Hello and welcome to the Dr. Nurse Mama show prescribing Hope for Healthy Families here on American Family Radio. Here's your host, professor, pediatric nurse practitioner and mom of four, Dr. Jessica Peck.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, hey there, friends, and welcome to my favorite part of the afternoon, getting to spend time with you, prescribing Hope for Healthy Families. And we've had a great week. We have talked about some really exciting things as we are preparing our hearts for the holidays. I know many of you are already starting to plan your travel. You may be even starting to begin traveling this weekend to be with family for Thanksgiving next week. I know you're already looking forward to Christmas. Even those of you who refuse to put on Christmas music, that's okay because we learned from our guest yesterday, Taylor Combs, who wrote an Advent devotional called the One We're Waiting for is just beautiful. And that is okay, too. We are looking to really prepare our hearts for Christmas. These still have some time, and today is one of my favorite days of the year to be able to do that. Today we are talking about Operation Christmas Child. Now, I know we've been talking about that every day, but today we have a very, very special guest with us. Before I introduce her, let me remind you that Operation Christmas Child is the Samaritan's Purse project that collects shoebox gifts filled with toys and school supplies and personal care items. And they deliver them to children in need around the to demonstrate God's love in a tangible way. And for many of these children, this gift filled shoebox is the first gift they have ever received. This has been going on since 1993, the world's largest Christmas project of its time, of its kind. Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 232 million shoebox gifts to children in more than 170 countries and territories. And in 2025, Operation Christmas Child hopes to collect enough shoebox gifts to reach another 12.6 million children. And here to tell you her testimony about being a recipient of one of those boxes that changed her life is Izabella McMillon. Now, Izabella grew up during the communistic regime in Romania when even attending a church could have resulted in death. And when she was 13 years old, she received a gift that changed her life. And she is here today to tell you about it. Izabella thank you so much for joining us. We are so grateful to have you here.
Izabella McMillon: Thank you so much for allowing me to be here with you, Jessica, today.
Izabella grew up in Romania during the communism
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Izabella tell us your story. Tell us about growing up in Romania and what childhood was like for you.
Izabella McMillon: I grew up in Romania during the communism. So when I was born, it was already communism. And I want to just describe a little bit for our listeners what communism really meant for us who lived through it. My parents, when they got married, they received a letter from the government that told them where they are going to live for the rest of their lives and where they're going to work for the rest of their lives. So they were assigned to a city about 30 km outside of the little village where they both grew up and they were assigned to a heavy machinery factory. So that little two bedroom government owned apartment is actually where I spent the first 24 years of my life. They had no choice in where to live or where to work or where we would go to school that was also assigned. Or even where we would get our groceries. We were assigned even to a grocery store where we would get our groceries. And my most fun memories from my childhood, Jessica, is standing in lines. And that might sound really, really strange to a lot of people, but for us, standing in lines meant that we would get something we didn't have. And so whenever there were lines at the grocery store, that meant we are getting something that we didn't have. So we always got excited about those times we received anything from the grocery store based on the ratio coupons the government was assigning to us. So literally every aspect of our life was controlled by the government, including the fact that God's name was not allowed within the walls of our country. So saying the name of God out loud or owning a Bible or going to church, those things could literally cost your life. Churches went underground, they were no longer allowed. All the crosses were removed from steeples when communism came into rule. And so I grew up in an environment where we didn't know about God, we didn't go to church, and that was the environment where we grew up in. But I'm so grateful that our God whom we serve is a God who tells us in John 1:5 that the light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it. And there's no governments and there's no manual rules that could ever stop the gospel from spreading. And that is what God did in our lives as well.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Izabella I cannot even imagine. I don't even know where to begin with that because growing up in America, it is such a different experience. And we can think about the hardships that we may think we're facing. And there are a lot of families that are facing difficult things, but not like you are describing. How did you start to learn about God if God's name wasn't even allowed to be spoken in your country. How did you first hear about God and come to know Christ?
Izabella McMillon: I was 7 years old. My brother was 10. We found by accident a hidden Bible under the floorboards of our little government owned apartment. And that is how we were first exposed to God's word. And we started reading this little book we found in the floorboards. And we were so excited. We didn't really understand what this book was, but to us, it was the most exciting story, storybook we have ever put our hands on. We started reading it on page one. Just like we were taught in school that you need to read every book. And that first day when we found it, we read through the story of Noah by the time mom and dad came home from work. And I remember just my brother and I being so excited about this story and trying to imagine how big this boat had to be to fit all the animals in it. How much water did it take to cover the entire earth? We were so, so very excited. And we ran up with that little book we found to the door when mom and dad came home and we told them what we found. And my dad, you could tell on his face something was really, really wrong. And he looked at us and he said, you take that book back where you found it, do not ever take it out again, and do not tell anyone what you have found in our house. And so we watched my dad tucking that little Bible back into the floorboards, putting those wooden tiles over it, and then putting the little area rag we had in the living room on top of it. And we did not speak another word about it in our house. And so we knew this was serious, but we didn't fully understand as kids just what this could mean for our family. But my dad, as adults, both my mom and dad, they knew very well that our family could disappear the next day if anyone was to find out that we were harboring a Bible in our home.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Where do you think that came from? I think about just the story behind the story. How did the Bible get there? And why didn't your dad destroy it? Why did he put it back there? But. But God. We know that God works miracles. And for you to find that is just beyond belief. And then what happened after that? How did you. What was your next encounter with God?
Izabella McMillon: Actually was a question in my mind too, for a long time, Jessica, where did this Bible come from? If it's not allowed, then why is it even here? And we actually didn't learn the answer to that. Until I was 19 years old, an adult already, when my mom and dad were finally brave enough to tell us that it was actually a Bible that was passed down on my mom's side of the family. She came from a long line of Protestants, and they didn't want to burn it or throw it away. Throwing it away would not have been safe. They would have had to probably burn it. But they were hiding it. They were the ones who created that little hole in the floorboard of our little apartment, and they were hiding it there. And they would take it out late at night when we as kids were already in bed in the other little bedroom in our apartment, and they would take it out and they would read it themselves, because that was the only source of hope they had in the sky. Spiritual darkness of Communism. But we were so young at that point. They were so afraid that if we were to know about it, what if we said something at school? Or what if someone heard us talking about it and they would report us, and then our family could be killed. So it was very serious. They knew that. But what happened and what we learned when I was 19, is that the night before we found this Bible, mom and dad were reading it themselves. And when they tucked that Bible back in the last tile, they didn't put down all the way. And that last tile, once they put the carpet over it, the little area rack that we had, it was bulging underneath that carpet. And that's what we noticed as kids the next day. And that is what led us to this little hole that we discovered. And then the Bible that we discovered. But you know, Jessica, I wish I could tell you that we were perfect kids, but we were not. And then the next day, next day, we didn't just come home from school, we ran home from school, and we gulped down our lunch and we rushed through homework, because now we knew this little treasure that was hiding in the floorboards. And we would read this book day after day, over and over again. We actually read it cover to cover, many, many times over. And then we would hide it right back in before mom and dad came home. So they didn't even know for years that we were reading this book. But we were learning the stories in this book. Even though we didn't fully understand them. We were slowly learning the stories. And I do believe that God's Word, even when we don't fully understand it, he starts working in our hearts through His Word. And I believe he started doing that in our hearts. My brother and I, as we read these stories and then let Me. Fast forward when I am 11. So about four years later, I am at school in the fifth grade, out at recess on the courtyard, and one of my brave little classmates comes up to me, and he says, I want to share a secret with you. I have been going to this little underground church, and I want to invite you to also come. And so that is the little underground church that my brother and I started going to on Saturday nights. We had to, arrive after dark based on a schedule we were given so all of us would not arrive at the same time. And it was at this little underground church that was a little building that looked no different than all the other houses around it, not marked in any shape or form. But it was at that little place where I realized that the pastor, who gathered about 12 children under the pretense of story time, was reading from the same book that we have had hidden in the floorboard of our house. And I was so excited, Jessica, because our pastor every Saturday started with one sentence. I am reading to you from the best book in the world. And I thought, well, I have the best book in the world in my house, too. That's pretty amazing. And so we got really excited. And this pastor took me and my brother under his wing, and he opened the door for us to simply ask questions. He said, if you have questions, you can stay after everyone is gone on Saturdays, and you can ask me. And so that opened the door for my brother and I to start learning that this book is more than just a storybook. There's so much power behind it. And we learn more and more from my pastor. And then when I was 13, about two years after we started going to this little church, the pastor taught me for the first time how to pray. Now, Jessica, when, we were going to this little church, the pastor couldn't pray with us. It was just under the pretense of story time for 12 children who were gathered, who had rare questions, making sure we paid attention, and then we went home. What he did, he was praying for us before we came, that God will work in our hearts through his word without him being able to explain, because that could put us and him and the church in danger. But one day when I was 13, after everyone was gone, I asked him if he could teach me how to pray, Because I read about prayer in this little book. I heard about it. I. I really understood that it was powerful, but I didn't know how to do it. So I just wanted to simply know, how do you do this prayer thing that I have been reading about. And my pastor sat me down as a little 13 year old girl and he taught me for the first time how to pray. He asked me why I wanted to pray and I told him because it's cold outside and I don't like it. I never liked cold. I never liked winters. But the only way that mom and dad would let us go outside and play past dark, it's at 5:30. It was already dark. It was not fun for us in the winters. It was really hard. Food was more scarce than normal. It was pitch.
