One Generation to Another
“One generation shall praise Your works to another and shall declare Your mighty acts.” // Psalm 145:4
I often find myself thinking about the “why” of writing. Why does it matter? Why do I feel a pull to do it? Why is it valuable? I get lost in my thoughts a lot of the time, but I always come back to one answer for the question: to remember God’s faithfulness. To relish in His greatness, glory, power, victory, and majesty. I want to remind myself and encourage the people placed in my path to trust God, to put all our hope in Him, to find all our joy in Him. When I write, and especially when I journal, I think about my children reading the words one day, and I just pray they would get a glimpse of their God - His faithfulness, goodness, love, sovereignty, kindness, grace, and peace.
All of our stories have been crafted by our Creator, and we have the opportunity to give the goodness from one generation to another.
Maybe today, you need to be reminded of how incredible God is? Or maybe you need some encouragement to share your own story? Or maybe you need some motivation to look for God’s goodness in your story? I know sometimes it can actually be disheartening to hear about God’s faithfulness in the lives of others, but I promise His faithfulness is all over your own life, too, friend. Often, it takes getting back to basics and praising God for His faithfulness in filling our lungs with breath and our tables with food and our world with beauty. And as we recall the miracles we often take for granted, we are reminded that our lives are drenched in His faithfulness, and we become aware of the infinite number of stories we have to share.
I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to share the story of how I came to close Bright Frame Films and start working at Summit. It’s a story I come back to when I need to be reminded of how awesome God is, and I always get excited to share it whenever someone asks how I got my start at the church…
In the first months of 2017, I started feeling a pull away from Bright Frame Films. I wasn’t unhappy, and I didn’t dread going to weddings and meeting clients and editing. But I could sense that my mind and heart weren’t fully in it. I was sad to think about this wonderful season ending, but I felt so much peace (and honestly, relief) thinking about it being over.
At that point, I was neck-deep in work on the Living Proof Live conference with my girl Beth Moore, we were about to start another round of fertility treatments, and wedding season was in full swing. My mind and heart needed some help. I decided to commit to doing the Daniel Fast - 21 days of prayer and fasting from meat, dairy, sugar, and alcohol. During the three weeks leading up to Living Proof Live Orlando, I had three specific prayers, and I was trusting God to give me clear answers for each one. I prayed that God would fill the CFE Arena with women of all races, ages, and stages of life, and that every person who walked through the doors would have a personal encounter with Jesus. I prayed that God would allow life to begin growing in my womb. And I prayed for clear next steps for Bright Frame Films.
God answered my first prayer in a BIG way as Beth shared scripture and truth that weekend. He said “not yet” to my second prayer. And He confirmed it was time to step away from the business after my 2017 weddings wrapped up. But if I’m being honest, I felt like that third answer wasn’t quite complete. Ok, God, it’s time to close up shop, but… what’s next? It’s not enough to be confident that this season is ending… I need to know what the next season will be, too. Turns out, I didn’t need to know yet. God was asking me to trust that He would provide when the time was right.
The fast ended the Sunday of the conference weekend. And on Monday, I opened my email to find a message from Summit’s Children’s Ministry Director asking if we could meet for lunch soon.
Back up to the spring of 2014 when I started volunteering in our children’s ministry - I volunteered mostly on Thursday evenings and became good friends with the gal who coordinated and oversaw children’s ministry for our evening services. (Hey, Mel!) We served together and lunched and brunched together, and she shared her heart for adventure and how she had always wanted to experience full-time RV-life.
Fast forward to the beginning of 2017 again, and Mel shared that she thought it might be time for her and “Babe” to take the leap and dive into their road-life dreams. But she knew going on the road would mean leaving her role at church, and that brought on all the feels and all the thoughts (as change always does, right?). Y’all, NOT ONCE did it cross my mind that God might be weaving our stories together and intertwining our endings and beginnings. NOT ONCE did I think, ‘Hmm, maybe I could fill that role? Maybe this is my next step?’ NOT ONCE. I love how God often chooses to keep things hidden so we can be absolutely blown away when we get to see the big picture.
When I read that email from our Children’s Ministry Director, Deanna, asking to meet for lunch, God pulled off my blinders, and I immediately thought, ‘she’s going to ask me about stepping into Melanie’s position.’ I got super excited and told Jake right away. But then I second-guessed myself and thought, ‘Maybe I’m in trouble for something, or maybe she’s going to ask me about doing a video for her family?’ Jake and I decided to pray about the position anyways. Every day for the week leading up to my lunch meeting, we prayed that God would give us clarity on whether it was the right fit and the right time. And every day, we’d say amen and then laugh because we had no idea if that’s actually what I’d be offered at lunch that day.
When the day came and Deanna and I sat down to quiche and salad at Se7en Bites, we chatted about random things for a few minutes; but then she asked me how my business was doing, and I shared honestly about my recent revelation to begin winding things down at the end of the year. I told her how God had confirmed closing Bright Frame Films, but He hadn’t yet opened the door to what was coming next.
Pretty blooms from Jake on my first official day of the new job!
Y’all, the look on her face was priceless. She then proceeded to offer me the position of Children’s Ministry Evening Coordinator and told me Mel would officially be hitting the road in the fall. We laughed and cried, and I told her about my fast and the timing of her email and how Jake and I had been praying about this job offer, not knowing if it was actually even coming. God had poured out His peace as we prayed those uncertain prayers, and He had prepared me to be able to say YES and accept her offer right then and there!
Is it not insane how many details were divinely designed to make all of that happen?! And how many prayers were answered and desires were fulfilled because of God’s faithfulness?! It’s been more than two years since I’ve been on staff at church. Melanie and Babe spent a year on the road, and now they’re living that beach-Disney-RV-life close to family and friends in Florida.
God works in ways we could never understand, and His faithfulness has no limit and no end.
The Psalm continues: “The Lord is good to all, and His mercies are over all His works.” His mercies and goodness and faithfulness cover us all.
Let’s share our stories with each other and from one generation to another - as reminders to find, feel, and live fully in God’s faithfulness.