Reveal: to make previously unknown or secret information known to others, to cause or allow something to be seen, to make something known to humans by divine or supernatural means.

Wonders: a feeling of surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar, or inexplicable; feel admiration and amazement; marvel; used to express a polite question or request.

What’s in a name? A lot actually, but you probably already know that. You most likely know what your name means, why your parents chose your name, and even your genealogy! Your name gives you a sense of identity, belonging, and purpose!

When it came to selecting the name for this blog there was only one option. Of course this name comes from a story that started in 2010, while watching the movie “How to Train Your Dragon”.

Jason, Abby, and I went to see the movie in the theater. It was well done in both the story line and the animation. If you knew Jason, you knew that this was very important to him enjoying the movie! After the movie as we were talking he let me know how much he enjoyed the part of the movie where the main character Hiccup was flying through the air on his dragon Toothless. You know the scene where they were weaving in and out of the clouds and landscape of their surroundings practicing maneuvers. This scene was beautifully animated and really drew you into the moment with the two of them flying and connecting as one. It was during this scene where Jason heard the words, “Reveal the Wonders”. 

As the years went by Jason knew that there was something to “Reveal the Wonders” but had not heard any more direction on what exactly it could become. He secured the domain. He dreamed about the possibility of what it might one day become. He invited me to dream with him about what this new adventure could one day become. Would it be something we do together? Would it be something relating to creation? He would often ask, “How can I “Reveal the Wonders” of who God is and what He desires us to know about HIm”? These are all questions we talked about frequently. The best part was that we dreamed together about what these words meant.

Then last summer when he died, I realized that this was yet another dream that died with him. 

But God. God always seems to work making beautiful things from the ashes. Fast forward to a few months ago, I was sitting in church when I heard the same words “Reveal the Wonders”. I wrote it down in the back of the journal I took sermon notes in and went on listening to the sermon. I was in an unhealthy place. I was trying to do the grief processing in my own strength. I was ignoring the deep hurt and emotions and going about each day trying to be “normal”. I have long been that person who is not publicly emotional, so I would try to make it through each day and take the evening and night to recover only to repeat it the next day. No one warns you how exhausting grief is. It takes a toll on you emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually. So I continued to ignore what I was hearing the Lord say to me, until I began my sabbatical. Once you take away all the “to do list items” and the daily noise you can no longer run. 

So, I truly began to process all my “why” questions. I had honest time daily with my Heavenly Father where I expressed all my questions, concerns, and also thanked Him for being faithful and being a good Father. Then, I realized I had a “what” question: What can God do with my pain? What purpose will he reveal through this experience? As I wrestled with these questions, I continued to take time to continue processing my grief, sleeping, and spending time with my dog Willa Dean. 

Then as it got quiet, I knew. I had to stop running and face the emotion, the pain and the loss. As I did, I realized that God was already there. He met me in my pain, in my sorrow, and in my grief. Those feelings are not new to Him. He went through those emotions as Christ was crucified and died. It was in these moments that I realized that I can trust Him with my pain, with my sorrow and with my loss. He can redeem this situation and somehow bring beauty from the ashes of our dreams. 

So, I stopped. I turned and faced everything head on and something incredible happened. I heard it again…in church. “Reveal the Wonders”, only this time I responded with the following questions: 

• How do I use my story to help reveal God’s faithfulness, provision and goodness?
• How can I use my story to help other widows that feel lost, helpless, and hopeless?

Wow. What? All of this came from three words…Reveal the Wonders. Then I knew, the Lord had already been working through me and giving me titles, many you have seen here or will soon see here, and words flowed out from my pen. He was waiting for my obedience. He wanted to redeem this yuck, this gross, this unfair, this terrible, this tragedy. He wanted to show me that dreams do not die. They may lay dormant for a while, but He will breathe life into those dead dreams and use them for His glory. 

Dear friend, please keep dreaming. Keep listening to your Heavenly Father. He is speaking and chances are that like me, He has already asked you to do something. Maybe it seems too big, too scary, or too outside of your comfort zone. Maybe it is in an arena that you are not familiar with or that you are not an “expert”. Guess what? You do not have to be. All you have to be is obedient to Him and He will use you to do great things for Him. 

All of this to say, this is where the blog name came from: Reveal the Wonders.