Dr. Jessica Peck: No, Izabella Izabella
An ultrasound provided by Preborn helped Candace discover she was pregnant
We are already on our first break but I am riveted and I am convicted from the top of my head to the bottom of my toes. I am deeply convicted for every excuse I have ever made to not read my Bible. Listen, do not go away. We're going to talk about the day that she got her shoebox gift. When we come back. Candace talks about finding out she was pregnant. Thankfully, an ultrasound provided by PreBorn allowed her to hear her baby's heartbeat. The sonogram sealed the deal for me. My baby was like this tiny little spectrum of hope and I saw his heart beating on the screen and knowing that there's life growing inside, I mean that sonogram changed my life. I went from just Candace to mom. Thank you to everybody that has given these gifts. You guys are giving more than money. You guys are giving love. Preborn currently has clinics that do not have ultrasound machines. Would you consider a leadership gift and sponsor a machine today? These life Saving machines cost $15,000: more than most centers can afford. Your donation will save countless lives for years to come. Dial pound250 and say the keyword baby or go to preborn.com/AFR.
Izabella McMillon grew up in communist Romania and prayed for snow
Christmastime by Michael W. Smith: singing joy to the world. Christmastime is here. Children. Gather around and listen. You'll hear the sound of angels filling the sky telling everyone, "Christmastime is here"
Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back friends. That is Christmastime by Michael W. Smith. And I hope for those of you who are not playing Christmas music yet that you will indulge us because we are saying. Children, gather around and listen to the incredible, incredible story I have today. I my guest today is Izabella McMillon. If you were listening in on the first segment, you were hearing her riveting story of growing up in communist Romania. Her parents were told where they would live, where they would work. And one day she and her brother discovered hidden beneath the floorboards of their house, a Bible they did not know until years later that their parents hidden as an heirloom, that was passed down through their family and she was sharing about going to a story time where a pastor was reading to her from God's word and praying that God's word would speak to her. And when she was 13, she prayed for the first time. Izabella you were right in the middle of telling us about that and I definitely want to hear the end of this story. So pick it up where you left off and tell us the rest.
Izabella McMillon: I remember so clearly going to my pastor as a 13 year old little girl. It was late September and it was so cold outside. And I do not like cold, not to this day. But cold winter days were so hard for us because food was more scarce. It was pitch dark outside, we didn't have electricity or street lights. So the only way that mom and dad would let us go outside and play past dark is if it snowed outside. So I wanted my pastor to teach me how to pray so I would know how to pray for snow so we can have fun that winter. That's how simple my 13 year old prayer was. And my pastor taught me how to pray for the first time as a 13 year old little girl. And he told me to just talk to God like he's my best friend and he will always answer. Just sometimes his answers look differently than what me imagine. And what I imagined, Jessica, is that the next morning after I prayed, God will give me fluffy white snow from the sky. That's what I imagined. But that is not what he gave me. He actually didn't answer my prayer for three long months. And that is a long time for a 13 year old little girl who just wants to know that God is more than just the character on the pages of a storybook. That he is real, that he listens, that he answers. But his answer came in a very unexpected way. The day after Christmas. And I will never forget that day. People were running on the streets. And in Romania that meant one thing. There was something at the grocery store. And so we started running. And we are excited. And people pass by the grocery store and we end up in the center of our little town. And people were so excited and shouting, trucks are coming. Trucks are coming. And these trucks pulled in and they opened them in the back of them the most colorful boxes you can imagine ever seeing. It was like a splash of color in our black and white world. It was so beautiful. I have never seen anything like that. And a sweet lady who actually spoke my language that day came with, came to me with a colorfully wrapped little shoebox in her hands. And she told me it was for me with no strings attached. I didn't have to do anything for it. And then she asked me if there was anything she could pray with me for. And I looked at her, and I said, if you can pray with me for Snow, that would be great. And that is exactly what she did. She knelt down to come down to my level and prayed with me right there and then for Snow and Jessica. I could not believe that someone would give me something for nothing with no strings attached. That seemed impossible in my world. But I looked around me, and all the kids are laughing. And that is not a sound we were used to. Kids never dared to laugh or smile or look at each other. We always kind of tried to stay in line in Communism and not stand out in any way, but everyone was laughing that day. And I opened my shoebox, and there were four filled with the most colorful, beautiful, new things. I have never seen anything like that. I was the coolest kid at school for months, with the coolest school supplies you will ever imagine. Nobody had colored markers, and nobody even knew what crayons were, but I had them. But in the corner of my box was this little thing that I pulled out. And as I looked at it, a little boy who was running past me, he grabbed my hand with his hand, and he said, you have to shake that. That's how that works. And when he did that, and I looked down in my hand, I saw the most beautiful silver snow inside of a snow globe. And the first thing I could think of, were my pastor's words when he said, God always answers prayers, but sometimes his answers look differently than what we imagine. And this is not what I imagined, nor what I thought I was praying for. But God answered my prayer in a very different way. And in the meanwhile, he taught me a lot in that waiting period about who he is, that he heard me. He saw me. He knows my name. And that was the day when I decided to serve him for the rest of my life.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Izabella I literally have tears in my eyes. I am just so moved by your story, by the story of a God who loves a little girl growing up in Communist Romania. Loves her enough to make a tile loose so that the seeds are planted. Loves her enough to give her a pastor who is so brave and so courageous to share the gospel and to answer her prayer in such a tangible, memorable way, in such a miraculous way. And as I said before the break, Izabella I am convicted from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet, for every time I have ever said I was too busy to read My Bible. I think if you racing home with your brother, just, just devouring God's word, I, I feel every time I've said, you know, oh, I'm too tired to go to church today, or I don't feel like going, or any time that I've even had a bad attitude about going. What a gift that you have given us of showing us the blessings that we have and the blessings that we're missing out on because we're too busy to look around and see the ways that God is working. How, what happened from there? How did that shoebox change your life and put you on a different path?
Izabella McMillon: Jessica, that was such a bold prayer for a 13 year old little girl to say, God, I will serve you for the rest of my life. Now I say, see who you are. He became personal to me on that day and that's who our God is. He's a personal God. I had no idea what that would look like if I am honest. And it wasn't a quick change, it wasn't easy. I actually left, Romania when I was 26 years old and came to the United States with the one year program. The Lord opened the door for that now turned into over 23 years I have been here because that first year I came to the US I was exposed to Operation Christmas Child on this side. And you know, Jessica, I prayed for years for God to show me where these boxes came from. I didn't know they did not give them to us in the name of Operation Christmas Child. They were given to us in the name of Jesus. The only name they were busy to proclaim was the name of Jesus. And that is the name I've heard loud and clear. But I got reconnected with Operation Christmas Child on this end as I was teaching at a small Christian school in Durham, North Carolina and I was given a brochure about Operation Christmas Child to kick off in chapel for this little school to be more mission minded. And to my amazement, I was reconnected with this ministry. I could not believe that God brought me in such a way full circle. And now I get to be with you and alongside of our listeners on this side of shoeboxes. Being able to pack. My kids There are now 16 and 13, but they have been packing since they could walk and talk pretty much. And God has allowed this beautiful opportunity of packing simple shoeboxes to be the best tool for me as a mom to teach my children about generosity, about thinking about others around the world who don't have the very basic things of life, how we can bless them, but, most importantly, expose them to the love of God and for them to know that they are seen and not forgotten.
