My name is Barbara Dempson, founder of SheAttitudes®. There are moments in life that change you forever.
For me, that moment came in 1999.
It was one of the most difficult seasons of my life. I was carrying more pain than I knew how to bear. The deepest wound was betrayal. When someone you love and trust breaks that trust, it leaves an ache that reaches far beyond the moment itself. My heart was heavy, and the days leading up to that night were filled with tears, uncertainty, and questions about my future. I felt as though life had taken pieces of me, one heartbreak at a time.
Like I always did, I had a notepad beside my bed.
Then, sometime around three o’clock in the morning, I was awakened.
I heard my name.
“Barbara.”
I opened my eyes. My children were home, asleep in their rooms. There was no one else in mine. Yet I knew I had not imagined what I had heard.
The presence of God filled that room in a way I had never experienced before. His voice was unmistakable. It wasn’t loud, but it carried authority. It was firm. Strong. Deep. It was the kind of voice you never forget. There was never a moment when I questioned who was speaking to me.
It was as though He was saying, “Get up.” And I did.
Then, one after another, He began speaking words over my life.
“Blessed is she…”
“Saved is she…”
“Delivered is she…”
The words came so quickly that I realized I couldn’t possibly remember them all. It felt almost like a coach calling out plays—one after another, without hesitation. I reached for the notepad beside my bed and began writing as fast as I could.
One by one, God spoke what would become The SheAttitudes©.
That night changed my life.
What amazes me now is that I didn’t immediately understand what had happened. I didn’t think about starting a company. I didn’t imagine books, apparel, or a lifestyle collection. I simply knew that what had happened was sacred.
For days, then weeks, I found myself returning to my notes. I read them over and over again. I didn’t share them with anyone. They felt deeply personal—like a private conversation between God and me.
Only with time did I begin to understand the significance of what He had placed in my hands.
As I looked back, I realized something that had never occurred to me that night.
While I was overwhelmed by my pain, God already saw my purpose.
While I questioned my future, He was already preparing it.
While I felt broken, He was speaking identity over my life.
The God who declares “the end from the beginning” (Isaiah 46:10) already knew the work He had prepared for me long before I ever recognized it myself.
The SheAttitudes© were more than words of encouragement. They were God’s declaration of who I was in Him, spoken at a time when I needed to hear His voice more than ever before.
Looking back now, I understand that this divine encounter became the foundation for everything that followed. It gave birth to SheAttitudes®, The Love Letter Collection™, Anatomy Apparel™, my writing, my speaking, and the work God has called me to do.
Most of all, it reminds me that even in our darkest moments, God is present.