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Sara Groves: Being God's Beauty on Earth

By Hannah Goodwyn
Associate Producer

CBN.com Tragedies, great or small, can bring such a despair and fear to the minds of people. Letting go of these feelings is not easy, but Sara Groves is discovering that by trusting God she can release her worries and become a beautiful testimony of His love.

During the production of her last album, “Other Side of Something” (2004), she questioned God and struggled with how to parent her two sons in such a messed up world. “Where is He in the face of all this, all this suffering and pain?”

God heard her cries and gave His answer. Sara’s new view on life is the motivation of her latest release and renewed statement of faith, “Add to the Beauty.” The message is that the God’s Word is true, and Christians need to live like it.

“When we begin to operate as if the Kingdom of God is real, and it’s not just in the heavenlies or some of ideology that is far off, but that it is real, I really believe it will change the world,” Sara said.

In response to her questions, God “pointed to all these people adding to the beauty,” she said, “people who allowed that call and that challenge to change their lives and who are then in effect changing the world.”

A close friend of Sara’s, who was living in a difficult situation, decided to trust God. “This is so hard, but she is taking hold of the Kingdom of God,” Sara said. She is making “her way into a better story.”

“This album is influenced by these people who are believing God and are letting that change their hearts, families, work, and lives,” she said.

These faithful are adding to the beauty of God’s never-ending story by living a life that glorifies Him. Sara believes that Mother Teresa understood this very well. The beloved nun “said ‘you can do no great things, only small things with great love,’” Sara explained.

Evidence of this love is seen in Sara’s family life.

“If I have a strong marriage, all the glory goes to God,” she said. “If I have a strong family, all the glory goes to God because it’s definitely in our nature to be selfish, and it takes the fruit of the Spirit, it takes the Kingdom of God to see things through in families.”

Christian artist/producer Charlie Peacock taught Sara the importance of having a good marriage.

He told her that marriage is God’s art, and “that when you see a beautiful marriage it’s like seeing a masterpiece, a great work of art,” she said. “It takes your breath away.” Strong marriages are inspirational, and even “a little piece of the Kingdom on Earth.”

“And every time we put our selfish needs down and we serve someone else, the Kingdom of God is pulsing there. It is alive there. It is redemptive there,” Sara said.

Christians also can become amazing testimonies to others by fulfilling the call God has on them. It is important to “let Him define normal for my family and my life,” she said.

Sara’s musical talents are another way for her to add beauty to this world. She hopes to “write redemptive, create redemptive art in music that causes people to reflect on the very real Kingdom of God…and where it’s actually changing their hearts and mobilizing them for action,” the songwriter said.

Sara recognizes that God wants to shine His light through her. She also knows that although it is not easy to live an honorable life, it is possible through God’s grace.

“It is no small miracle when God brings beauty in my life,” she said. “This to me is the good news; that we can contribute.”

Sara and every human being is “part of the equation,” part of the big story. “God didn’t need us, but by His grace he said I want you to tell my story. I want you to be my mouthpieces. It is a tremendously humbling thought that the God of the Universe would use me in any redemptive story. And yet he does over and over again,” Sara said.

Most Christians believe that God is in control of their future, but fear can still cripple lives. Sara knows that difficulties are inevitable on this Earth, but now she realizes that God always knows more than we do.

“The thing that the believer has that nobody else does is eternity in our hearts,” she said. “I actually believe that there is a sovereign God who is working sovereignly on my behalf for my ultimate good end.”

By keeping this in the forefront of her thoughts, Sara is able to allow God to direct her life without having to respond to circumstances with fear or anxiousness. Even as she thinks of her children and the fallen world they are subjected to, she resolves to trust that God is big enough to handle their future.

Her new song “To the Moon” points to the desire some may have to get out of this place — away from the disappointments, crime, political agendas, and sin. She understands why the early American settlers came to the New World: to have religious freedom.

In light of the destruction and religious oppression in the world today, she asks listeners, “Where do we go now, to the moon?” Sara does not believe retreating is the answer.

“It is time to be salt and light, and believe that the Kingdom of God is bigger than politics and people,” she said.

Her heart yearns for God’s people to depend on Him for strength to live righteously here on the Earth He created, with the people He loves.

Sara does not know what specific role she will play, but she cannot wait to find out the whole story. Until God reveals the big picture, Sara simply will continue to live each day reflecting His beauty.

 

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