She was just about to hop on a plane when she opened up a fan email that nothing could have prepared her for. It was the parents of an 11-year-old girl from Minnesota who was in the last stages of a terminal cancer. The girl was a big fan of her music, and the parents had reached out to ask if she could send a short video to encourage their daughter, who was wrestling with questions most don’t think about … until they have to.

This was the situation Christian artist Ellie Holcomb found herself in as she prepared to fly from her home in Nashville to California to do a co-writing session with her dear friend and fellow singer Lauren Daigle. Ellie was able to quickly contact the girl via voice memo before her flight. She instantly connected with this special fan and listened intently to some of the questions she had about her future – questions like What is heaven like? What will it be like when I die?

“She was just this precious, precious human who was facing some big questions,” said Ellie. “(She was feeling) so heavy at the end of her life. I just wanted to bring her comfort and hope, and so I started writing a song on the plane.”

When Ellie landed in California, she poured her heart out to Lauren and asked her to help her finish writing the song for her sweet young friend she had never met. The result of that co-writing session became the song “Be Okay,” which Lauren released on her new, self-titled album, Lauren Daigle (2023).

“It was just one of the most moving experiences I’ve ever been a part of in the writing room,” Lauren said during a recent radio interview on WBCL of Fort Wayne, Ind.

Lauren recalled a “God moment” that happened when she was recording the song, which features a saxophone quartet section. For the studio’s professional saxophonist, it started out as just another day at the office … but it quickly turned into something he never saw coming.

Lauren was sitting in the studio control room when the saxophonist flagged her down and asked to pause the recording session. His eyes were filled with tears, and he was clearly moved with deep emotions. “What is going on?” he asked Lauren.

It was then that Lauren told him about the little girl who had inspired her and Ellie to write the song. Immediately, his strong reaction to the music made perfect sense.

“He said, ‘I can’t believe what is being played through me. I can feel the heartbreak of every single emotion, but also this resilient hope,” Lauren recalled.

By the grace of God, Lauren was able to record the song and it was sent it to the girl who inspired it before she took her last breath. It was an answered prayer not just for the girl and her parents, but also for Lauren and Ellie.

My Thoughts

This story touched my heart deeply as I listened to the song for the first time. I could just picture this sweet little girl preparing to take her last breath, perhaps with this song playing in the background – all her fears, questions and worries just melting away as she rested in God’s promises and trusted him to safely escort her home. Just another example of just how beautiful God’s plan is – from our first breath to our last.