Unleashing My Inner Sophia

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Every year for my birthday, I like to write a blog post reflecting what personality trait or goal I want to accomplish that year. One year, when I was in my forties, I unleashed my inner bombshell. Then another year, I was jogging so I unleashed my inner runner, etc. etc. 

This year, I couldn't figure out what it was that I had left to unleash. Maybe this was as good as it gets and there was nothing left.

But then a memory came to me of a character I admired and even remember thinking, "When I get older, I want to be Sophia." Now you probably think, Sophia Loren with her timeless beauty or even Sophia Vergara, with her amazing physique.

But no. My goal was to be Sophia Petrillo from the Golden Girls.  I loved that show! I never wanted to grow old and be Blanche - the sexy one! My goal was to grow old and be Sophia - the quick witted one. 

I remember thinking. “I can’t wait to speak without a filter and get away with it because I’m old.”

Her character is described as:

Sassy, quick-witted, and wise, she provides comic relief and surprisingly deep advice.

That's what I want. That's how I want to live out my senior citizen years. That's how I want to be remembered.

Sassy and quick-witted - to me that is not being mean but direct. You can be sassy and quick-witted by speaking truth and being blunt but by tempering it through the Holy Spirit to wake people up. To be like the Apostle Peter, where yes, he often spoke quickly before thinking but he was also called the Rock. 

Bringer of Comic Relief - This is ME! I'm not good at the hugging and the crying. That usually makes me want to flee, but making people laugh and lightening the mood that is my job. Even when my dad was in a nursing home, my older sister was the soft touch, my younger sister the practical one, and I was comic relief. I think my dad needed all three and God knew it.

Giver of deep advice - this is my prayer for myself. Deep advice comes from being in close fellowship with Jesus, in tune to the Holy Spirit, and knowledgeable of the Word. All advice we give should flow through those three things. My prayer is that when someone comes to me for prayer or advise that I give them Godly counsel. 

There are two types of elderly people. And we have all met them. There are those who are like Moses at 85 leading the people into the Promise Land and Caleb at 85 saying, "Give me the high country."

Or there is Naomi from the Book of Esther when she was bitter and depressed.

I want to be a Moses and a Caleb. 

Now some of you elderly reading this will say, "Well, I don't have good health." And that is even me some days. Some days I wake up and look in the mirror and say, "What the hell is that on my face?" It's like in the middle of the night something new grows where it shouldn't. Or I get out of bed and there are weird aches and pains somewhere new, crazy unused places, and it wasn't like I ran a marathon the day before.  

There is a lady at my church who is in a wheelchair. She is probably in her 80s and her husband pulls out her wheelchair at 6:30 am every Sunday so they can both serve as greeters. They are just starting a new ministry at our church for Grief Share during a weeknight. I can't even stay up past 8:30 pm most nights. I look at them, as I'm running into the church, late for my morning greeter position, and they are already at their post, and I am amazed. They are my inspiration.

So, as I enter my late 50s and approach 60, my life ambition is to embrace the Sophia Petrillo spirit - sassy, quick-witted, wise and comic relief. The world can be so heavy and dark at times. We need Sophias. We need to bring joy, laughter, and light to people who are struggling in their Naomi stage of life. When Naomi encountered a Ruth spirit - she changed from grumpy to blessed.

So, to quote Sophia:

"Gowing old is mandatory, but growing up is an option."

So, pray with me for my birthday:

Heavenly Father, 

You gave Caleb and Moses the strength to lead people in their golden years, give me the strength to lead people to you in my golden years. Give me wisdom like Daniel in his golden years, that brought revelation to generations. Extend my years like Hezekiah so that I can be here for my daughter until you provide for her the Boaz I've been praying for and bless me with good health so I can run the race with endurance and reach for that prize - the crown of life set before me.  

In Jesus Name. Amen.

Love,

Yolanda

Countdown to Rapture

 In 2020, a friend and I went to a prophecy conference and heard a pastor talk about how he was convinced that the Abraham Accords signed in September of 2020 was the covenant mentioned in Daniel. When the covenant mentioned in Daniel is confirmed, it starts what the Bible calls the 70th week of Daniel, otherwise known as the 7 Year Tribulation.

