The Worldly Response vs. the Godly Response

When I started sparkle, I set out to inspire preteen girls. This is such a hard age. I had difficult times at this age and so does my daughter. I wanted to make them feel beautiful the way God made them, to feel like they are enough and loved the way God says, not the world. I was so excited for it, and I just knew that God would bless my journey, and it would take off. I prayed and prayed for God to use it and bless others, to inspire these girls. I always said that if it helps just one girl I would be happy. So, in January 2021, I launched Sparkle, and my first box went out in April.

What actually happened was quite the opposite. I worked and worked at it for over a year and I just couldn’t afford to do it anymore. I would gain subscribers and lose some, but ultimately I had to make a decision, keep going or stop. I decided to stop, but there was one girl and her mama, in particular, that I was super sad about. I wanted to keep going just for her, but I knew I couldn’t. So, in July 2022, I stopped and just as I had suspected, they were really bummed.

So…fast forward to January 2023. I was in the grocery store and this particular mom came up to me and asked “so, how did you start sparkle” I told her that it just came out of my head and she said, that she was so inspired by it and her daughter loved it. She loved the idea behind it and how inspiring it was. She also told me that she had a similar idea that she wanted to try and that it would be something good for her daughter to do during the summer. I put a brave face on and said “great! If you need any help, or if you have any questions, please let me know. I thought to myself “if I couldn’t make it work she can’t” and I left with that. 

As I was walking to the car, groceries in hand, I had many thoughts going through my head. The first was this “oh my goodness! If she does the same thing as me and she makes it work, and I couldn’t, I am going to be so mad“ this is the worldly reaction, my immediate response, what satan wants you to think. Then God said to me “you wanted to inspire preteen girls, didn’t that happen? They were so inspired that they want to inspire more girls”. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that maybe what I was praying for, was actually answered. Maybe my purpose for Sparkle was never God’s purpose. To this day, I still believe that God wanted me to start Sparkle. You see, sometimes our prayers are answered in different ways than we expect. Maybe I “failed” for a reason. Maybe it wasn’t a failure at all. Maybe the only failure would have been not doing it at all out of fear of failure. If I had never done it, then this  mom/daughter duo would have never had their idea. Maybe this is what God had planned for them all along, a single mom, trying her absolute best, needed a break. Maybe God was using me to carry out His plan for them. When God answers our prayers different than what we expect sometime we miss the answer because we are blinded by “our unanswered” prayers. 

Next time your plans don’t work out or your prayers aren’t answered the way that you thought that they should be, remember this story. Look for your answered prayers in a different place. Be obedient to God, you never know whose life could change because of it. I don’t know how their story will end, but I do know that God is in control. Stay tuned, eventually, I’ll have the rest of this journey. Join me in prayer for them though their journey.   
Lacy ❤️

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you’ll be able to attest and approve what God’s will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will”          

Romans 12:2