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

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  <span class= "NormalTextRun ContextualSpellingAndGrammarErrorV2Themed SCXW188972