Judy Deans (left), manager Tami Rowbotham (right)
Lifestyle Ministry …that’s truly what it’s all about these days! Sure, I’ve got this thing called a Music Ministry, yet ministry for this chick is so much more than through music; it’s a lifestyle. It’s taking who God has created me be at my core, and with my baggage, woundedness and even what can seem like dysfunction extraordinaire all around me, expressing Christ, His truth, His love, and His awesomeness through each fascet of my being. No matter what, THIS is what I’ve been created for; for Him and for His good things to be accomplished! My life, like all of ours, is truly a spiritual thing …not just something ‘natural’ because I ‘just so happened’ to be born on such and such a date into such and such a family, so voila, here I am in the present. God knit me together in my Mother’s womb, fearfully and wonderfully, and my entire life is part of the Grand Story He is telling …and a Story in which I’m meant to make a significant impact, to say the least.
That seemed to be the huge message God was continuing to encourage me with when I met with the folks of Incubator in Nashville earlier this month. I remember venturing to Incubator’s Summer Summit last year, with such a heavy heart; one significantly overwhelmed with the responsibilities of life as a mom in ministry. I was super down on myself because, with two babies two and under, I just couldn’t manage to keep up with the music ministry responsibilities as I always managed to before hand, and a feeling of such failure swept over me in realizing that my ‘progress in the process’ was now going much slower than I would ever intend or hope for. I knew that He still was doing much through the ‘music piece’ my ministry still contained, yet God’s plan in my life was clearly much more than with music. He designed me to be a mama, and yet I was being so hard on myself. By His grace, truth, and time especially over this past year, He’s brought my heart to much peace that I am exactly where He wants me to be, doing exactly what He wants me to do, at the pace He wants me to go. So I went to Music City to meet up with other ‘long timer’ artist friends with Incubator, and meet newer artists too, with no idea what the Lord was gonna hatch inside my heart this time. I showed up, and He certainly did too!
“It’s in the angst that the solution is found.” …a phrase which Incubator president Nate Sakany spoke during one of the seminar sessions, rang true in my heart at this time more than any other. As I’ve been battling the pressures of ministry with music, mommyhood, a pastor’s wife/marriage too, God has brought an incredible peace that He is building such a depth into this life through each particular struggle; this life He has created to make a significant impact, remember? And in being surrounded with some newbie artists to the Incubator process while in Nashville, He reminded me of the incredible amount of depth He has brought me to over these past nine years with the best ministry label ever and dearest ministry family of Incubator staff and friends a person could ask for. And He will continue to bring even more depth to this life of ministry in the years to come. Without God’s grace, truth, and time, I wouldn’t have the depth and significance to truly lead others significantly. I am overwhelmingly grateful.
Our message is our mess. God uses the pain, problems and difficulties we have in life to give us a message and a way to minister to others in a deep and profound way; a way that will truly have a lasting and promising impact. When our vision is wide enough to see beyond the mundane, beyond just a song, or a typical ‘day’ in our home life, God can do unimaginably amazing things through us. I’m not about to stop thanking God for the mess and message He’s given and bringing incredible depth to. And I ask that too of you …will you allow Him to make something marvelous with your life –an impactual ministry, mess and all? He will. He’s good at that.
