“From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God. He said: "In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry.” – Jonah 2:1-2
Rebecca St. James was an award-winning singer in her 20s. She had fame, fortune, and movie star good looks.
Instead, in 2000, St. James released “Transform,” and the single “Wait for Me,” unapologetically declaring she would practice abstinence until marriage. For the next eight years, she spent her youth serving others. Ministering to emotionally scarred youth. Loving her family. Talking about the Bible. She was the textbook definition of a “good person.” And yet, eight years later, St. James was swimming in “bad things.” She was single, her career was in flux, and the only constant was getting another year older.
In a 2020 interview, St. James shared, “I think my goal has always been that, when God brought my husband, that I would sing and start having kids. That would be just very clean and tidy, and that was my plan. And, as every year went by and I'm still singing ‘Wait for Me’ and talking about this man that I pray will come – but there’s no guarantees in life that things will turn out the way that we want. … The Bible says, ‘Hope deferred makes the heart sick,’ and I think in some ways my heart was sick.
“There’s also panic attacks happening on stage where, depending on how emotionally exhausted I was that day, would depend on how much I could breathe on stage – or not breathe on stage. … I think music just became increasingly more threatening.”
At the time, it seemed as if St. James was called to “retreat” to California.
Not long after landing on the West Coast, St. James was introduced to Foster the People bassist/film producer Jacob “Cubbie” Fink – and wouldn’t you know it – the words of “Wait for Me” began to come to fruition. Instead of latching on to anyone, St. James found the one.
St. James and Fink wed and, today, are the proud parents of three young children.
Distress is good when it drives us to a closer walk with Jesus. Today in prayer, praise the Lord that in our distress, our faith in Christ can grow.
“So let Your kingdom come
And Your will be done
On Earth as is in Heaven
Let Your kingdom come
And Your will be done
From now until forever
We'll keep our singing” – Rebecca St. James
God’s Word: “In my distress I called to the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears.” – Psalm 18:6
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