I remember hearing that and having a mini heart attack. Now, I know and my friend knows that no one knows the day or the hour, so we took this information with a grain of salt. But it was like a warning blast of a shofar to keep oil in our lamps and be on watch. 

As a private joke, we downloaded a countdown APP on our phones that tracked the proposed Rapture date like a hopeful coming event - like a wedding or graduation that you are anticipating. And over the last 5 years, we have texted each other screenshots when life gets hard or current events start reading like Matthew 24.

Now, I'm not upset with this pastor and won't even be mean and call him a false prophet. Like the apostles in the Bible, he thought the Second Coming of Jesus was imminent. He was convinced the Abraham Accords were the start of the countdown. 

When you have the calling of being a Watchman on the Wall, you are constantly on the lookout and prepared to give a warning. Other people's lives depend on it. In Ezekiel 3 and 33, God commissions Ezekiel as a Watchman for Israel. God warns Ezekiel telling him if he sees danger approaching and doesn't warn the people, he will be accountable for their deaths. If he warns, and people don't listen, then he will not be held accountable.  

So, this pastor's message was like a warning blast from the wall. It was a false alarm, but an alarm, nevertheless. It cemented in my mind, the need to be on high alert prophetically when "peace deals" are made that concern Israel. That's what a good watchman does, he scans the horizon for warning signs, Those who are called to be watchman should observe current events through the lens of scripture.

So, as my countdown APP is still moving towards this hypothetical date of 10/2/2026 - 9 am of course because who wants to be Raptured in their PJs - I decided this morning that my main goal for 2026 is to live my life like this countdown to the Rapture is not hypothetical but real. 

What if every morning I wake up knowing that the day or hour to seeing Jesus is getting closer?

How would I live my life?

If you knew you were going to see Jesus face to face on October 2, 2026, how would you prepare for that meeting now? 

I would:

1. Cut out all things in my life that will embarrass me or shame me when I meet Jesus: Bad habits, unforgiveness, fear, laziness, etc.

2. Get healthy - take care of my tent so that I can run the last leg of the race with endurance and win that prize.

3. Take my calling of a Watchman seriously. Warn everyone that Jesus is coming back soon. Be on guard for attack of the enemy. Be trained in Spiritual Warfare. 

4. Reactivate my personal prayer language that has been neglected too long and pray in the Spirit again. This will strengthen my faith, empower my spirit and give me spiritual discernment and wisdom.

5. Blow may shofar again as a spiritual weapon of war. 

6. Encourage and teach people to pray scripture.

7. Be a shepherdess for Jesus. Watch out for His sheep. Rescue the lost. Go after those who are wandering away. Bind the wounds of the broken. Do not let any of His sheep wander alone and be easy pickings for the enemy.

I was kind of dreading 2026 but after remembering my Countdown APP, I am kind of excited to walk into it with a whole new purpose. The Bible says to redeem the time (Ephesians 5:15-16), making the most of every opportunity because the days are evil. We all can sense that 2026 is going to be a turbulent year, with elections and Israel becoming the stumbling block to the world mentioned in Isaish 8:14-15.  Now is not the time to retreat but to engage in the spiritual battle before us. 

So, when 10/3/2026 comes and I am still here, don't worry about me. I am not going to be disappointed or go crazy; I am using this as fuel to train - spiritually, mentally, and physically. Kind of like when I started to jog for a 5-K. I would tell myself, you just have to run to that bench or fence, then you can walk. Take it one step at a time. If that day comes, I will set another countdown and keep training.

Since the Bible tells us, don't cling to the things of this earth, let's start 2026 storing for ourselves treasures in Heaven. Live each day like you have a Countdown to meet Jesus face to face. 

Ask yourself, if this is the year I meet Jesus either by Rapture or death, how do I want to be remembered? What jewels in my crown do I want to earn in the next 12 months? 

Live this way in 2026 and it will be the best year ever.

God bless and happy New Year.

Love,

Yolanda