Dr. Jessica Peck: What a beautiful, beautiful full circle moment. What a beautiful story that God has given you to share with us. And I think of all the people out there that are packing their shoeboxes now, and I think of the stacks and stacks of shoeboxes that I saw at the church, at my church where I walked through. And you know, Izabella I think of people just. I think of whoever put that snow globe in your box. There was someone who bought a snow globe who had no idea about the prayer that you had prayed, but just was being obedient to the Lord's leading in their heart that just said, yes, put that snow globe in there. And I believe that you will know who that is one day. That person who packed that will know what happened. You know this on the other side of heaven will know that. And that is one of the beautiful things, is that sometimes God gives us just a glimpse of right now we see through a glass darkly. But one day we will know in full and we will see face to face the millions and millions of children who have received gifts and the millions of ways that God has transformed lives and saved souls. I. I, cannot even get over it. You can see how I'm so enthusiastic about packing shoeboxes. Please, Izabella invite people listening because it is not too late to participate. They could do that this week, this weekend with their families. Please tell them how they can do that.
Izabella McMillon: You are so right, Jessica. It is not too late. I love how intentional our God is with the smallest details and how we can take the most ordinary things you and I can put in boxes and do something extraordinary with them. School supplies, hygiene items, toys. They seem so simple to us, but they become extraordinary when God is involved and he's in the details. You can simply take a shoebox anywhere you are. You can pack it. Our drop off locations across the country are, open all the way through November 24, which is next Monday. So we are right now in the middle of our national collection week. This is what we have been praying for all year. That 12.6 million shoeboxes will arrive at our drop off locations across the country this week. And you can find out the closest drop off location to you by simply going to our website, samaritanspurse.org/occ you type in your zip code and you can find the closest church that is open to you to drop off your shoeboxes. We partner with almost 5,000 churches across the U.S. imagine the excitement when you walk in with your packed shoebox and our, precious Operation Christmas Child volunteers are ready to receive you and pray with you over your shoebox. You get to be part of something that God is doing around the world in the hearts of children in more than 140 different countries around the world. You don't even need a passport. That's what I tell my kids. You don't need a passport and you get to be a missionary around the world. Just when you pack your boxes, I want to remind you there's no more snow globes that are allowed in them. But that is okay because God is intentional for every child with very unique needs that that child needs. And just remember, there's a beating heart and the face of a child behind every shoebox. These are not simple items. These are lives you and I get to impact with the power of the Gospel.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Izabella I love that I've told this story before, but last year when I went to a partnering church, a distribution center, to drop off my boxes, I was met by a very enthusiastic group of American Heritage girls, a troop. And they were so excited, they ran to the door, they grabbed my packages. They were telling me, come on, come on, and, and showing me all of the stacks and stacks that they had been through and organizing. And I filled out the paperwork. And it just warmed my heart to see girls on this side of the operation who had, who could use their gifts. These were 8, 9, 10 year old girls who were able to help. And Izabella as I was leaving, one of the girls grabbed my arm and she said, wait, you forgot the most important part. And I said, as an adult, you know, I said, oh, I, I paid, I paid for my boxes. And she said, no, that's not the most important part. We have to pray over the boxes. And this little girl led me by the hand over to that stack of boxes and led all of those other little girls and putting their hands on those boxes and praying for them and praying for the children who would receive them. And I am telling you, Izabella that that was the greatest Christmas blessing last year. It still warms my heart. I still think about it. Absolutely amazing. And I am inviting you to be a part of this, be a part of the miracle that Samaritan's purse is praying for. They need 12 more than 12 million boxes. And as you heard, you can go to samaritanspurse.org/occ that's samaritanspurse.org/occ you can also contact American Family Association. We will be so happy to provide you with information and connect you with those resources. National Collection Week is happening right now through Monday, so you still have some time, but not a lot of it. And so make this your project for the weekend. Do it with your family on Saturday. Do it with your life group on Sunday. Pack a box or two or ten or a hundred. We would love to have you participate. And thank you so much to Izabella McMillan, who shared her beautiful, beautiful testimony. When we come back, we have some more Christmas previews when we're going to talk about when faith meets science. We'll talk with Dr. Fizzlebop when we come back after the break. Brock Eastman, you don't want to miss it. We'll see you in just a second. And my father, your great grandfather, fought in World War II. Really? He was a gunner on the big ship out in the Pacific Ocean. Wow. Your great grandmother did her part, too. Was she on a ship? Oh, no. She stayed back home. She and a lot of her friends worked really hard in a factory because the men had gone off to war and they held scrap metal drives to help in the war effort. The folks back home were heroes, too.
Jeff Chamblee: Here at the American Family association, we consider you the heroes back home as you fulfill your responsibility of caring for your family day to day. Your partnership with us is crucial as we fight the enemies of freedom in America. Thank you for your commitment to the American Family Association. Grandpa, what's a scrap metal drive? Let's get some cookies and I'll tell you all about it.
Indescribable by Chris Tomlin: From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea creations revealing your majesty. From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring. every creature unique in the song that it sings. All exclaiming, indescribable, uncontainable. You place the stars in the sky and you know them by name. You are amazing God. All powerful, untameable, awestruck We fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim. You are amazing God.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back, friends. That is Indescribable by Chris Tomlin. And I want you to know how much I care about you, my listeners. We had one Christmas song for all the Christmas music players and one non Christmas song. So we are doing our best to serve everybody. But I'm so grateful that you are here. If you have been here from the top of the hour, my goodness, what an incredible, incredible Testimony from Izabella McMillon and Operation Christmas Child. I do hope that you will be a part of that.
Brock Eastman talks about new books that connect faith and science
And as you are praying, preparing your hearts for Christmas, we're thinking about what to get our kids. Hopefully you're thinking about what to get your kids and your grandkids. And one of the greatest things that you can do is get gifts that invest in their faith. And today we're talking about some new books that connect faith and science. That is one of my favorite things for sure. And we're talking to a familiar guest to all of you, Brock Eastman. He is the award winning author or co author of the Quest for truth series. Bedtime on Noah's Ark, Daddy's favorite sound, Mommy's favorite smell. So many books he has done for Focus on the Family. He has won awards. He has a YouTube channel as Dr. Fizzlebop. So fun. I really am a fan of kids having fun because they learn more when they're having fun. And I especially want them to learn about their faith. And so we need to infuse some fun into that because it literally changes the way that their brain absorbs information. We have the same thing because when we get bored, let's be honest, we tune out. And kids do the same thing. And with a, shorter and shorter attention span, we have to fight more for their attention. And Brock has done that in so many creative ways, helping kids connect their faith with science. And he is a husband, he is a dad. He is a, just amazing, amazing, creative, creative genius. You want to, you want to go there, Brock? Is that. Is that fair to say?
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): I don't know. I think I should probably walk off set now. I. That was. I don't know. I can say thank you.
Dr. Jessica Peck: You're welcome.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Brock, I am a very red.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): Good, good.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Okay. All right. So we're in the right place. But I am a fan of your work and I'm so grateful for what you have. And you do have a new series of books out called super simple Science. Now, my eye first went to the Space Science with Dr. Fizzlebop. Now, that's because most of my listeners know I have the privilege of being married to a real life rocket science, which promotes this line in my house all the time. Brock, from my kids, if, I am trying to do something, solve a problem, they look at me and say, it's not rocket science, mom. So that always goes there. But we have Alphabet and animals, colors and counting, weather science. These are fun books for toddlers and preschoolers to explore God's amazing world through science. So tell us about them.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): Yeah. And you know, I appreciate you. Let me. Come on. I think we just talked not too long ago, and at that time, These books weren't coming out till January. Well, they got moved up to December 2nd. So I really excited, just in time for Christmas, four beautiful board books. And they're these, these sweet little set together really, for opening under the Christmas Tree. But yeah, you know, you kind of, you actually did my whole spiel for me already. It was great. The truth is what you said about kids at an early age learning and how their mind takes everything in. And so, you know, we talked about Dr. Fizz, about the suit, the, the the devotional before, about how getting that time and the family interaction together. But that's really for 8 to 12 year olds. I mean your whole family can enjoy that. But we wanted to start an early age in those little moments when your kiddo is on your lap, nap before bedtime or on the couch in the afternoon, starting to expose them to scientific concepts around them and helping them connect that to an amazing creator who made the world just for them. And I think that's what these four.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Books do and it makes them curious. We need to foster curiosity in this world, especially curiosity about things related to faith. Now when we're talking about toddlers and preschoolers, we are, in the why stage of questioning why, why, why, why, why. And those questions can just, just be endless. And to be honest, sometimes they seem exhausting. But the beautiful thing to me, Brock, is that is the way that God designed kids to learn. He designed that curiosity to kick in about that age. And it's such a short window of time that we have to really nurture their curiosity about faith in God's world. And I think right now in adult conversations, in national debates, there's so much talk about, about science and the intersection of faith and science and there's a lot of, you know, potential pitfalls there. But when we teach them a biblical worldview, when we nurture that curiosity from the beginning about things God made like science, then we can really have an opportunity to impact their faith. Don't you think?
