Editor’s Note: Lilly Hawkins is the Fall 2024 Ernest C. Hynds Jr. Intern at Good Faith Media. She is a senior professional writing student at Baylor University. 

What story, verse or passage from the Bible has significantly influenced/shaped your life?

My life has been shaped by Romans 5. When I think about the grace I have received when I did nothing to deserve it, I didn’t truly grasp the beauty of the gospel until I sat with Romans 5. My justification when I did nothing and the grace credited to my account when I do not deserve it: it is the joy of my salvation!

Who are three people (other than your family) who have shaped your life and worldview? And why?

Carlee Wellons: More than anyone in my life, she has consistently emphasized the importance of Scripture, prayer, and living life fully with Jesus. I attribute my love for the Word to her willingness to teach it to me.

Dr. Sara Dye: Because of the semesters I have spent in Dr. Dye’s class, I am a more empathetic, curious, and determined individual. Because of her honesty and desire for her students to not just be successful scholars but good people, I have grown more accepting and curious about everything I do not understand. Her love for learning has multiplied my love for learning!

John Mark Comer: My worldview, which is through the lens of Christ, has been shaped by Comer’s teaching. Practices that now define my spiritual discipline, such as Sabbath and fasting, were learned from his writing and experience. I credit his teaching with the way I approach teaching today.

List three of your “desert island” books, movies or TV shows.

I would honestly take three books, one being Suleika Jaouad’s memoir, “Between Two Kingdoms,” which is my current favorite. Two, C.S. Lewis’s “Mere Christianity,” and lastly, “The Nightingale” by Kristen Hannah

What is one of the most critical issues people are facing today?

I am passionate about the lack of voting rights for people with previous felony convictions. Once the punishment given to them by the court has been served, there is no reason to continue to violate and ignore their constitutional rights. It is demeaning and unjust; it places a handicap on people with a felony conviction that can, and will, sharply decline their rehabilitation.

What are a few of your hobbies?

I love to run, particularly on the Brazos here in Waco. I spend quite a bit of time playing word games with my roommates– Banagrams and Scrabble are current favorites. I also enjoy reading, pickleball, and cooking.

 If you could freeze your life into an already-lived 10 seconds, what would they be?

I would freeze ten seconds of eating pizza on the beach in Watersound, Florida with my seven best friends– watching the waves and playing a game on a beach blanket.

Our tagline at Good Faith Media is, “There’s more to tell.” What’s your “more to tell”?

I’ve spent most of my life in churches where men were on stage, and women were keeping it all together behind the backdrop. My “more to tell” is that in every church body, organization, or even family, there is a woman who is holding it together. In churches, particularly, there are always more stories of the ways women are pushing the body to grow and function through service, discipleship, and a hundred other things. Their stories and there are many, are where there is “more to tell.”