Beautiful Blessings Brand Begins…
My parents named me Beautiful Blessing. Well actually, they named me Ingrid Grace, and a big reason was due to the meaning behind the names. Ingrid; a Swedish name meaning ‘beautiful’, and Grace is a blessing from God. Early in life I didn’t understand why I couldn’t have the same name as my peers and ‘twin’ with them, or create “The Katie Club” with all the girls named Katie. Instead, I was the only Ingrid I ever knew (aside from an elderly banker and the local librarian). But as I got older I began to appreciate my unique name, and my uniqueness.
Year after year I set out to reach goals, one of which is always some type of business idea. In January of 2020 I started a website “TheIngridGrace.com”. I spent the year randomly changing the background and fiddling with various ideas for the site. But I never published it for the public because I had no direction other than a typical share my outfits/products I love. And while nothing is bad about either of those things, they weren’t enough to get me excited early on. As I continued to ponder what was holding me back, it felt so centered around ME ME ME. In December 2020 I decided I really needed to have a quiet time and lean into what God has in store for me. What is my life’s purpose? What should I be creating to honor him? I prayed, and RIGHT when I said 'Amen’ the ending of the song “O Come to The Alter” by Elevation Worship said; “Bear your cross as your wait for the crown, tell the world of the treasure you’ve found”. The words echoed in my head as I picked up my Bible to read. My page marker had been left in Matthew 13. I read through the chapter and to parts stuck out to me most. First “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field”. I had this moment where I thought about where the focus of my future business needs to be, on sharing the treasure I have found with others. This is where the second part of the chapter that stuck out comes into play: “Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” I’ve read this parable before and I always interpreted it as me having to produce good works/behavior… but my eyes opened to the true meaning behind it, The Great Commission. This verse isn’t speaking of seeds (people) producing good works, but rather, multiplying the number of believers! Sharing the treasure of Jesus with others!
As I tried to stay calm over the connection between the song and verses I had just read, I picked up two books I was reading “The Marriage Knot” by Ron & Jody Zappia, and “Developing The Leader Within You 2.0” by John C. Maxwell. As I read the next chapter in “The Marriage Knot”, which was on serving sacrificially. The chapter brought me to tears as I read through the ways husbands and wives should be working to honor and love one another. But the parts that felt especially important on this day as I prayed over my purpose was how a wife should STRENGTHEN herself, her family, and her husband. “taking advantage of every opportunity that comes across her path for the good of her family”. This is biblical as in Proverbs 31:25 “Strength and dignity are her clothing”.
And lastly, I finished my reading with Chapter Seven in John C. Maxwell’s book focused on “The Heart of Leadership: Serving People”. I know, the connection between all of these books on this day is actually mind blowing. As I read, I was presented with question to help me serve people better, I’ll leave them here for you to ponder as well…
1. ) What can I do for people to help them succeed?'
2.) What do people need from me daily that they may not want to ask for?
3.) What can I work on that will help me serve people better?
4.) How will I know that I am serving people well?
5.) What is it like for the people who work with me?
6.) How can I gain value while adding value to others by serving?
7.) What do I do best that allows me to serve people best?
8.) How can I serve people in a way that will inspire them to serve others?
After these readings, I prayed for direction. How will I live out this sharing of treasure, serving others, and taking advantage of every opportunity? After a few days of waiting, Beautiful Blessings Brand came to mind. My parents always say I am ‘their beautiful blessing’. But what if I could be a beautiful blessing to others? What if I could inspire others to be the beautiful blessing in their loved one’s lives? What if I could help others (and myself) experience life’s beautiful blessings in the mundane everyday American life?
Beautiful Blessings Brand.
