I Thought I Had More Time

Over the winter school break, my daughter Katie and I experienced a moment of sheer panic that

taught me an important lesson about time. Her high school band had planned a trip to Pigeon

Forge, Tennessee, which Katie had eagerly anticipated for months. She’d saved money, counted

down the days, and made plans with her friends. When we first signed up, the departure date was

set for January 2nd.

As time passed, various updates came through the band’s communication app, but most seemed

trivial, so I began to tune them out. By the time Christmas rolled around, I was running on fumes

and ready to unwind. My husband Chris and our son Henry visited family in Iowa, leaving Katie

and me at home. What did we do? We lived in pajamas, indulged in too many Netflix marathons,

and barely moved from the couch. It was a much-needed reset—or so I thought.

On January 1st, around 3 PM, I figured we should start packing and doing laundry for the trip. I

casually asked Katie to check the communication app for snack suggestions. A moment later, her

panicked voice broke the stillness: “MOM!! It says we’re supposed to be at the school

TONIGHT, not tomorrow!”

I froze, sure it had to be a typo. But when I checked for myself, there it was in black and white:

the departure date had been moved up, and we were supposed to be at the school in six hours.

Panic doesn’t begin to describe what followed. Her laundry wasn’t done. Snacks weren’t bought.

Her suitcases weren’t packed. A typical teenager, Katie didn’t handle the abrupt schedule

changes gracefully. I kept repeating to myself, I thought I had more time!

By some miracle (and a few tears), we managed to get her ready and to the school on time. But

after the chaos subsided, I couldn’t shake the nagging question: How did I let this happen?

This wasn’t the first time I’d fallen into the trap of thinking there was “more time.” Just last

February, I’d planned to visit my grandmother in Colorado. I kept putting it off, convinced I’d

get to it soon enough. Then I got the call: she was gravely ill. I booked the earliest flight, but

before I even boarded, I received the heartbreaking news that she had passed away. Once again, I

was left with the painful realization: I thought I had more time.

Time Is Precious

These experiences have reshaped how I think about time. The Bible repeatedly reminds us that

our days on earth are fleeting and precious. Psalm 39:4-5 offers a sobering perspective:

“Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is.

You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you.

Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure.”

Life is fragile and brief. But this truth doesn’t have to be discouraging. Instead, it calls us to live

intentionally. As Psalm 90:12 says,

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

Every moment is a gift from God, and how we spend our time reflects our values and priorities.

Are we investing in eternal things—our relationship with the Lord, serving others, and building

His kingdom? Or are we coasting through life, assuming we’ll get around to what matters later?

Psalm 103:15-18 contrasts the brevity of human life with the everlasting nature of God’s love:

“The life of mortals is like grass, they flourish like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it

and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s

love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children— with those

who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.”

Living With Purpose

These scriptures challenge me to make the most of the time I’ve been given. Yes, rest is

important. God Himself rested on the seventh day, and Jesus often withdrew to quiet places to

pray. But there’s a difference between intentional rest and mindless complacency. We must

remain vigilant and aware of the opportunities God places before us.

Hug your loved ones. Make that phone call. Write that note. Schedule that dinner. Invite that

friend to church. Build God’s kingdom. Time is fleeting, and there’s much work to be done. As

believers, we know that Christ is coming back. Let’s not waste the precious days we’ve been

given.

So often, I hear that small voice whispering, “You still have time.” But the truth is, we don’t

know how much time we have. Let’s live today purposefully, knowing that our time on earth is a

gift meant to be stewarded well—for God’s glory and the good of others.

When Love Becomes the Norm

The past two months have been a whirlwind of emotions. Not only was it Christmas (you probably already know how I feel about that), but my mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. There is rarely any good news with this type of cancer, and so far, my mom has not been the exception.

However, one of the things I have been incredibly thankful for throughout this entire process has been the support of our church, and especially my parents' church in Milton. I’m constantly reminded that people are praying for her, that we are loved, and that there are people here to help us with whatever we need. But my parents have been shown an entirely different level of support. Members of their small group have come and sat with her in the hospital. They’ve waited with my dad during surgery, brought food, ensured my dad went home and showered, and when they heard my sister was flying in, they catered a meal for us all to share.

I am beyond thankful for the love that their church has shown my parents. But the recurring thought I have is that this shouldn’t be surprising; it should be the norm. There are only two ways to get there.

The first is that our small groups need to be a place where people genuinely care for each other. That almost happens naturally just by spending an hour or two together each week, but going out to lunch after church or catching a game together on the weekend goes so much further in building those connections. My parents haven’t bragged about how the senior pastor stopped by (even though he has), but they can’t stop telling others about the laypeople who have taken the time to visit. Both types of visits are important in their own way, but one seems almost more obligatory and therefore not as special. Small groups are where you can truly build community and come together to support one another through the highs and lows of life.

That brings us to the second thing that must happen to get to this point. You must actually be in a small group. I know, it’s a radical idea. But unless you intentionally position yourself to be surrounded by people who will care for you, what hope do you have?

The hard part about small groups is that you don’t join them just so you have a support system or so you can help others. We do them to ultimately grow closer to God. But in the process, we form community, then support others in that community, and when the worst things in life come our way, we find ourselves being supported.

So, while I have appreciated and will always remember the love and support you all have shown me over the past few months, the best way to help at the moment is to make sure that everyone in our church is taken care of the same way. Invest in their lives. Invite them to your small group. Start your own small group. Then take care of each other the way you would want to be taken care of. Jesus may have said something about that at one point.

Messy Christmas

It is no secret that life is messy. Just turn on the news and/or walk out the front door. People are recovering from natural disasters, and some are victims of war and violence. Others are just trying to make ends meet by feeding and housing their families. Sometimes life seems dark. Many people look at our children and youth and talk about how they are our future, the future of our communities, our world, and our churches. I believe they are the communities, the world, and the churches TODAY! This picture is of the gifts my mother received at her assisted living facility this past week. Gulf Breeze Middle and High School students came and sang Christmas Carols with the residents. They then handed out gifts and visited with them. They didn’t just hand them a gift and say, “Merry Christmas”, they took time to sit and visit with each resident. As we quickly approach Christmas Day, we are reminded in John 1:5, "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it." Thank you to all who encourage our children and youth to be lights that shine!

The Grinch Who Lit Up Christmas

I am taking a break from untangling hundreds of feet of extension cords, testing light bulbs, and all other forms of self loathing to write this blog. Trust me, this is a much more pleasant experience than having to deal with Christmas lights. It’s no secret that I’m not the most festive individual. Many of you find joy in the irony that the grinchiest person on staff is also the person who does the light show every year. 

There are two reasons why I keep putting lights up every year. The first is that no one else has offered to take it over. But the other reason is that it actually brings joy to other people. My youngest son loves going up to the church at night just to watch the show even though he’s seen it a hundred times. We get comments from the community making sure we’re going to do it again or sharing stories of how their family enjoys it.

But there’s a bigger reason why the church itself does a Christmas light show every year. Throughout the course of the month, the Christmas story from the Bible will be shared about 500 times. People will be invited to our Christmas Eve services, breakfast with Santa, and other events throughout the month hundreds of times. It’s all about pointing people towards Jesus, and so I can deal with a bit of Christmas lights for the sake of the Gospel.

What are you willing to put up with for the sake of the gospel? Are you willing to invite a friend or neighbor to go to church with you? Are you willing to give up your morning Starbucks drink so you can focus more on tithing? What about waking up 15 minutes earlier so you can meet people at the church door and say hello? Some of these things may seem like torture (less caffeine… yuck!), but when you consider the difference it could make it suddenly seems less terrible. That $5 Starbucks drink turns into food security for a kid over the weekend. That 15 minutes of lost sleep turns into a family feeling welcomed and accepted before they even step foot into our building. And the awkwardness of inviting our friends to church becomes a larger family who gets to do even more together. And all of that, ALL OF IT, is so that we can be just a little bit better at making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

It’s Up To You

Well, I could get some heat from this. I could have easily said, “but I don’t care.” I do care. I care for my Lord, family, friends, the people of the world and my life. I especially care about people’s feelings. Sometimes so much that I forget about mine.

We have started a new chapter in our country and some folks are not liking it. Division is so huge today that I ask myself, will it ever be fixed? Uhhh, noooo! You know what makes this country so great? Free Will! The bible presents free will as a gift from God that allows people to choose their own destiny and future. Some say that God gave people free will to determine whether they will trust him or go their own way. I have 100% trust in him! Do you? Let’s say you say no. You know what? I still love you. I hope that one day you do and when you do, I will love you just as much. I am not your enemy, nor will I ever be. Because I trust in God! Everything that I have accomplished in my life is because of him and myself. To be able to make choices in my life. Say what I want to say, do what I want to do. To see family and close friend part ways because one won’t follow the others believe or presidential candidate is so ridiculous! The day I graduated high school and the world was given to me, I’ve gone through 6 presidents and not one has stopped me from doing what I have accomplished in my life, without breaking the law. Oh yeah, I have stumbled off the right path a few times, but that was my doing. I take 100% responsibility for it. I didn’t blame my parents for not raising me right (because they did! Thanks Ma and Pa) or the lord for what I have done. All me baby! I am responsible for my actions. You are responsible for your actions.

Whether it was Trump or Harris that won the election, don’t let them stop what you are pursuing in life. Don’t let them be the decision to your life outcome. Don’t hate because someone don’t believe in the same thing you do. Please do not use the scriptures as a weapon towards one another. Use it towards the devil! He is causing this and we need to come together and put him in his place!

So when you sit down and get ready to right something on social media about how the next 4 years are going to be so bad and horrific, do this for me, look around you, look at your stuff, peak out your window and look at your ride outside. If you’re a family man, look at your wife and children… All this was you man! Not one political leader got that stuff for you. You did it all! You made your own choice and followed your heart. “Oh, but the grass is greener on the other side!” you say. Stop it! Don’t try to keep up with the Joneses! Keep up with your own life. The harder you work, the more things you can reward yourself with. FYI, all that stuff stays here you know.

Bottom line, keep working hard and loving our lord. If you have no trust in our lord, I will still love you! I will believe that one day you will and when you do, you’ll feel better. I know, I was a non believer. I made my choice. Now it’s up to you. Love you!