Hello Nashville!

Crown of Beauty Magazine continues to hit the road! During a toasty week in the middle of August, we stopped by the famous Music City herself, Nashville, Tennessee! 

I (Livy) was honored to have two of my favorite girls fly in from California to join me! Becoming Esther Ministries, which was founded by Kenya-Nicole Gossett, has become an amazing sister ministry to Crown of Beauty. The vision for Becoming Esther, is to inspire and encourage young women to prepare for their future husbands, in the same way that Esther prepared for the king. Kenya and Melody are fun-loving and compassionate women of God, who are full of royal-wisdom and have a huge heart to inspire and encourage young women across the globe, in their pursuit of purity and in pursuit of knowing our King, Jesus Christ. 

We hosted a unique "Coffee House" meeting downtown, where girls of all ages came to hang out with us, and talk about topics that matter most! During our "Girl Talk" session, we discussed relationships with boys, dating verses courting, true beauty, and following our God-given dreams!  We had an amazing time with our sisters in Christ, simply connecting and sharing from our hearts.  

Our time in Music City ended with an invitation to attend a very regal event. We were honored to be a part of the Frozen Fairy Tale Ball, hosted by Girl's Living for God. 
Dechari Cole, author of Finding Your Fairy Tale Ending, contacted me about this enchanting event several months ago. When she described to me the first ball she hosted, I was drooling. The idea of going to a ball was right up my alley! (I'm the little girl who watched Cinderella thousands of times as a three-year-old, and believed I really would attend a ball someday!) I couldn't possibly imagine anything more perfect.  
Dechari's heart for hosting these extravagant events, is to first and foremost remind girls that they are royal princesses of the Most High King. But secondly, she wants to inspire these girls to wait and pursue God's very best for their lives. Dechari's real-life love story, which she talks about in her book, is a reminder that the fairy-tale is real. Jesus Christ, the King of Heaven, stepped into this earth and made us His own. Therefore, we shouldn't settle for anything less than a man who will love and cherish us the way Christ would! 
Myself, and Kenya and Melody, have all made the choice not to date until the Lord brings the right guy into each of our lives. Sometimes waiting can be hard, but attending a Fairy-tale Ball can put a little bit of spring into your step, and remind you that your fairy-tale ending is on the way!  

We bopped our heads to more Disney music, and I heard my stomach grumble when they played "Be Our Guest"! Just in the perfect timing, we sat down for our feast of mini-hamburgers, tossed salad, green beans, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, chicken, and I'm not sure what else...that's just what I could manage to fit onto my plate. 
Sparkly lights, floating snowflake centerpieces, and glowing candles lit the atmosphere as we dined. It felt as if our silverware would get up and start performing a musical number at any moment!   

After dinner, we posed for the photo-booth, and couldn't resist taking a few selfies in one of the many adorable bathrooms in the mansion. (Um, who wouldn't want to take a picture of the iron-footed bathtub filled with floating candles!?) After temporarily getting locked in the bathroom (oops!), we made it back to the ballroom just in time for Dechari's message. 

Dechari looked like a queen, as golden words poured out of her mouth, offering wisdom and strength to the one-hundred-plus girls listening. Dechari's stunning dress glittered under the stage lights, but more importantly, her face shown with the passion of the Lord, as she delivered words from the King. 
"Stand strong, Princess!" She urged us all, "You are in the midst of a great battle. But I will stand on the rock, my secure foundation, Jesus Christ!"   
After, we all worshiped together while singing Oceans, asking the Lord to take us into a deeper place of obedience. 

And then, after the noble appearance of several young princes with necklaces and messages for all of the girls, and a little dash of snow (yes, it snowed in the middle of August, just like on a movie set!), it was time to dance.
We laughed and boogied, and sang at the top of our lungs, until our feet were sore, and our dresses were sweaty! 

Then, we took a breather and entered a heated competition of answering Disney Trivia! 
Melody was a champ, answering hard questions like "What is the last name of Mulan's family?" and, "How many years was the Beast's castle under the curse?" 
Dozens of fun prizes were handed out from gracious sponsors, to all the young ladies who knew their Disney facts by heart. 

Then, it was time to take the stage for one last song, and everyone jumped and bounced as our collection of colorful dresses mingled with the lights above, looking like an ocean of beauty, rising and falling like a rainbow bursting into starlight. 
~*~

To learn more about the Fairy-tale Ball, and to inquire about hosting one in YOUR hometown, visit www.girlslivingforgod.com or e-mail girlslivingforgod@yahoo.com  

Is Crown of Beauty Magazine
Coming to Your Town?