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): I absolutely think so. And you're right, we're seeing such a massive shift of people turning to the church. There's a report recently that we were talking about at work and it's just, just Gen Z is like showing up on doorsteps. And actually our pastor this Sunday who actually mentioned at one of the churches downtown is that Gen Z is showing up on doorsteps because they're curious and they feel like we didn't grow up in the church. What's going on? They want to know about this creator, this God who exists and who's made the world around them. And so, you know, I don't want it to be, wait until they're in their 20s to show up at the church. I want kids at an early age to have that foundation as you mentioned and you talked about the curiosity. And so I'm gonna start with M1 you said is a favorite if that's okay.
Gen Alpha kids are exploring the space in new ways
So, so space science with Dr. Physics. Okay.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): One, the art is just absolutely beautiful. If you're watching the YouTube show, you can, you can see some of the artwork. But the Earth has a moon that rotates around our planet. This means the moon orbits the Earth. The moon reflects sunlight like a giant mirror. People have walked on the moon. Would you ever want to visit the moon? So every, every kind of little statements here for the kiddo walks them through some facts in a narrative way about a planet or the moon or the solar system. But then there's always a question every for the kiddo to think about. And I know a one year old probably is like, yeah, I'll step on the moon. But as they transition to 3 and 4 in those upper top, there's other questions they might want to consider. And I really believe that in this generation right now, you know what we, I don't believe we know that this generation right now will be the first to step back on the moon. But also Mars and Titan, the moon out there. I think there's our, these kids as gen Alpha kids are going to be exploring the space in new ways. So you have a passion for space. Your husband's an aerospace, I forget what you said. Aerospace engineer.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Right, right, yeah. He's a real life rocket scientist. He is.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): And I love space and exploring space and I've written several books about it. And so to me this one is my favorite too because I think it's really going to inspire a new generation of kids to start thinking about this beautiful solar system, the galaxy, the universe that our God made and move away from the misleading statement of, of Big Bang. And what was that? No, we had an intelligent designer that put it all together and it all works because of how he designed it. And that's what I want little ones to learn. And I want to hear it. I want those kiddos to hear it from their parents and their grandparents or a trusted adult. Right. Telling that narrative that's going to build that trust and foundation. So anyways, yes.
Dr. Jessica Peck: And we can also cross reference this scripture because there's so many scriptures even taking space. There are scriptures about the moon, the Stars. What is the moon and the stars? What is man? You hung the moon and the stars. What is man that you are mindful of him. One of my favorite scriptures about ah, about space is when God is talking to Job and says where were you when basically I made space, I made the world, I made, I hung the firmament, you know all of these things that are there. I, I love that because we can make that connection for them between faith and science and Brock, you and I have talked about this a lot especially for Gen Alpha and the new generation behind them that is being born right now and they are yet to be named. Don't a widely accepted name although there's some, some in the running. Right. But I know you're very passionate about Gen Alpha and one of the things that I am really excited about seeing Gen Z is adopt some old school things. And we do need to go back old school especially with AI just talking about that taking away our ability to choose things. Everything is on autoplay. Our lives are driven by the algorithm. All content is digital. There is a value for having old school books to read because even the way that it affects kids developmentally, they're turning the pages, they're looking at the bright colors, they're sitting together with their parent, with their grandparent having that close nurturing, physical relationship. There are definitely things that are there. What are you seeing and what is your heart for Gen Alpha and the generation now coming up behind them that's gonna finally make Gen Alpha the geriatric, more geriatric generation.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): Interesting. Well you know, you said it though. It's that turning back to the physical, you know we talk about kids being, we have a I want to share something so in the book because I'm gonna. What's a great question. so they're in the back of each book is an experiment. So I've got it right here actually I've got several experiments on my desk. I don't know if we'll get to them but you can build this little rocket, cut out paper, use a straw and you teach kids about proposals simply by blowing the rocket right through the straw. But the idea is you take these scientific concepts and you put into a way that they can learn by doing hands on projects. And so you're absolutely right. You know there's nothing more sad that for me than when I'm in a restaurant and I see everybody at the table on screens, including little kids on the iPad, the parent brought in for them. Let's just take A moment with a book. And I promise parents, these board books are short. You're not going to get tired of them. They're not going to take you forever. But that five minutes of reading this book to your kiddo is going to have a lasting impact on them and their growth and their development and their faith. And it's not just this board book is anytime you're spending time with your kids, reading with them in your lap or right next to them on the couch or laying in bed, they're taking all that in. That physical touch, that emotion of you being around them, that joy of spending time together. it just happened that these books will help learn certain scientific concepts and connect it back to their faith. And so I think that's what I really want for Gen Alpha and for the generation coming is that they have quality. Their parents or their grandparents or a loved one who's building into them. Instead of just handing them a screen and saying, watch this because I'm too busy for you. No, take that five, ten minutes and sit physically with your kiddo. Let them hear your voice, express the words and the dialogue. You don't have to be a, rocket scientist to read this book. All the answers are in here for you. You just have to read it, right? You just have to show up. So maybe that. I think that's, what I want.
Dr. Jessica Peck: We are going to help people by giving away one of these books right now. We haven't done a giveaway in forever, and we're having a giveaway right now. Call in. Are you ready? 8, 8, 8, 589--8840. That's 888-5898-840. See, I am starting the spirit of Christmas and helping you get ready for Christmas. Now we will be giving away one of these books. And Brock, tell us again how to find your YouTube channel for to see Dr. Fizzlebop.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): The easiest way is to go to YouTube.com and just type in Fizzlebop. If you type in Fizzlebop, I'm gonna pop up pretty quickly. So that's my YouTube channel. And then Brock Eastman.com you can link there for to get anything in all four of the board books especially. So. Yes.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, thank you so much, Brock. I'm so grateful for everything that you do to help equip parents and to give them something, especially these books just designed especially for little hands, growing minds, and what we pray is a growing faith. These are, little colorful board books that are going to help parents in sparking an early interest in scientific discovery. Let all of the scientists out there just rejoice for a minute. We'll have a collective moment to celebrate all of the nerds as I push up my glasses here, but each book is fully. Okay, there we go. Yes. Okay, there we go. We did it together. Each book is really thoughtfully written with age appropriate language, playful illustrations and it makes those complex stem ideas seem simple and fun even for the youngest of learners.
Brock Eastman: What kids really care about is that time
And Brock, as you're preparing for Christmas, do you have any words of encouragement for parents out there who are just doing all the things? Do you have any words to encourage them?
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): You know, I think the most important thing is, you know, we always try to do our 25 days of Advent and what we have found over. You know, I've got a 16, 14, 12 and 10 year old. What we have found is what kids really care about is that time. It doesn't have to be extravagant or super exciting. We don't have to go ice skating today and look at lights the next day. It's about spending time together and doing activity. And that's all I would say is take a moment, pause and just make sure you're doing it together, having fun and smiling. I think that's the best gift we can give our kids in the season.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, thank you so much again for that, Brock. So whatever you are doing with your family, I pray that you will spend time together. Your kids want your presence. That's P R E S E N C E. I'm testing myself on spelling here. Much more than they want your presence, Your P R E S E N T S your gifts. They really do want your time.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Even when it doesn't seem that way, even when it seems like you can't get their face out of their phone, even when it seems like they're very disinterested, they are very interested. And I can tell you that Gen Z, Gen Alpha, they are longing for connection, meaningful connection through healthy relationships. You can do that either by reading together no matter what age kids you have. I still read to my adult adult kids and I love it. In case you can't tell, I have a flair for the melodramatic and I'm unapologetic about it, but that is the way that I can spend time with my family. Or maybe you'll pack a shoebox to send to Operation Christmas child. Go to samaritanspurse.org/occ I encourage you to be a part of that. And wherever you are in your Christmas preparations, I pray that the Lord will bring bless you and keep you and make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you and give you peace. And I will see you right back here tomorrow. And I can't wait.
Jeff Chamblee: The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.
