I have always wanted to be on a billboard! Not like my hugest dream of life 🤪 but just a little desire I’ve had for many years, probably since I was a little girl riding in the car on the highway in Kansas. "I wonder if I could ever be on a billboard..."
Surprise — now I am! 😃
I definitely did not expect to be on this billboard! I knew I was in a video shoot for this attorney, and I had been looking forward to the commercial coming out, but I didn’t realize that photos from the shoot would end up here!
I’m so honored! ✨
When I saw it, Anthony and I were driving on Cahuenga Boulevard to Lee Benton Ministries International on Sunday, Sept. 10, where it was his first time to preach at one of Lee’s monthly meetings. He shared the story of how we met there on his birthday 5 years ago — exactly 5 years and 2 days from that Sunday’s event! He also shared some of our love story and things God taught him along the way.
On the way to Lee’s, before seeing this billboard, I saw another billboard for Jacob Emrani. I was excited to see this company I had acted for and to point out that I think it’s clever how they’re taking the “lemon” of how people get their name wrong so frequently and making “lemonade” out of it by doing fun ads based on the misunderstandings of their name, kind of like misheard lyrics. ("Is it two guys, 'Jacob' and 'Ronnie?' Who knows!")
Then I saw the next sign (this one). At first, I didn’t notice myself on it. I was just excited to see another sign for this company I had worked with — two signs in a row! — along with another clever quip about their name.
Then, just as we drove past it, I squealed out something like,
“Oh my goodness! That’s me! I’m on the billboard!” 😃
As the driver, Anthony didn’t get to see me on the sign as we passed it, and we had to get to Lee’s on time for him to set up to help lead worship and preach. But we agreed that we’d be sure to stop and look on the way back. So when we came back through after Lee’s, we parked and got these photos.
I am so honored and surprised. By the way, shoutout to Christi Given, who often prays for me when I go on set, for giving me the light pink bag I'm holding in the ad!
I think it’s worth noting that I was only about a mile or less from the site of this billboard when I prayed and began to believe in April 2019 that my life would be a display of God‘s goodness. I remember where I was, walking down the street where I used to live in North Hollywood, doing voice memos back-and-forth with Josie DeRuiter. She said something prophetic to me about my life being a showcase of God‘s goodness. I agreed and prayed that my life would display the goodness of the Lord.
Now here we are, 4 1/2 years later, with me on a billboard quite near that spot!
It reminds me of a verse I read just before heading to my birthday party in August 2022 — 3 John 6, which says, according to the Aramaic commentary in the Passion Translation, “You outfitted them like a … billboard for God.”
All believers are invited to be billboards for God in different ways.
Though some literally have photos of themselves on billboards, for all of us, our life — our lifestyle, our life story, our path of life — is meant to serve as a billboard for the Lord. To show how He cares about our desires both big and small; provides for our physical, emotional and spiritual needs; answers our prayers; upholds us through times of trial and testing; and comes through, even in the 11th hour, when no one would think it was possible.
He is the God who performs Ephesians 3:20 — more than we could ask, think or imagine — for those who believe Him and step out in faith. He is the God who Romans 8:28’s everything, taking the bad things that happen to us and the mistakes we make and turning them all for our good and His glory.
He is the God who saves us from addictions and bad habits, liberates us from bondage, and loads us daily with bountiful benefits (Psalm 68:19).
And, He is the God makes *us* into His billboards.