The Titus 2:4 Project - Women Mentoring Women

I had the privilege of having lunch with a dear friend and mentor the other day.  She's recently retired from her career as a National Sales Director with a prestigious cosmetic company...you may have heard of it: Mary Kay Cosmetics.  To some of you, that may not mean much...but to any of you who have ever attended a corporate Mary Kay function, you know what a big 'o deal it is. My friend has been on lavish trips around the word; she's been slathered in diamonds and furs; she's driven free, pink Cadillacs for more than 30 years...and she, of course looks amazing.  She calls me her 'young' friend, but she somehow looks closer and closer to my age every time I see her.    In the world of Mary Kay, it's all about the SUIT.  A National Sales Director has 'the suit' .  At an event, you can be brand new and know virtually nothing about anything - but when a NSD walks in, you know it.  So naturally, I count myself privileged that I get to bend ...

Today, I am praising God for a victory...one that shows personal growth. When does growth occur?  In the beautiful, sunny days - when blue skies show no hint of rain?  We all know that sunshine is a necessary part of the process, but when we compare a desert to a rain forest, we are forced to admit that growth obviously occurs more prolifically in the rainy conditions than under those sunny, blue skies.  Several days ago, I ran into an old friend who keeps up with me on Facebook.  She asked about the grandkids, and other things she had seen me posting about.  With a huge smile on her face, she shook her head and said, 'Your life is so perfect!' Of course, this caused me to raise an eyebrow at her and chuckle.  'Not exactly.' What she doesn't know is that sometimes, God allows the rain to fall on my spirit, but He does it to bring growth.  Beautiful, necessary growth.  I'm not ashamed of it.  So why doesn't my friend realize that ...

Ok.  I admit it.  I thought I was doing fine.  I thought I could handle this with utmost grace and composure.  But now...I'm not so sure.  Graduation is just 9 days away.  Suddenly I feel a tightness in my throat and a weird pain in my heart (No, I'm not having a heart attack) that I hadn't experienced with the last five children I've watched grow up and graduate.  This time is different.  Very, very different. If you know me personally, you probably already understand why I'm feeling this way.  But for those of you who don't know, let me enlighten you.  My precious, ball-of-fire, amazingly talented, wild, opinionated, mouthy, smart, funny, lovable, hard-working, know-it-all, test-of-my-faith, son, Jacob is about to graduate!!  And this, my friends, is a BIG 'OL DEAL! It all began back in 2000 when he started kindergarten and the teacher insisted that he had ADHD.  All I knew is that I had a boy on my hands who freak...