Hello and welcome to the Dr. Nurse Mama show prescribing Hope for Healthy Families here on American Family Radio. Here's your host, professor, pediatric nurse practitioner and mom of four, Dr. Jessica Peck.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, hey there, friends, and welcome to my favorite part of the afternoon, getting to spend time with you, prescribing Hope for Healthy Families. And we've had a great week. We have talked about some really exciting things as we are preparing our hearts for the holidays. I know many of you are already starting to plan your travel. You may be even starting to begin traveling this weekend to be with family for Thanksgiving next week. I know you're already looking forward to Christmas. Even those of you who refuse to put on Christmas music, that's okay because we learned from our guest yesterday, Taylor Combs, who wrote an Advent devotional called the One We're Waiting for is just beautiful. And that is okay, too. We are looking to really prepare our hearts for Christmas. These still have some time, and today is one of my favorite days of the year to be able to do that. Today we are talking about Operation Christmas Child. Now, I know we've been talking about that every day, but today we have a very, very special guest with us. Before I introduce her, let me remind you that Operation Christmas Child is the Samaritan's Purse project that collects shoebox gifts filled with toys and school supplies and personal care items. And they deliver them to children in need around the to demonstrate God's love in a tangible way. And for many of these children, this gift filled shoebox is the first gift they have ever received. This has been going on since 1993, the world's largest Christmas project of its time, of its kind. Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 232 million shoebox gifts to children in more than 170 countries and territories. And in 2025, Operation Christmas Child hopes to collect enough shoebox gifts to reach another 12.6 million children. And here to tell you her testimony about being a recipient of one of those boxes that changed her life is Izabella McMillon. Now, Izabella grew up during the communistic regime in Romania when even attending a church could have resulted in death. And when she was 13 years old, she received a gift that changed her life. And she is here today to tell you about it. Izabella thank you so much for joining us. We are so grateful to have you here.
Izabella McMillon: Thank you so much for allowing me to be here with you, Jessica, today.
Izabella grew up in Romania during the communism
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Izabella tell us your story. Tell us about growing up in Romania and what childhood was like for you.
Izabella McMillon: I grew up in Romania during the communism. So when I was born, it was already communism. And I want to just describe a little bit for our listeners what communism really meant for us who lived through it. My parents, when they got married, they received a letter from the government that told them where they are going to live for the rest of their lives and where they're going to work for the rest of their lives. So they were assigned to a city about 30 km outside of the little village where they both grew up and they were assigned to a heavy machinery factory. So that little two bedroom government owned apartment is actually where I spent the first 24 years of my life. They had no choice in where to live or where to work or where we would go to school that was also assigned. Or even where we would get our groceries. We were assigned even to a grocery store where we would get our groceries. And my most fun memories from my childhood, Jessica, is standing in lines. And that might sound really, really strange to a lot of people, but for us, standing in lines meant that we would get something we didn't have. And so whenever there were lines at the grocery store, that meant we are getting something that we didn't have. So we always got excited about those times we received anything from the grocery store based on the ratio coupons the government was assigning to us. So literally every aspect of our life was controlled by the government, including the fact that God's name was not allowed within the walls of our country. So saying the name of God out loud or owning a Bible or going to church, those things could literally cost your life. Churches went underground, they were no longer allowed. All the crosses were removed from steeples when communism came into rule. And so I grew up in an environment where we didn't know about God, we didn't go to church, and that was the environment where we grew up in. But I'm so grateful that our God whom we serve is a God who tells us in John 1:5 that the light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it. And there's no governments and there's no manual rules that could ever stop the gospel from spreading. And that is what God did in our lives as well.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Izabella I cannot even imagine. I don't even know where to begin with that because growing up in America, it is such a different experience. And we can think about the hardships that we may think we're facing. And there are a lot of families that are facing difficult things, but not like you are describing. How did you start to learn about God if God's name wasn't even allowed to be spoken in your country. How did you first hear about God and come to know Christ?
Izabella McMillon: I was 7 years old. My brother was 10. We found by accident a hidden Bible under the floorboards of our little government owned apartment. And that is how we were first exposed to God's word. And we started reading this little book we found in the floorboards. And we were so excited. We didn't really understand what this book was, but to us, it was the most exciting story, storybook we have ever put our hands on. We started reading it on page one. Just like we were taught in school that you need to read every book. And that first day when we found it, we read through the story of Noah by the time mom and dad came home from work. And I remember just my brother and I being so excited about this story and trying to imagine how big this boat had to be to fit all the animals in it. How much water did it take to cover the entire earth? We were so, so very excited. And we ran up with that little book we found to the door when mom and dad came home and we told them what we found. And my dad, you could tell on his face something was really, really wrong. And he looked at us and he said, you take that book back where you found it, do not ever take it out again, and do not tell anyone what you have found in our house. And so we watched my dad tucking that little Bible back into the floorboards, putting those wooden tiles over it, and then putting the little area rag we had in the living room on top of it. And we did not speak another word about it in our house. And so we knew this was serious, but we didn't fully understand as kids just what this could mean for our family. But my dad, as adults, both my mom and dad, they knew very well that our family could disappear the next day if anyone was to find out that we were harboring a Bible in our home.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Where do you think that came from? I think about just the story behind the story. How did the Bible get there? And why didn't your dad destroy it? Why did he put it back there? But. But God. We know that God works miracles. And for you to find that is just beyond belief. And then what happened after that? How did you. What was your next encounter with God?
Izabella McMillon: Actually was a question in my mind too, for a long time, Jessica, where did this Bible come from? If it's not allowed, then why is it even here? And we actually didn't learn the answer to that. Until I was 19 years old, an adult already, when my mom and dad were finally brave enough to tell us that it was actually a Bible that was passed down on my mom's side of the family. She came from a long line of Protestants, and they didn't want to burn it or throw it away. Throwing it away would not have been safe. They would have had to probably burn it. But they were hiding it. They were the ones who created that little hole in the floorboard of our little apartment, and they were hiding it there. And they would take it out late at night when we as kids were already in bed in the other little bedroom in our apartment, and they would take it out and they would read it themselves, because that was the only source of hope they had in the sky. Spiritual darkness of Communism. But we were so young at that point. They were so afraid that if we were to know about it, what if we said something at school? Or what if someone heard us talking about it and they would report us, and then our family could be killed. So it was very serious. They knew that. But what happened and what we learned when I was 19, is that the night before we found this Bible, mom and dad were reading it themselves. And when they tucked that Bible back in the last tile, they didn't put down all the way. And that last tile, once they put the carpet over it, the little area rack that we had, it was bulging underneath that carpet. And that's what we noticed as kids the next day. And that is what led us to this little hole that we discovered. And then the Bible that we discovered. But you know, Jessica, I wish I could tell you that we were perfect kids, but we were not. And then the next day, next day, we didn't just come home from school, we ran home from school, and we gulped down our lunch and we rushed through homework, because now we knew this little treasure that was hiding in the floorboards. And we would read this book day after day, over and over again. We actually read it cover to cover, many, many times over. And then we would hide it right back in before mom and dad came home. So they didn't even know for years that we were reading this book. But we were learning the stories in this book. Even though we didn't fully understand them. We were slowly learning the stories. And I do believe that God's Word, even when we don't fully understand it, he starts working in our hearts through His Word. And I believe he started doing that in our hearts. My brother and I, as we read these stories and then let Me. Fast forward when I am 11. So about four years later, I am at school in the fifth grade, out at recess on the courtyard, and one of my brave little classmates comes up to me, and he says, I want to share a secret with you. I have been going to this little underground church, and I want to invite you to also come. And so that is the little underground church that my brother and I started going to on Saturday nights. We had to, arrive after dark based on a schedule we were given so all of us would not arrive at the same time. And it was at this little underground church that was a little building that looked no different than all the other houses around it, not marked in any shape or form. But it was at that little place where I realized that the pastor, who gathered about 12 children under the pretense of story time, was reading from the same book that we have had hidden in the floorboard of our house. And I was so excited, Jessica, because our pastor every Saturday started with one sentence. I am reading to you from the best book in the world. And I thought, well, I have the best book in the world in my house, too. That's pretty amazing. And so we got really excited. And this pastor took me and my brother under his wing, and he opened the door for us to simply ask questions. He said, if you have questions, you can stay after everyone is gone on Saturdays, and you can ask me. And so that opened the door for my brother and I to start learning that this book is more than just a storybook. There's so much power behind it. And we learn more and more from my pastor. And then when I was 13, about two years after we started going to this little church, the pastor taught me for the first time how to pray. Now, Jessica, when, we were going to this little church, the pastor couldn't pray with us. It was just under the pretense of story time for 12 children who were gathered, who had rare questions, making sure we paid attention, and then we went home. What he did, he was praying for us before we came, that God will work in our hearts through his word without him being able to explain, because that could put us and him and the church in danger. But one day when I was 13, after everyone was gone, I asked him if he could teach me how to pray, Because I read about prayer in this little book. I heard about it. I. I really understood that it was powerful, but I didn't know how to do it. So I just wanted to simply know, how do you do this prayer thing that I have been reading about. And my pastor sat me down as a little 13 year old girl and he taught me for the first time how to pray. He asked me why I wanted to pray and I told him because it's cold outside and I don't like it. I never liked cold. I never liked winters. But the only way that mom and dad would let us go outside and play past dark, it's at 5:30. It was already dark. It was not fun for us in the winters. It was really hard. Food was more scarce than normal. It was pitch.
