THE STORY BEHIND NADI THE SAILOR

I was five years old when my family and I moved to the United States. I was convinced I would run into Barney at the park or sing with Mickey someday on TV. I auditioned for the network and got a callback, but at the time we didn’t have the money to pay them to manage me. I remember agreeing with my mom that “if it was God’s plan, He would provide for it”. He didn’t, but He did put me in the right places to prepare me for what He had planned. For the years that followed, I filmed myself dancing in the living room, I participated in school plays and church productions and talked to myself like I was talking to a camera. I put on musical productions on the deck in our backyard, baked pretending I had my own cooking show, and imagine how I would get along with the Disney Channel stars of my day.

Then I grew up a bit and not much changed. I still loved to dance, write, and create. I obeyed God’s voice to start my blog, serve in kids’ ministry with all my heart, and take singing lessons during a hard season believing God had good things in store. Little did I know God was preparing me.

On March 21, the first MCI Kids en Línea episode aired on YouTube. I’ll be honest, the day I got the text to be a part of the show I didn’t realize I was saying “yes” to my childhood dream. I was just saying yes to another opportunity to serve at church. But the Saturday we streamed our very first episode something in my heart awakened. And every weekend since that, I’ve been able to be part of a show that reaches thousands of homes around the world, taking the message of a GOOD GOD and FAITHFUL JESUS who are real and alive.

I share this because it’s never just about the Insta-Story you see, it’s about the grace of a God who saw something in me He wanted to use. It’s about a brick-by-brick relationship with Jesus that somehow leads to a dream come true.

One of the first things I remember my mom teaching me as a little girl was that we do everything for the audience of one. Lights are cool, costumes are fun, and meeting the people you serve is always heart-warming, but we don’t give our best for the cameras or the people, we give our best for the One who enabled us to do so.  Surrendering our dreams to God is NOT the same as giving up; fear and insecurity make us give up, but trust and true love give us the strength to surrender. That nine-year-old girl who surrendered her dream of being on Disney Channel to God is here to tell you that it was 100000% worth it. Every week I get to live God’s higher ways, higher thoughts, and better plans. He is just that good!!

I think it is important to understand that preparation is not at war with surrender. The funny thing is that I didn’t even realize I was preparing myself for this. Honestly, I was simply doing what I’ve done all my life: serve Him and do it for Him alone. It’s quite beautiful how God uses our surrender and obedience to build the Road of Preparation. Notice how I said road and not Station of Preparation. It’s a journey, a walk, a process. We can be intentional about a lot of things, and we should be! But a lot of the things that prepared me for this season were simple “yes’s” in my day-to-day. So say YES to opportunities to serve, grow, learn, and give. Pay attention to what God wants from you and for you. 

I am living proof that He keeps His Word, not just because He loves me (which He does), but because it’s in His nature to be faithful to Himself. He doesn’t lie to us because it’s “wrong”, He doesn’t lie because it’s against His nature. So what God has promised, He will fulfill! How, when, and where He does it is up to Him. So dear friend, stay faithful, stay a dreamer, and stay expectant. 

From your sailor, agent, camping, explorer friend,

Nadia Kay