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I have been carrying a quiet tension for a while now, and I think it is time to name it. For a long time, I have treated the blog like something that needed a steady weekly rhythm. I would look at the calendar, see a blank space, and start asking, “What can I write this week?” Sometimes the answer came easily. Other times, I found myself reaching for content just because it felt like I was supposed to show up. Lately, that has not felt healthy or honest. This summer has been

Maya Angelou said, "When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time." It's become something of a cultural proverb, repeated so often it can start to sound like a bumper sticker instead of a warning. But Jesus said something strikingly similar, and much earlier: "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits" (Matthew 7:15-16). That's not a suspicious posture toward peopl

There is a particular kind of grief that shows up in comment sections. You can watch it happen in real time: a denomination votes, a doctrine gets codified, and somewhere in the replies a woman who has spent decades quietly faithful to a local church goes silent, or worse, finally says out loud what she has carried for years. That is what happened last month (June 2026), when a sector of the Christian world voted on whether women may serve as pastors. I watched the comments.

Christianity has a PR problem. And honestly? A lot of it is self-inflicted. The people who are supposed to represent it often do the worst job of it. The book that anchors it gets picked apart, mistranslated, and wielded like a weapon. The institution built around it has, at various points in history, been corrupt, violent, petty, and small. In a world full of other religions making their own claims, Christianity stands up and says we're the one which, depending on who's sayi

Most people who don't believe in God aren't missing information. They're stuck in the middle of confusion or anger. That makes it hard to follow where the information leads. That's not an insult. It's one of the most honest things I can say and I say it because I've been there. Belief has a cost. It requires you to stop being the final authority on your own life, and that is not a small thing. We don't give that up easily, and we don't give it up cheaply. This is the third po

This is the second post in a four-part series called The Impasse. These are the questions people bring to the edge of faith and can't get past. I'm not going to give you a soft answer or a Sunday school deflection. What I'm going to do is be honest and anchor every answer in the same lens: God is sovereign, and He is our Father. Nobody signs up for suffering. Nobody wakes up and says, I'd like some betrayal, some loss, some illness, some silence from God. That sounds like a g

I am doing something new for the next four blog posts. I am taking 40, you read that right, FORTY of the tough questions that people ask about God and answering them. These blog posts pair with an episode of Honeyed Candor as well. I will link the other 3 blog posts as they release each week, at the bottom of the page. What I have done is taken the forty questions and divided them into four broad categories: The Father's Heart, The School of Love, The Cost of Belief: The

There is a specific kind of wound that doesn't have a clean category. It's not quite grief, not quite betrayal, not quite a crisis of faith (but in some circumstances it very well could be) — and yet it's all three at once. It's the wound that happens inside the church. And if you've experienced it, you already know that it hits different from anything else that has ever hurt you. That's not an accident. Church hurt isn't just relational pain that happened to occur inside a b

If you have one, you're not alone. We all have those moments where we question everything we have ever been taught. These are the moments where we either push it down when it surfaces, or feel like it's all impossible. Maybe, it's the question you almost asked one night, and then backed away from because you were afraid of what it would mean about you if you actually let yourself ask it. The question that hovers every time you hear a sermon that doesn't quite address it. The

The age old debate of "Women can't be Pastors in a church". Well, neither can men because scripture doesn't use the word "Pastor". It says that the foundation of the church are Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Shepherds, and Teachers. Perhaps it's time to retire the word Pastor? I believe that debate is for another day. As a woman, I have noticed that the "women can't do anything leadership in the church" crowd loves to call out females in leadership positions by the seco

You ever find yourself stuck in a spiritual rut, wondering why things just don’t seem to line up no matter how much you pray or read your Bible? Maybe you’ve felt that tug of confusion or frustration, like something’s off but you can’t quite put your finger on it. Here’s a hard question: who are you really partnering with in your spiritual journey? Because the truth is, the one you align with changes everything. The Invisible Partnership That Shapes Your Life Before Jesus eve

You know that feeling when you walk into a room and everything looks normal—familiar even—but something just doesn’t sit right? Like you’re stuck in a place that’s quietly holding you captive, but you don’t see the bars or the locks. Maybe it’s your routine, your thoughts, or even your pain that’s become the walls of this invisible prison. What if you’re trapped in a spiritual escape room and don’t even know it? The Quiet Trap of Normal This week we’re unpacking a tough quest

Most of us aren’t trapped because we don’t know the way out. We’re trapped because the way out costs us something we’re not sure we can afford to lose. Staying stuck means nothing changes and we remain "comfortable" - no matter how miserable we are. We long for freedom, but it feels like climbing Mount Everest. Every pattern you’ve been living inside of — every coping mechanism, every role you play, every way you’ve learned to move through the world — is doing a job for you

You’ve probably heard the stories. The church exposing spiritual abuse, calling out wolves in the fold, and demanding justice. It feels urgent and necessary. But what if, in the rush to expose and condemn, we’re leaving a trail of wounded believers behind us? People who once trusted, who once hoped, now bruised and broken — and somehow, that’s being called justice. This week's blog post pairs well with what I discuss on the Honeyed Candor podcast. In today's episode, we wres

Freedom is often seen as a destination, a moment when all constraints fall away and life becomes effortless. Yet, true freedom is not a one-time event. It is a lifestyle, a practice that begins deep within the mind and unfolds through intentional effort. This post explores how freedom starts in our thoughts, requires healing, and transforms our identity through truth and participation in spiritual growth. By understanding these principles, you can cultivate lasting freedom in

There are books written to share ideas, to inspire, or to teach. Escape Artist was none of those. I wrote it because something inside me demanded to be told. For years, I lived what many would call a “functional” life. I worked, I showed up, and I kept moving forward. From the outside, everything seemed normal. But beneath the surface, I carried invisible burdens—trauma, confusion, and beliefs about myself that quietly shaped my world. Trauma doesn’t always leave visible sca

Many people who appear the strongest are simply the most practiced at hiding. Behind the confident smiles and polished appearances, countless individuals carry a heavy burden of exhaustion and pain that goes unnoticed. This hidden struggle is often called high-functioning pain—a state where someone looks fine on the outside but is quietly drowning inside. Understanding this experience is crucial because it affects people across all walks of life. Whether in the workplace, soc

Every day, we act in ways that seem automatic or natural. We might find ourselves people pleasing, pushing for overachievement, feeling emotionally numb, or relying heavily on our independence. But what if these behaviors are not just habits or personality traits? What if they are the visible signs of deeper beliefs we hold—beliefs that shape how we see ourselves and the world around us? Understanding this connection can unlock real growth and transformation. Behavior Is the

Healing is rarely a smooth journey. Many people who have faced trauma or deep emotional wounds find that the process of healing feels worse before it gets better. This experience can be confusing and discouraging, making it hard to stay committed to recovery. Understanding why this happens can provide clarity and hope for those navigating this difficult path. A winding forest path symbolizing the uncertain journey of healing Why Trauma Survivors Develop Coping Mechanisms When

## Strength Is Spiritual Somewhere along the way, many of us absorbed the idea that strength had to pick a lane: either you were “spiritual” (prayerful, surrendered, gentle) or you were “physical” (disciplined, driven, strong). As if lifting weights somehow competes with prayer. As if taking care of your body is a distraction from taking care of your soul. It doesn’t. Strength is spiritual. Not because muscles make you holy, but because stewardship does. When you practice dis