The Titus 2:4 Project

Someone posted a lovely meme this morning, complete with a beautiful Christian song playing in the background. Nice, right? I see posts like this every single day from people I know, respect, and love. But today, I was especially in tune with the Holy Spirit. As I read the words, He clearly showed me something: this is the problem today. Satan rarely tries to get a believer to outright worship him—that would be absurd, and we would never do it. What he does do, very effectively, is shift our eyes off Jesus and put them on ourselves. If we try to heal ourselves without God, we’re only treating symptoms. “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” (Psalm 147:3) If we try to find ourselves apart from God’s plan, we remain lost. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11) If we try to know ourselves without knowing our Creator, we know nothing. “Bef...

Originally written July 2021 | Edited July 2025 Have you ever watched that show American Ninja Warrior (ANW) ? It’s the one where highly trained athletes compete on a course filled with intense physical challenges. You often see clips of their training beforehand — practicing monkey bars, rings, climbing, jumping — they come prepared. Their friends, families, teammates, and coaches are nearby, cheering them on, waving signs, holding their breath, and gasping in unison. These wanna-be warriors do their best to make it through the course, but if they fall into the water below, it’s game over. Still, their fans shout, “We love you anyway!” Then there’s that other show… Wipeout . You know the one — where contestants get bounced, punched, flung, and generally pummeled while trying to qualify for the final round. All the while, the announcers laugh, mock, and tease from the sidelines. When a contestant falls into the water (or mud), they scramble to get back to the last obstac...

The Rest of the Story This morning, I sat out on the lanai, sipping coffee and reading my Bible. Today’s reading took me through Nehemiah 9 to most of chapter 11. Like many Old Testament passages, these chapters included long lists of names...the kind that are hard to pronounce and easy to skip over. Shemaiah, Hasshub, Azrikam, Hashabiah, Jozabad, Bakbukiah, Pedaiah… you get the idea. Names that, in ancient Jerusalem, were as common as Steve, Mike, Scott, Jim, or Dave. But as I read through the list of those who signed the covenant (the binding agreement to return to God’s law) and the names of those who resettled Jerusalem after exile, a verse from 2 Timothy came to mind: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” — 2 Timothy 3:16–17 So I asked God, “How are these names useful for teaching or correction, Lord?” And the Holy Spirit...

Part 2 So now that Jesus has adjusted my attitude (see yesterday’s post if you missed that backstory), I spent Friday morning walking around and observing people —all kinds of people. Those working, vacationing, sleeping on cardboard, those who seemed like me, and those who didn’t at all. As I watched them, I kept reminding myself: JESUS LOVES THEM. JESUS DIED FOR THEM. I must’ve thought it a thousand times. The day began with a short run and a terrible breakfast. Then we met up with friends and wandered down Fremont Street. We stopped at Pink Box Donuts—yes, I got one. I ran a mile, so I figured I earned it. It seems to me that there's not much to do in Las Vegas except to eat, drink and gamble. Having already eaten and not being much for drinking, I was left with one thing: gambling. I wondered if it was wrong to put a $20 bill in a slot machine. Was it a sin? Maybe, like with drinking, the issue isn’t the activity itself but the lack of self-control. Jesus tu...

I just got back from a short trip to Las Vegas. 🎰 And honestly? That’s really all anyone can stand— short. Vegas is kind of like glitter: fun in theory, but overwhelming in practice. Truth be told, I didn’t even want to go. It was my husband’s annual get-together with his Army buddies. The wives always tag along, and in years past, we’ve met up in someone’s hometown—usually for a wedding or a milestone birthday. But this year, for reasons unknown, they decided on Vegas. Now, full disclosure: in the not-so-distant past, I actually used to enjoy Las Vegas. Probably more than I should’ve. But over the past year, the Holy Spirit has been doing some serious remodeling in my heart, and these days, Vegas is not high on my list of “must-visit” places. My husband handled the travel plans—booked our hotel and, in true Army fashion, waited until the last possible moment to book our flights, which meant we paid top dollar. Awesome. Now, while I’m not exactly thrilled with how much social media ...

One of my favorite creature comforts—one of the modern conveniences I truly appreciate—is our Roomba. I don’t enjoy vacuuming. I like to cook. I don’t mind doing laundry. I don’t even mind washing windows on occasion. But vacuuming? No, thank you. So when my husband agreed to buy a Roomba to chase away the dust bunnies in our home, I was elated. We call him Will . As in Will Smith… from the movie I, Robot. If you have a Roomba of your own, you know you named yours too. Just admit it. My husband is the boss of Will. He has the app on his phone. He set it up, controls the schedule, and manages the map. Will’s home base—his charger and bin—is near my desk, so I’m used to him running in and out of my office area throughout the day. He wakes up at 9 a.m. and goes to work, cleaning up after us. When he’s picked up all he can handle or starts running low on battery, he scurries back to his home to unload, rest, and recharge. Twice a day, he cleans up around the litter box, and three ti...