Dr. Jessica Peck: No, Izabella Izabella
An ultrasound provided by Preborn helped Candace discover she was pregnant
We are already on our first break but I am riveted and I am convicted from the top of my head to the bottom of my toes. I am deeply convicted for every excuse I have ever made to not read my Bible. Listen, do not go away. We're going to talk about the day that she got her shoebox gift. When we come back. Candace talks about finding out she was pregnant. Thankfully, an ultrasound provided by PreBorn allowed her to hear her baby's heartbeat. The sonogram sealed the deal for me. My baby was like this tiny little spectrum of hope and I saw his heart beating on the screen and knowing that there's life growing inside, I mean that sonogram changed my life. I went from just Candace to mom. Thank you to everybody that has given these gifts. You guys are giving more than money. You guys are giving love. Preborn currently has clinics that do not have ultrasound machines. Would you consider a leadership gift and sponsor a machine today? These life Saving machines cost $15,000: more than most centers can afford. Your donation will save countless lives for years to come. Dial pound250 and say the keyword baby or go to preborn.com/AFR.
Izabella McMillon grew up in communist Romania and prayed for snow
Christmastime by Michael W. Smith: singing joy to the world. Christmastime is here. Children. Gather around and listen. You'll hear the sound of angels filling the sky telling everyone, "Christmastime is here"
Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back friends. That is Christmastime by Michael W. Smith. And I hope for those of you who are not playing Christmas music yet that you will indulge us because we are saying. Children, gather around and listen to the incredible, incredible story I have today. I my guest today is Izabella McMillon. If you were listening in on the first segment, you were hearing her riveting story of growing up in communist Romania. Her parents were told where they would live, where they would work. And one day she and her brother discovered hidden beneath the floorboards of their house, a Bible they did not know until years later that their parents hidden as an heirloom, that was passed down through their family and she was sharing about going to a story time where a pastor was reading to her from God's word and praying that God's word would speak to her. And when she was 13, she prayed for the first time. Izabella you were right in the middle of telling us about that and I definitely want to hear the end of this story. So pick it up where you left off and tell us the rest.
Izabella McMillon: I remember so clearly going to my pastor as a 13 year old little girl. It was late September and it was so cold outside. And I do not like cold, not to this day. But cold winter days were so hard for us because food was more scarce. It was pitch dark outside, we didn't have electricity or street lights. So the only way that mom and dad would let us go outside and play past dark is if it snowed outside. So I wanted my pastor to teach me how to pray so I would know how to pray for snow so we can have fun that winter. That's how simple my 13 year old prayer was. And my pastor taught me how to pray for the first time as a 13 year old little girl. And he told me to just talk to God like he's my best friend and he will always answer. Just sometimes his answers look differently than what me imagine. And what I imagined, Jessica, is that the next morning after I prayed, God will give me fluffy white snow from the sky. That's what I imagined. But that is not what he gave me. He actually didn't answer my prayer for three long months. And that is a long time for a 13 year old little girl who just wants to know that God is more than just the character on the pages of a storybook. That he is real, that he listens, that he answers. But his answer came in a very unexpected way. The day after Christmas. And I will never forget that day. People were running on the streets. And in Romania that meant one thing. There was something at the grocery store. And so we started running. And we are excited. And people pass by the grocery store and we end up in the center of our little town. And people were so excited and shouting, trucks are coming. Trucks are coming. And these trucks pulled in and they opened them in the back of them the most colorful boxes you can imagine ever seeing. It was like a splash of color in our black and white world. It was so beautiful. I have never seen anything like that. And a sweet lady who actually spoke my language that day came with, came to me with a colorfully wrapped little shoebox in her hands. And she told me it was for me with no strings attached. I didn't have to do anything for it. And then she asked me if there was anything she could pray with me for. And I looked at her, and I said, if you can pray with me for Snow, that would be great. And that is exactly what she did. She knelt down to come down to my level and prayed with me right there and then for Snow and Jessica. I could not believe that someone would give me something for nothing with no strings attached. That seemed impossible in my world. But I looked around me, and all the kids are laughing. And that is not a sound we were used to. Kids never dared to laugh or smile or look at each other. We always kind of tried to stay in line in Communism and not stand out in any way, but everyone was laughing that day. And I opened my shoebox, and there were four filled with the most colorful, beautiful, new things. I have never seen anything like that. I was the coolest kid at school for months, with the coolest school supplies you will ever imagine. Nobody had colored markers, and nobody even knew what crayons were, but I had them. But in the corner of my box was this little thing that I pulled out. And as I looked at it, a little boy who was running past me, he grabbed my hand with his hand, and he said, you have to shake that. That's how that works. And when he did that, and I looked down in my hand, I saw the most beautiful silver snow inside of a snow globe. And the first thing I could think of, were my pastor's words when he said, God always answers prayers, but sometimes his answers look differently than what we imagine. And this is not what I imagined, nor what I thought I was praying for. But God answered my prayer in a very different way. And in the meanwhile, he taught me a lot in that waiting period about who he is, that he heard me. He saw me. He knows my name. And that was the day when I decided to serve him for the rest of my life.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Izabella I literally have tears in my eyes. I am just so moved by your story, by the story of a God who loves a little girl growing up in Communist Romania. Loves her enough to make a tile loose so that the seeds are planted. Loves her enough to give her a pastor who is so brave and so courageous to share the gospel and to answer her prayer in such a tangible, memorable way, in such a miraculous way. And as I said before the break, Izabella I am convicted from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet, for every time I have ever said I was too busy to read My Bible. I think if you racing home with your brother, just, just devouring God's word, I, I feel every time I've said, you know, oh, I'm too tired to go to church today, or I don't feel like going, or any time that I've even had a bad attitude about going. What a gift that you have given us of showing us the blessings that we have and the blessings that we're missing out on because we're too busy to look around and see the ways that God is working. How, what happened from there? How did that shoebox change your life and put you on a different path?
Izabella McMillon: Jessica, that was such a bold prayer for a 13 year old little girl to say, God, I will serve you for the rest of my life. Now I say, see who you are. He became personal to me on that day and that's who our God is. He's a personal God. I had no idea what that would look like if I am honest. And it wasn't a quick change, it wasn't easy. I actually left, Romania when I was 26 years old and came to the United States with the one year program. The Lord opened the door for that now turned into over 23 years I have been here because that first year I came to the US I was exposed to Operation Christmas Child on this side. And you know, Jessica, I prayed for years for God to show me where these boxes came from. I didn't know they did not give them to us in the name of Operation Christmas Child. They were given to us in the name of Jesus. The only name they were busy to proclaim was the name of Jesus. And that is the name I've heard loud and clear. But I got reconnected with Operation Christmas Child on this end as I was teaching at a small Christian school in Durham, North Carolina and I was given a brochure about Operation Christmas Child to kick off in chapel for this little school to be more mission minded. And to my amazement, I was reconnected with this ministry. I could not believe that God brought me in such a way full circle. And now I get to be with you and alongside of our listeners on this side of shoeboxes. Being able to pack. My kids There are now 16 and 13, but they have been packing since they could walk and talk pretty much. And God has allowed this beautiful opportunity of packing simple shoeboxes to be the best tool for me as a mom to teach my children about generosity, about thinking about others around the world who don't have the very basic things of life, how we can bless them, but, most importantly, expose them to the love of God and for them to know that they are seen and not forgotten.
Dr. Jessica Peck: What a beautiful, beautiful full circle moment. What a beautiful story that God has given you to share with us. And I think of all the people out there that are packing their shoeboxes now, and I think of the stacks and stacks of shoeboxes that I saw at the church, at my church where I walked through. And you know, Izabella I think of people just. I think of whoever put that snow globe in your box. There was someone who bought a snow globe who had no idea about the prayer that you had prayed, but just was being obedient to the Lord's leading in their heart that just said, yes, put that snow globe in there. And I believe that you will know who that is one day. That person who packed that will know what happened. You know this on the other side of heaven will know that. And that is one of the beautiful things, is that sometimes God gives us just a glimpse of right now we see through a glass darkly. But one day we will know in full and we will see face to face the millions and millions of children who have received gifts and the millions of ways that God has transformed lives and saved souls. I. I, cannot even get over it. You can see how I'm so enthusiastic about packing shoeboxes. Please, Izabella invite people listening because it is not too late to participate. They could do that this week, this weekend with their families. Please tell them how they can do that.
