ve experienced (or are experiencing) the same thing?
We know what it means to be an unbeliever or to be unchurched. But what about believers who don't know God's word? She describes them as soldiers who take no weapons or no armor into war.
Liz wants women to become educated believers and shares practical ways to learn. Her passion is to help them understand, study and apply the word of God in their daily lives. And to share God’s truth with grace to unbelievers and the unBibled.
We talk about all of this and more in this episode. Here's Liz' story...
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