For those of you who are wondering what just happened...

So last Sunday, I went to see and hear Glennon Melton speak at a church here in Charlotte.
I wrote about her amazing talk here.

Glennon and the beautiful preacher man

On Sunday evening, Glennon and her sister, Amanda, sought me and found me in their massive Momastery facebook page fan-o-sphere, and they friended me. What? Who me?
Then they each wrote to me, actually sent me private messages.
WHAT? WHO ME???

Amanda and me

And then THIS happened. And a whole lot of Melton's Monkees, my sister Monkees, came a-calling on little old me. And leaving messages. And sending love. And praying for me. And lighting candles. And sending care packages. And inviting me over to sit and eat with them.

What? Who me?
Yes, me.
Why?

Because, as I have often said, I am determined to be kind to everyone I meet and see because we are all fighting great battles. I knew that Glennon was a bit reluctant about speaking in public, a bit nervous about being in rooms full of Monkees before she had herself fully together. She made me laugh as she described her terror, but it is terror nonetheless. For her, sitting in front of a crowd and baring her soul was going to feel a lot like entering into a fierce battle indeed.

So when I found out that she was coming to Charlotte, I knew that I had to go. I won't lie; I wanted to go mostly for me, because I wanted to be in the same room with one of my greatest teachers (and someone who I just know could easily be one of my best friends as well). But I also wanted to be there for her. I wanted to sit where I could see her, look into her eyes, and send her lasers of love. I wanted to be close enough so that my joy, my excitement, and my sheer awe at the woman that she is and the woman that she is becoming would be palpable for her. Understanding that perfect love casts out fear, I hoped that my deeply flawed and imperfect love would serve to divert fear - even just a little bit.

Apparently, she felt it. She felt buoyed by all the love in the room - and by my love in particular. Somehow the nods I nodded and the amens I uttered gave her space and caused her to feel safe enough to tell her story, her truth, and know that in spite of all the evidence to the contrary, all was well. For me to know that I was part of that, to know that she rode the wave of my love and support into revelations and stories that might not otherwise have been shared, that is a great honor, indeed.

Before you shake your head and click back over to facebook, let me be clear. This is not about me. It's not about my big, bald head nodding up and down. It's not about my few vocalized "amens."

This is about God. This is about grace.
This is about sisterhood. This is about community.
This is about presence. This is about paying attention.
This is about hope. This is about persistence.
This is about showing up. This is about leaving the measuring rod at home.
This is about feeling fear and doing the hard things anyway.
This is about fighting your own battles and supporting other warriors in theirs as well.
This is about how love wins.
This is about how love wins.

For those of you who are wondering about what just happened -
love just happened, my friends.