Izabella McMillon: You are so right, Jessica. It is not too late. I love how intentional our God is with the smallest details and how we can take the most ordinary things you and I can put in boxes and do something extraordinary with them. School supplies, hygiene items, toys. They seem so simple to us, but they become extraordinary when God is involved and he's in the details. You can simply take a shoebox anywhere you are. You can pack it. Our drop off locations across the country are, open all the way through November 24, which is next Monday. So we are right now in the middle of our national collection week. This is what we have been praying for all year. That 12.6 million shoeboxes will arrive at our drop off locations across the country this week. And you can find out the closest drop off location to you by simply going to our website, samaritanspurse.org/occ you type in your zip code and you can find the closest church that is open to you to drop off your shoeboxes. We partner with almost 5,000 churches across the U.S. imagine the excitement when you walk in with your packed shoebox and our, precious Operation Christmas Child volunteers are ready to receive you and pray with you over your shoebox. You get to be part of something that God is doing around the world in the hearts of children in more than 140 different countries around the world. You don't even need a passport. That's what I tell my kids. You don't need a passport and you get to be a missionary around the world. Just when you pack your boxes, I want to remind you there's no more snow globes that are allowed in them. But that is okay because God is intentional for every child with very unique needs that that child needs. And just remember, there's a beating heart and the face of a child behind every shoebox. These are not simple items. These are lives you and I get to impact with the power of the Gospel.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Izabella I love that I've told this story before, but last year when I went to a partnering church, a distribution center, to drop off my boxes, I was met by a very enthusiastic group of American Heritage girls, a troop. And they were so excited, they ran to the door, they grabbed my packages. They were telling me, come on, come on, and, and showing me all of the stacks and stacks that they had been through and organizing. And I filled out the paperwork. And it just warmed my heart to see girls on this side of the operation who had, who could use their gifts. These were 8, 9, 10 year old girls who were able to help. And Izabella as I was leaving, one of the girls grabbed my arm and she said, wait, you forgot the most important part. And I said, as an adult, you know, I said, oh, I, I paid, I paid for my boxes. And she said, no, that's not the most important part. We have to pray over the boxes. And this little girl led me by the hand over to that stack of boxes and led all of those other little girls and putting their hands on those boxes and praying for them and praying for the children who would receive them. And I am telling you, Izabella that that was the greatest Christmas blessing last year. It still warms my heart. I still think about it. Absolutely amazing. And I am inviting you to be a part of this, be a part of the miracle that Samaritan's purse is praying for. They need 12 more than 12 million boxes. And as you heard, you can go to samaritanspurse.org/occ that's samaritanspurse.org/occ you can also contact American Family Association. We will be so happy to provide you with information and connect you with those resources. National Collection Week is happening right now through Monday, so you still have some time, but not a lot of it. And so make this your project for the weekend. Do it with your family on Saturday. Do it with your life group on Sunday. Pack a box or two or ten or a hundred. We would love to have you participate. And thank you so much to Izabella McMillan, who shared her beautiful, beautiful testimony. When we come back, we have some more Christmas previews when we're going to talk about when faith meets science. We'll talk with Dr. Fizzlebop when we come back after the break. Brock Eastman, you don't want to miss it. We'll see you in just a second. And my father, your great grandfather, fought in World War II. Really? He was a gunner on the big ship out in the Pacific Ocean. Wow. Your great grandmother did her part, too. Was she on a ship? Oh, no. She stayed back home. She and a lot of her friends worked really hard in a factory because the men had gone off to war and they held scrap metal drives to help in the war effort. The folks back home were heroes, too.
Jeff Chamblee: Here at the American Family association, we consider you the heroes back home as you fulfill your responsibility of caring for your family day to day. Your partnership with us is crucial as we fight the enemies of freedom in America. Thank you for your commitment to the American Family Association. Grandpa, what's a scrap metal drive? Let's get some cookies and I'll tell you all about it.
Indescribable by Chris Tomlin: From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea creations revealing your majesty. From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring. every creature unique in the song that it sings. All exclaiming, indescribable, uncontainable. You place the stars in the sky and you know them by name. You are amazing God. All powerful, untameable, awestruck We fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim. You are amazing God.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back, friends. That is Indescribable by Chris Tomlin. And I want you to know how much I care about you, my listeners. We had one Christmas song for all the Christmas music players and one non Christmas song. So we are doing our best to serve everybody. But I'm so grateful that you are here. If you have been here from the top of the hour, my goodness, what an incredible, incredible Testimony from Izabella McMillon and Operation Christmas Child. I do hope that you will be a part of that.
Brock Eastman talks about new books that connect faith and science
And as you are praying, preparing your hearts for Christmas, we're thinking about what to get our kids. Hopefully you're thinking about what to get your kids and your grandkids. And one of the greatest things that you can do is get gifts that invest in their faith. And today we're talking about some new books that connect faith and science. That is one of my favorite things for sure. And we're talking to a familiar guest to all of you, Brock Eastman. He is the award winning author or co author of the Quest for truth series. Bedtime on Noah's Ark, Daddy's favorite sound, Mommy's favorite smell. So many books he has done for Focus on the Family. He has won awards. He has a YouTube channel as Dr. Fizzlebop. So fun. I really am a fan of kids having fun because they learn more when they're having fun. And I especially want them to learn about their faith. And so we need to infuse some fun into that because it literally changes the way that their brain absorbs information. We have the same thing because when we get bored, let's be honest, we tune out. And kids do the same thing. And with a, shorter and shorter attention span, we have to fight more for their attention. And Brock has done that in so many creative ways, helping kids connect their faith with science. And he is a husband, he is a dad. He is a, just amazing, amazing, creative, creative genius. You want to, you want to go there, Brock? Is that. Is that fair to say?
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): I don't know. I think I should probably walk off set now. I. That was. I don't know. I can say thank you.
Dr. Jessica Peck: You're welcome.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Brock, I am a very red.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): Good, good.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Okay. All right. So we're in the right place. But I am a fan of your work and I'm so grateful for what you have. And you do have a new series of books out called super simple Science. Now, my eye first went to the Space Science with Dr. Fizzlebop. Now, that's because most of my listeners know I have the privilege of being married to a real life rocket science, which promotes this line in my house all the time. Brock, from my kids, if, I am trying to do something, solve a problem, they look at me and say, it's not rocket science, mom. So that always goes there. But we have Alphabet and animals, colors and counting, weather science. These are fun books for toddlers and preschoolers to explore God's amazing world through science. So tell us about them.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): Yeah. And you know, I appreciate you. Let me. Come on. I think we just talked not too long ago, and at that time, These books weren't coming out till January. Well, they got moved up to December 2nd. So I really excited, just in time for Christmas, four beautiful board books. And they're these, these sweet little set together really, for opening under the Christmas Tree. But yeah, you know, you kind of, you actually did my whole spiel for me already. It was great. The truth is what you said about kids at an early age learning and how their mind takes everything in. And so, you know, we talked about Dr. Fizz, about the suit, the, the the devotional before, about how getting that time and the family interaction together. But that's really for 8 to 12 year olds. I mean your whole family can enjoy that. But we wanted to start an early age in those little moments when your kiddo is on your lap, nap before bedtime or on the couch in the afternoon, starting to expose them to scientific concepts around them and helping them connect that to an amazing creator who made the world just for them. And I think that's what these four.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Books do and it makes them curious. We need to foster curiosity in this world, especially curiosity about things related to faith. Now when we're talking about toddlers and preschoolers, we are, in the why stage of questioning why, why, why, why, why. And those questions can just, just be endless. And to be honest, sometimes they seem exhausting. But the beautiful thing to me, Brock, is that is the way that God designed kids to learn. He designed that curiosity to kick in about that age. And it's such a short window of time that we have to really nurture their curiosity about faith in God's world. And I think right now in adult conversations, in national debates, there's so much talk about, about science and the intersection of faith and science and there's a lot of, you know, potential pitfalls there. But when we teach them a biblical worldview, when we nurture that curiosity from the beginning about things God made like science, then we can really have an opportunity to impact their faith. Don't you think?
