What Better Together Taught Me About Proximity, Purpose & Preparation
Sometimes God allows you to experience the desires of your heart before you're actually living them. Not necessarily because the moment is the destination, but because there is something you're supposed to see, learn, or carry home with you.
Recently, I took a one-day trip to attend a live viewing of Better Together at TBN Studios. And when I say one day, I mean one day. Fly in. Experience it. Fly back. Simple enough, right?
Well...almost.
I nearly missed my flight.
There was definitely a moment when I thought, Am I even going to make it there? 😂 But somewhere underneath the rushing, airport chaos, and checking the time repeatedly, I knew I needed to get on that plane. I had made the decision to get in the room, and I was determined to get there.
Then I arrived—and it was HOT.
Waiting outside TBN Studios in the heat could have been an entire story by itself. Thankfully, my driver was incredibly patient and kept the air conditioning pumping while I waited. That little bit of mercy was greatly appreciated!
But once I walked inside, something shifted.
I took it all in.
The studio. The production. The conversations. The women. The cameras. The way everything flowed behind the scenes. I wasn't experiencing the room only as a viewer. I was experiencing it as a woman with dreams of her own.
Sometimes Proximity Is Preparation
I've been thinking a lot about what it means to place ourselves in proximity to the desires God has placed in our hearts.
There is a difference between admiring something from afar and getting close enough to study it.
As an author, teacher and preacher, encouraging women has always been deeply connected to my purpose. And as I continue thinking about what's possible for my own podcast and future productions, being at Better Together gave me an opportunity to observe something operating at another level.
I could enjoy the experience and learn from it.
How does the conversation flow?
How is the set designed?
What creates warmth on camera?
How do multiple women share a conversation without losing the audience?
What makes a production feel intimate while still being polished?
Suddenly, I wasn't simply watching television. I was taking notes.
That's one of the beautiful things about getting into rooms connected to where you believe you're going. Sometimes those rooms give you language for something you've already been carrying.
Your Gift Still Needs Preparation
Proverbs 18:16 says:
“A man's gift makes room for him and brings him before the great.”
I love that Scripture because it reminds me that our gifts have the ability to create opportunities we couldn't manufacture ourselves.
But I've also learned that when the room opens, we want to be prepared for it.
I love teaching. I love preaching. I love writing. I love sitting with women and helping them see another possibility for their lives. Those gifts can be expressed through a pulpit, a book, a podcast, a conversation, a camera—or perhaps through opportunities I haven't even imagined yet.
So being in a professional studio environment wasn't about trying to become someone else. It actually made me think more seriously about how I can steward what God has already placed inside of me.
What could my podcast become?
How could the production improve?
How could the conversations become stronger?
How could I create experiences that make women feel seen, encouraged and challenged?
Those were the questions I brought home.
Get Close Enough to Learn
Habakkuk 2:2 says:
“Write the vision; make it plain...”
Sometimes writing the vision also means being willing to study what the vision requires.
Go to the conference.
Visit the studio.
Attend the event.
Sit in the room.
Ask questions.
Observe.
Learn.
Not because someone else's path will necessarily become yours, but because proximity can expand what you believe is possible.
That one-day trip reminded me that there are moments when you have to get close enough to your aspirations to see them differently.
And yes, sometimes that may include almost missing a flight and sitting outside in ridiculous heat. 😂
But I came home with more than pictures and memories. I came home with ideas. Notes. Inspiration. And an even clearer picture of what excellence could look like in my own work.
Maybe that's what some rooms are for.
They aren't necessarily announcing that you've arrived.
They're preparing you for where you're going.
So here's something I've been thinking about ever since:
What desire has God placed in your heart—and when was the last time you intentionally put yourself in proximity to it?
Your gift may make room for you.
But when that room opens, may you be ready to walk in.
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