The “end”?

“For everything there is a season,

a time for every activity under heaven. – Ecclesiastes 3:1(a)

“Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless. “- Philippians 2:15(b),16

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? You are the light of the world- like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden… Let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your Heavenly Father.” – Matthew 5: 13 (a),14 and 16

I got word from the Lord on the direction of this ministry… SALT will no longer be a fellowship / social group. However, I will continue to write blogs and devotionals about the topic of singleness on this website.

The last three scripture references mentioned above were the foundational verses and served as the basis for the mission and vision for this ministry. My hope is that I accomplished the mission, realized the vision- and that we lived out those verses no matter where we went for fellowship! I am confident that I “did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless” (see Phlippians 2:16).

Ten years … It has been a good run. We have had many good times …

I went from being a thirty-something (at its inception) to a forty-something.

Friendships have been forged.

Fun and laughter experienced.

Challenges taken and overcome.

Lessons learned.

Wisdom gained.

Jesus was and is still our Rock.

Stay salty and keep shinin’,

Janet

Officially on pause

As I alluded to earlier this week, there has been an apparent lack of interest and lack of activity for the last few months. The SALT Facebook group page is on pause now. I must take a step as I continue to pray for the direction of this ministry. I will keep this SALT website updated on a regular basis with updates, blogs, etc.

In Christ,
Janet
Ps- If you are also in Active Women Empowered, then you see that it is still very active and there are more fun activities coming up this weekend and beyond!

♪Ch-ch-changes…♪

• The group will go on hiatus indefinitely as of this Saturday, September 27, 2025.
• While we are on hiatus, I will pray about whether we should be a ladies- only ministry (until I find a suitable male co-laborer who is willing to serve in this capacity with me).
• I am also praying about whether it should be a virtual group. It just hit me that logistically and physically (some of us get ill unexpectedly), this might be a more viable option for us .
•  Please pray for this ministry ! Prayers are always appreciated. 🩵🙏🏼

SINGLE = LONELY?

There is an ad that really grinds my gears… https://youtu.be/JCxwxVbgYFY?si=TSGcQZW3w9YeNmHg .
This ad clearly does not have any connection to the kingdom of Christ! I am not against dating services in general – nor do I judge if a Christian wants to use one to find their mate.

My issue is when a Christian thinks that a romantic partner is needed to reduce or eliminate their loneliness. Every Christian must live the kingdom life- the life that is centered on a relationship with Jesus Christ. If we are not serving HIm – and Him only- then we are pronte to serving other things that should not have that sort of devotion – and that includes a man or a woman. Matthew 6:24 No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

But … are we ever truly lonely? That is a loud, emphatic NO! Let’s see what the Bible says… Daniel 3:25: “He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
Psalm 139:7-10: “Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
    if I settle on the far side of the sea,
 even there your hand will guide me,
    your right hand will hold me fast.“

Isaiah 41:10: So, do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strenghten you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Psalm 118:16: “The Lord’s right hand is lifted high; The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!”

And this is just to name a few!

If you are not convinced and you still feel lonely, please reach out to a trusted man or woman of God for wisdom, guidance, encouragement or comfort. Lord knows I have been there! So, if I am the one you come to, I will listen with no judgement.

2 Corinthians 1:4-6 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.” John 1: 14,17: “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. . . . For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”

We are back … again!

It’s a new season / new iteration of SALT, We will get back together on 04/26/2024! We will have open discourse on our likes, dislikes, struggles and what really grinds our gears! This will be a judgement-free zone as always. That is surely one thing that will never change! 🙂

SALT reopens!

We are going back to the swing of things on June 16th! I am so excited! The last in-persona gathering was in February of 2020 and virtual gatherings had become less … desirable. I have really missed seeing the group and having open, honest discussions on a wife variety of topics and insights everyone shared. I have also missed the laughs !

The Lord has pointed out, in a few ways, that He wanted me to get “the band back together” and that this was a good time to do so. We must all be faithful to the calling He gives us 😊😉 Please see John 20:21 and Matthew 25:21 .

By the way, we are going to begin our discussion on the book Boundaries in Dating. As usual, it was scheduled on Facebook and Meet Up.

In Christ,

Janet

See past …. what ?!

Ephesians 4:2-4 (NIV , NLT)

Colossians 3:12-15 (NLT)

How many times have people, even dear friends, tried your patience or you felt they let you down ?

Have acquaintances at church or – GASP- church leaders at church disappointed you?

Let’s get real …. it can happen. We can even be annoyed by their quirks now and then and wonder why they don’t just do things the way we do them.

Well, guess waht … they are not perfect. Neither are you. And that is where this lovely reminder / command comes in: “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” – Colossians 3:12-15NLT

This is referring to ALL faults and ALL offenses – not just certain ones that might be easer to get over. This means letting go of hurts and realizing that people will come with their faults.

Ephesians 4:2-4 (NIV) says, “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.  There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism;  one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”

We are called to forgive and make allowances for others’ faults for the sake of unity of the Church and because Jesus forgave us. So , how could we not forgive others ?

Political opinions on social media you don’t agree with must be respected or overlooked because you love and want to keep the unity of th4e church. I know this is hard!

Let’s look past other’s faults- because that tis waht love does.

Here is a short video from PuruseGod.org:

Reflection questions:

• Name a time it was hard for you to forgive or look past another’s “fault”. How did you end up dealing with it!and forgiving the person?
• How did a period of unforgiveness affect you emotionally or physically ?

Safety versus fear

Based on Nehemiah 4

I was reading the book of Nehemiah back in August 2020 and my Life Application Study Bible had the following insight about Nehemiah: “TRUSTING God does NOT mean you do NOTHING. Action does NOT mean we do NOT TRSUT” (emphasis mine).

The relevant and timely nature of this message was striking. See, during this CONID- 19 pandemic, there have been Christ – followers that have felt that taking safety measures means they do not TRUST God because He is our protection.

Clearly, God is indeed our protector But the story of Nehemiah proves that the Lord also expects us to be wise by being precautious when necessary. The story of Nehemiah shows us that he did all he could to protect his people by rebuilding that wall- and we see what he did to protect he and his people while rebuilding the wall.

In Nehemiah 4:9 (NLT), after threats of attack by enemies, Nehemiah said, “But we prayed to our God AND guarded the city day and night to protect ourselves.” (emphasis mine). After a few more verses where we learn of his clever strategy to protect he and his people, we get to verses 14 and 15: “After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, ‘Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.’ When our enemies heard that we were aware of their plot and that God had frustrated it, we all returned to the wall, each to our own work.” The final verse, Verse 23b says, “We carried our weapons with us at all times, even when we went for water.” (In today’s day and age, we’d replace “weapons” with “masks”). See, he showed he trusted God while taking all necessary precautions.

Not only is this story a lesson about not letting enemies (this can be nay-sayers, our mental health, physical challenges, etc) get in the way of accomplishing the work God has assigned us, but that being precautious or taking safety measures does not mean we are living in fear or that we do not trust God.

“Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge but fools despise wisdom and discipline.” – Proverbs 1:7

“Live long and prosper.”- Mr. Spock , Star Trek 🙂

Psalm 27: David, Why repeat yourself?

Here’s a 4 minute devotional that I hope will encourage you! (I can’t believe that I really kept it short ). By the way, I hope to “meet “ with you all again soon ! P.s- I am wearing my new “Faith Over Fear” shirt!