faith unfaded

One year ago this month, I stepped into my very first travel assignment. I didn’t have a media kit or a travel portfolio. I did have an assignment letter from an editor, a destination— Chattanooga— and a handful of places I wanted to visit. I contacted each separately— I had no concept of tourism companies then— and secured some hosted stays as media comps. I walked into that trip like a newborn colt: a little wobbly, legs shaking, but with a fire in my spirit.

I was adjusting to solo travel and created TikToks as a way to feel connected to others while on my own. My first TikTok was a stay in a train car room at Hotel Chalet, formerly the Chattanooga Choo Choo. The day after posting, I discovered it had gone viral, racking up half a million views and turning what I thought would be occasional travel articles into a regular gig.

Since then I’ve written over 40 travel articles and created hundreds of TikToks. I call it being an accidental influencer, though the term floating around online may be more accurate: granfluencer. I certainly fit that description!

I had no idea this thing—this joy, this calling, this unexpected lane—would become such a big part of my life. The Lord merged two of the deepest desires of my heart— travel and writing— into a path that I now walk with unexpected favor.

It is something I never take for granted, and the connections I make are genuine. Some conversations continue long after the assignment ends.

• The Broadway producer from Kentucky who gave me recommendations for my visit— and corrected my pronunciation of Louisville so locals wouldn’t laugh at me! (It’s Lou-uh-vull, not Lou-ee-ville, btw!)

• The tourism rep who sent me a photo when she and a friend visited one of the places I’d raved about because we’d genuinely connected…

• The publicist grappling with identity in Christ who thanked me for unapologetically blending my faith with travel…

• The marketing director who said I was the first journalist she’d ever had stop to pray before eating…

• The trolley operator who said he found strength in my story and found answers he’d been asking the Lord for…

That’s just five of over a hundred such stories—ones I don’t share in my recaps because they aren’t all meant for public consumption—but they all absolutely matter. We’re built for connection; our souls are shaped in the places where our stories meet.

In fact, I’ve just come to realize that I’d been wrong about something. I thought my travel writing was somewhat of a hobby… a bonus that came with obedience to my faith journey… but that’s not the case at all. These trips are the journey—but it’s not just tourism. It’s ministry disguised as travel writing. It’s pilgrimage with a camera roll.
It’s a tour of souls with some sightseeing built in.

Just today at Backstage Nashville, I heard a song by songwriter Gary Nichols that confirmed this newly-realized purpose: God Will Send You Somebody.

For fifty years, He sent people to help me along the way—people who shone the light when the darkness threatened to overtake me.

And now He’s sending me.