  I love that women today are feeling more empowered to do hard things. Whether it’s working toward a healthy lifestyle, seizing a career opportunity, facing parenting or relationship challenges, or even literally fighting for their very lives—women are stepping up to do the hard stuff. I also deeply appreciate how we are supporting and encouraging one another in these battles. There’s beauty in the way we rally together, lifting each other up in the fight. But I want to offer a loving word of caution to the many women I see standing confidently in their own strength:   Sister, you DON’T got this . As much as you might want to believe that you’re tough and can handle it all—you can’t. Not in your own strength. Not alone. Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” Apart from Him, we simply don’t have the strength we need to face the battles that inevitably come our way. So, while you’re gearing up to fight and your friends are cheering y...

Thursday morning, after the hurricane, as the sun rose above the trees, we nervously stepped outside to assess the damage. Despite the winds that had howled all night long, our neighborhood was in surprisingly good shape.  As we surveyed our neighbor’s lots (neighbors who had not yet returned for “the season”) we began dragging big, green palm fronds to the street and loading them into the bed of our truck. First this lot. Then that lot. I snapped pictures and messaged friends to let them know if there was any visible damage to their property. T hey would reply with their gratitude and then ask “can you check lot ‘such and such for so and so’…” so we would. More clean up. More pictures. More messages. And our 8ft truck bed filled up fast. Very fast. Over and over. As the day wore on, my mind was filled with thoughts like, WOW! These palm fronds are heavy! I asked my husband how much he thought they weighed on average… he guessed about 25 pounds.  Lifting them over an...

I have spent far too long in my comfortable recliner chair here in Florida, scrolling through videos of the horrific devastation from Hurricane Helene in North Carolina and Tennessee. Reel after reel of heartbreak and loss. Post after post of missing family and friends. Yes, I’m in Florida. Yes, parts of my state were damaged catastrophically by the storm surge from this monstrous storm… but living on the beach comes with a certain amount of risk. You take a gamble with every hurricane season that passes, that eventually your number is up and you will probably be facing damage of some sort…you just pray that it’s not ‘that bad’.   But in the beautiful town of Asheville, NC, where we had the privilege of visiting a few years ago, those folks don’t worry about hurricane damage. They might worry about snow storms, or a strong thunderstorm… but hurricanes? Nah. Not them. What a mess. What a horrible, unspeakable mess. I have been wracked with guilt about the ability to go on with my li...

How do you strike a balance between being content and desiring to move forward?  There seems to be an element of guilt to the list of things I want to accomplish in the new year, but maybe it's just me. It's probably a safe bet that the most common resolution for any new year is to lose weight...no matter how we choose to cleverly 'disguise' our desire to look and feel better. Some people are in denial and refuse to admit they want to lose weight (because that sounds so vain ) so they adopt the socially acceptable language and say they want to "get fit and start living a healthy lifestyle".  (And if they happen to lose weight in the process, then oh well.)  Me, well, I'm not ashamed to admit that my favorite jeans don't fit anymore...and that makes me mad...so to get back in them, I'll do whatever it takes (eat less, move more) to lose enough weight to get my behind in them once again.   So if you ask me if I'm content with my body, the a...

I have a confession to make.  I watch that zombie show that everyone is talking about with my family. Don't be a hater.  Don't judge...and you don't even have to admit if you watch it, too.  I got 'sucked in' last winter, when the snow was piled sky-high and there was nothing to do.  My twenty-something daughter and her boyfriend watched it regularly and talked about the characters as if they were personal friends.  So my husband was the first to pick the fruit and take a bite.  He logged into our online movie provider and began a weekend-long, commercial-free marathon of that zombie show.  I wasn't interested at first, but once the dishes were done, laundry was folded, floors swept, and any other menial task I could come up with to keep myself busy was finished, I finally resigned to sitting beside him on the couch, with a bag of popcorn in hand, and began learning the plot and the characters.  By the end of the night, I too was hooked. L...

It's December 1st. Wow. I know it's very cliché...but this year has gone so, so fast!   We've survived Black Friday, Small-Business Saturday, and today is Cyber Monday...tomorrow is Giving Tuesday. Do you ever feel like everybody wants a piece of you?? My dream is just to get back to the meaning of the season. Love. That's the reason Jesus Christ put on a robe of flesh and entered this cold, selfish world in the first place. The love of God. Jesus brought it to us. We need to bring it to others.  Today's Advent scripture is found in John 1: -5. The NIV says, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2  He was with God in the beginning. 3  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4  In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome [ a ] it. Jesus is the Word. He was spoken in...

Again, this morning's Bible reading reveals one of those stories that leaves me wondering how I've missed hearing this before...and laughing a little. I'm slowly (very slowly) making my way through the book of Acts (still)...and in chapter 19, verses 15 and 16, I read about this amusing, but painfully 'too-close-to-home' kind of situation. Paul is in the middle of a missionary journey and he is moving and shaking and God is working miracles through him.  So these seven sons of a certain Sceva (a Jewish high priest) decided to try casting a demon out of a man in the name of Jesus, "preached by Paul" (MSG).  The evil spirit talks back to them, saying "I know Jesus and I've heard of Paul, but who are you?"  I'm sure they weren't expecting this reaction....after all, Paul made it look so easy.  They probably stood there, dumb-founded, looking at each other, going, "I don't know...who are we??"  Then the guy jumps on the...