Brio: In your opinion, do people respond better to music or conversation?

Sara: I’ve always felt like I talk too much, but every time I’ve stopped talking, somebody will say, “Hey, don’t stop sharing!” Conversations and music work well together. Music creates pathways into people’s hearts in major ways. A conversation can’t always crack through what music can. Music can crack open the hardest places, and then the conversation, if spoken in love and humility, can walk right in.

What is the most important message that you present through Add to the Beauty?

I’m trying to paint a picture of the kingdom of God. A lot of it is based on the quote by Mother Teresa: “You can do no great things, only small things with great love.” In those small ways we change the world.

What is the best way for a teen girl to prepare for motherhood in the future?

The best way to prepare for anything, but especially parenting, is to cultivate a personal relationship with Jesus. There’s no substitute for that. Watch God work because when you’re in high school, it’s hard to see that the decisions you’re making now are going to play out in your life later. They do play out, and they do have a lasting effect!

How would you encourage a girl who wants to get married and have a family some day, but isn’t in a romantic relationship?

It’s all God’s timing. I know that sounds cliché, but it’s true. It doesn’t take a lot of guys. It just takes one very special person. I used to pine and wonder why I didn’t [have a boyfriend], and a lot of my girlfriends in life had long-term boyfriends. Now looking back, I’m really grateful that Troy [Sara’s husband] was my one guy.

What are some practical things that a girl can do while she’s waiting for marriage or motherhood?

Work to develop yourself. Knowing who you are is such a huge piece of every relationship you will have. The most beautiful characteristic a person can have is knowing who she is in Christ. People are drawn to a person who knows who she is in Christ. This is what this time is for. This is what high school is for, this is what college is for: it’s to prepare your heart. I can’t think of a more attractive quality: quiet confidence is so beautiful. I don’t care what you look like.

How important do you think it is to have a mentor?

When I was a newlywed, our youth pastor’s wife was sharing a devotional, and she said it was always important to have a mentor you were looking up to and always to have someone who you are pouring into. That’s the healthiest place to be in your walk because then you have someone you’re learning from, and you have a guidepost ahead of you. There’s also a sense that people are watching you. Remember that you’re a role model.

If there was only one thing you could tell Brio readers, what would that be?

It’s not an accident that God chose you or me to be alive for these years. I feel more than ever that some unbelievable things are happening in these days. I want to share with the church and these girls and whoever’s listening [that we should] look up, because God is doing some amazing things, and it would be a bummer to miss them. It’s an incredible time in history to be alive and to be a witness to what God is doing.

About Sara:

• If she could be any animal, she would be a monkey with a long tail so that she could swing through the trees.

• Her favorite vacation spot is Sea Isle City, N.J.

• Her favorite movies are The Mission and The Incredibles.

• When she was still a teacher, Sara was told by some of her students that she had the embarrassing habit of snapping the elastic band of her underwear or panty hose whenever she would get up in front of the class.