Inside the Answered Prayer | Day in the life RCD

Hello RCD readers,

As an architect, I live in a world of potential. I see an empty lot and I visualize a life. I see an old floor plan and I imagine an addition where children will grow and memories will be made. I see families, new jobs, new beginnings, and sometimes, even the private hardships that people carry.

It's a beautiful, but often overwhelming, responsibility. And lately, one memory keeps coming back to me—a small moment on a screen that shifted my entire perspective.

The Reel that Changed My View

The other day, I was scrolling and came across a reel. It showed a construction worker, sweat and dust on his face, carefully laying tiles in what was clearly going to be a beautiful room. Then, a quiet quote appeared on the screen, and it hit me like a physical thing. It said:

"Some may never get to live inside the beautiful homes their hands helped create. Be grateful for what you have."

My first thought was, ‘Yes. That’s it.’

We spend so much time on the "unfinished" parts of our list. We obsess over what we don't have yet. In my work, I design houses, but I'm not "there" yet in my own life. I've wasted time on dreams I was the only one fueling.

When I meet a new client, I know there are assumptions. Some expect a rich girl, some expect a hustling woman who would do anything for a quick buck, and some expect something entirely different. But what they usually find is an open book. I love that, after an initial meeting, most clients feel at ease enough to ask anything they don't understand. There are no dumb questions when you are starting the scary journey of building. I respect their willingness to even take that first step, and I give them my all.

The Sacredness of What's Private

Of course, being an "open book" has boundaries. I have big responsibilities on a daily basis that no client knows of. It's not because I'm closed off; it’s because it’s not only my life. My company is growing, and with that growth, I feel a heightened need to protect the sacred privacy of the people in my life—my parents, my siblings and their families, my nieces, nephews, and even my students.

It's about having grace for my clients while respecting the privacy that my own life requires. I see their journeys, and I respect them. But when I feel underappreciated—which happens to everyone in business—I have to remind myself of the grace I hold for them, and of how hard I work to make sure my side of the bargain is filled.

Living in the Answered Prayer

The reel brought all these thoughts into focus. It’s easy to look at the work in front of us—the blueprint, the construction site, or our own messy lives—and forget to be thankful. We forget that, even on the hardest days, the Lord is with us. We understand that on a mental level, but we forget the most profound thing:

We are living in one of our prayers every single day.

I pray a lot. I vividly remember two years ago, not in pity, resentment, or sadness, but as a direct reference point for how much God is present. He listened. Every one of those prayers, even the ones I prayed for my loved ones and not for myself, was answered.

So, when the reel says, "Be grateful for what you have," it’s not just a nice thought. It's a fundamental truth. We are living in a moment that we once pleaded for. We may not be in the final, beautiful home we are dreaming of, but we are creating and we are here.

Let’s not get so lost in the construction of our lives that we forget to breathe in the answered prayers we are already standing inside.