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): I absolutely think so. And you're right, we're seeing such a massive shift of people turning to the church. There's a report recently that we were talking about at work and it's just, just Gen Z is like showing up on doorsteps. And actually our pastor this Sunday who actually mentioned at one of the churches downtown is that Gen Z is showing up on doorsteps because they're curious and they feel like we didn't grow up in the church. What's going on? They want to know about this creator, this God who exists and who's made the world around them. And so, you know, I don't want it to be, wait until they're in their 20s to show up at the church. I want kids at an early age to have that foundation as you mentioned and you talked about the curiosity. And so I'm gonna start with M1 you said is a favorite if that's okay.
Gen Alpha kids are exploring the space in new ways
So, so space science with Dr. Physics. Okay.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): One, the art is just absolutely beautiful. If you're watching the YouTube show, you can, you can see some of the artwork. But the Earth has a moon that rotates around our planet. This means the moon orbits the Earth. The moon reflects sunlight like a giant mirror. People have walked on the moon. Would you ever want to visit the moon? So every, every kind of little statements here for the kiddo walks them through some facts in a narrative way about a planet or the moon or the solar system. But then there's always a question every for the kiddo to think about. And I know a one year old probably is like, yeah, I'll step on the moon. But as they transition to 3 and 4 in those upper top, there's other questions they might want to consider. And I really believe that in this generation right now, you know what we, I don't believe we know that this generation right now will be the first to step back on the moon. But also Mars and Titan, the moon out there. I think there's our, these kids as gen Alpha kids are going to be exploring the space in new ways. So you have a passion for space. Your husband's an aerospace, I forget what you said. Aerospace engineer.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Right, right, yeah. He's a real life rocket scientist. He is.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): And I love space and exploring space and I've written several books about it. And so to me this one is my favorite too because I think it's really going to inspire a new generation of kids to start thinking about this beautiful solar system, the galaxy, the universe that our God made and move away from the misleading statement of, of Big Bang. And what was that? No, we had an intelligent designer that put it all together and it all works because of how he designed it. And that's what I want little ones to learn. And I want to hear it. I want those kiddos to hear it from their parents and their grandparents or a trusted adult. Right. Telling that narrative that's going to build that trust and foundation. So anyways, yes.
Dr. Jessica Peck: And we can also cross reference this scripture because there's so many scriptures even taking space. There are scriptures about the moon, the Stars. What is the moon and the stars? What is man? You hung the moon and the stars. What is man that you are mindful of him. One of my favorite scriptures about ah, about space is when God is talking to Job and says where were you when basically I made space, I made the world, I made, I hung the firmament, you know all of these things that are there. I, I love that because we can make that connection for them between faith and science and Brock, you and I have talked about this a lot especially for Gen Alpha and the new generation behind them that is being born right now and they are yet to be named. Don't a widely accepted name although there's some, some in the running. Right. But I know you're very passionate about Gen Alpha and one of the things that I am really excited about seeing Gen Z is adopt some old school things. And we do need to go back old school especially with AI just talking about that taking away our ability to choose things. Everything is on autoplay. Our lives are driven by the algorithm. All content is digital. There is a value for having old school books to read because even the way that it affects kids developmentally, they're turning the pages, they're looking at the bright colors, they're sitting together with their parent, with their grandparent having that close nurturing, physical relationship. There are definitely things that are there. What are you seeing and what is your heart for Gen Alpha and the generation now coming up behind them that's gonna finally make Gen Alpha the geriatric, more geriatric generation.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): Interesting. Well you know, you said it though. It's that turning back to the physical, you know we talk about kids being, we have a I want to share something so in the book because I'm gonna. What's a great question. so they're in the back of each book is an experiment. So I've got it right here actually I've got several experiments on my desk. I don't know if we'll get to them but you can build this little rocket, cut out paper, use a straw and you teach kids about proposals simply by blowing the rocket right through the straw. But the idea is you take these scientific concepts and you put into a way that they can learn by doing hands on projects. And so you're absolutely right. You know there's nothing more sad that for me than when I'm in a restaurant and I see everybody at the table on screens, including little kids on the iPad, the parent brought in for them. Let's just take A moment with a book. And I promise parents, these board books are short. You're not going to get tired of them. They're not going to take you forever. But that five minutes of reading this book to your kiddo is going to have a lasting impact on them and their growth and their development and their faith. And it's not just this board book is anytime you're spending time with your kids, reading with them in your lap or right next to them on the couch or laying in bed, they're taking all that in. That physical touch, that emotion of you being around them, that joy of spending time together. it just happened that these books will help learn certain scientific concepts and connect it back to their faith. And so I think that's what I really want for Gen Alpha and for the generation coming is that they have quality. Their parents or their grandparents or a loved one who's building into them. Instead of just handing them a screen and saying, watch this because I'm too busy for you. No, take that five, ten minutes and sit physically with your kiddo. Let them hear your voice, express the words and the dialogue. You don't have to be a, rocket scientist to read this book. All the answers are in here for you. You just have to read it, right? You just have to show up. So maybe that. I think that's, what I want.
Dr. Jessica Peck: We are going to help people by giving away one of these books right now. We haven't done a giveaway in forever, and we're having a giveaway right now. Call in. Are you ready? 8, 8, 8, 589--8840. That's 888-5898-840. See, I am starting the spirit of Christmas and helping you get ready for Christmas. Now we will be giving away one of these books. And Brock, tell us again how to find your YouTube channel for to see Dr. Fizzlebop.
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): The easiest way is to go to YouTube.com and just type in Fizzlebop. If you type in Fizzlebop, I'm gonna pop up pretty quickly. So that's my YouTube channel. And then Brock Eastman.com you can link there for to get anything in all four of the board books especially. So. Yes.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, thank you so much, Brock. I'm so grateful for everything that you do to help equip parents and to give them something, especially these books just designed especially for little hands, growing minds, and what we pray is a growing faith. These are, little colorful board books that are going to help parents in sparking an early interest in scientific discovery. Let all of the scientists out there just rejoice for a minute. We'll have a collective moment to celebrate all of the nerds as I push up my glasses here, but each book is fully. Okay, there we go. Yes. Okay, there we go. We did it together. Each book is really thoughtfully written with age appropriate language, playful illustrations and it makes those complex stem ideas seem simple and fun even for the youngest of learners.
Brock Eastman: What kids really care about is that time
And Brock, as you're preparing for Christmas, do you have any words of encouragement for parents out there who are just doing all the things? Do you have any words to encourage them?
Brock Eastman (Dr. Fizzlebop): You know, I think the most important thing is, you know, we always try to do our 25 days of Advent and what we have found over. You know, I've got a 16, 14, 12 and 10 year old. What we have found is what kids really care about is that time. It doesn't have to be extravagant or super exciting. We don't have to go ice skating today and look at lights the next day. It's about spending time together and doing activity. And that's all I would say is take a moment, pause and just make sure you're doing it together, having fun and smiling. I think that's the best gift we can give our kids in the season.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, thank you so much again for that, Brock. So whatever you are doing with your family, I pray that you will spend time together. Your kids want your presence. That's P R E S E N C E. I'm testing myself on spelling here. Much more than they want your presence, Your P R E S E N T S your gifts. They really do want your time.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Even when it doesn't seem that way, even when it seems like you can't get their face out of their phone, even when it seems like they're very disinterested, they are very interested. And I can tell you that Gen Z, Gen Alpha, they are longing for connection, meaningful connection through healthy relationships. You can do that either by reading together no matter what age kids you have. I still read to my adult adult kids and I love it. In case you can't tell, I have a flair for the melodramatic and I'm unapologetic about it, but that is the way that I can spend time with my family. Or maybe you'll pack a shoebox to send to Operation Christmas child. Go to samaritanspurse.org/occ I encourage you to be a part of that. And wherever you are in your Christmas preparations, I pray that the Lord will bring bless you and keep you and make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you and give you peace. And I will see you right back here tomorrow. And I can't wait.
Jeff Chamblee: The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.
Jessica speaks with Izabella McMillon, an Operation Christmas Child recipient, about the impact that the shoebox gift made in her life. She also visits with Dr. Fizzlebop about some exciting new things going on in his lab that help children connect science and faith.
Rx for Hope: Help Children Connect Science and Faith
https://samaritanspurse.org/what-we-do/operation-christmas-child/
https://www.brockeastman.com/dr-fizzlebop.html
Live
Did you know American Family Radio is listener-supported? Your monthly financial support will allow us to continue upholding Godly values through our numerous channels, like American Family Radio, One Million Moms, The Stand magazine, and many more.
Become a Great Commission Partner TODAY to help AFR transform culture by rebuilding the family. When you donate today, you’ll get access to:
