The Weekly Ramble – September 11, 2026

I haven’t forgotten. With the anniversary of Charlie Kirk’s death yesterday and 911 today, how could one forget that wicked men still do evil on this earth?

I know these aren’t isolated incidents. There is wickedness all over, but those two events hold space in my memories more than others.

But God…

…is not surprised. The Cross was never a Plan B. It was the primary mission from the beginning and saving the Lost continues to be His work.

I’m double-dipping with Bible study this year, doing a study of Philemon/the Johns/Jude with a bunch of ladies I’ve known from CBS over the years as well as the Saved study by Nancy Guthrie in a church setting. It’s been fascinating to see how the two studies complement each other so well, again proof that God’s work is consistent over space and time.

One of my take-aways has been the idea that we aren’t actually “witnesses” for Jesus, but we are proclaimers. We are to proclaim the things that He has done and taught and continues to do and teach.

The wickedness of this world definitely necessitates a whole lot of proclaiming, does it not?

What I’m Learning

Real truth and real love are joined. You can’t really have one without the other. “Love” that just makes people feel good about themselves isn’t really LOVE. That’s something else: appeasement, flattery, but not love.

And truth, the real, whole TRUTH, has to be loving. We tell the truth in court because we love justice and are called to defend it. We tell the truth to people we love, not because we need to set them straight, but because we love them. “Truth” aimed to hurt is probably something else, criticism or abuse? They may be factual, sure, but not necessarily the truth God calls us to.

Obviously, I’m still wrestling with how to explain this. Subject to editing. 😜

Here’s what else I’ve been doing, eating, listening/watching, and/or reading this past week:

What I’ve Been Doing

Besides getting better and going to Bible study (twice!), I’ve been trying not to melt! We’ve had rare hot and humid weather. The break came just this morning, so I’m excited not to run the AC 24/7.

It has been really nice to be better; that illness was relentless! Nice to get out of the house, too.

I haven’t quite recovered my daily routines, but I’m hopeful of recovering it.

What I’ve Been Eating

Back at the end of August, I planned all the meals for the month, and that was such a gift to me. Wow! It got me through sickness and recover so well.

This is the Meal Planning Notebook I’m using. And here are my weekly meal plans.

I’ve not been stressing about protein and veg, just focusing on portion control and not overindulging in “treats”.

What I’ve Been Listening/Watching

Bryan had heard about the new Masters of the Universe movie on a podcast, so we gave it a viewing on Pizza Night. It was pretty funny. I would think that men my age down to my brothers’ ages would probably understand more of the old school He-man references.

With Idris Elba playing a much less serious version of Heimdall, that made it extra fun. If you watch any adventure films, it will feel like Masters of the Universe copied the special effects of practically every Marvel/Harry Potter/Star Wars film. That may be by design; I’m not sure.

What I’ve Been Reading

Gulp. I haven’t been! I did such a good job reading in August, but here we are with September almost half over and I haven’t really done much at all.

I’ve begun and abandoned several books but I don’t think that counts.

From my TBR list, here’s what looks doable – I even found some of them free on KU or $2:

• The Pilgrim’s Progress (paperback)
• The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife (on sale)
• Nothing to See Here (on sale)
• The Snow Child (KU)
• Meet Me in the Margins (KU)
• The Fall Classic (KU, and I’m a sucker for Kate Watson books)

What I’ve Been Writing

Someday I will dedicate hours to fiction, but right now I’m trying to get the new version of the Meal Plan Advent Calendar ready for printing. You can find the previous three – in digital and in print.

Stay tuned! I’m super excited about holiday planning this year. I hope you are, too!

I’ll end with saying dressing in perimenopause is a vibe, as the kids say. I don’t love the wide-leg, tucked in trend, but I will try it. (Feels dated!)