For decades we were a small struggling family working out of a garage to make ends meet. Week after week, show after show, working all week and then packing it all up, traveling to a show for the weekend and doing it all again the next week. Never a break, never any rest, yet there was never enough. All the decisions we made were based on what seemed right in our own eyes, never inviting God, never seeking His will. Just making decisions and expecting Him to rubber stamp them and bless them. In 2017 the second generation of Dawson Knives headed by John and Dennis made a decision - we would do our very best to invite God into all that we do. We would pray and we would actively seek out the will of the Lord in our lives and in our work. We would give Him all of our fishes and loaves, even as truly meager as they were.
It was painful at first. Dave Ramsey says sometimes you have to "amputate the Tahoe" and that hurts, but it hurts even more to amputate your pride. Still, even through the pain of our own stupidity and arrogance, we began to see changes. God moves in small and subtle ways, if you aren't watching you will miss it all together. He began to change our outward situation, that was evident to all of us, but what was more amazing was the work He did in our hearts, lives and relationships. He changed us from the inside out and the life we used to live is unrecognizable to who we are today. Where we were a slave to our own pride, we have been set free. Every Saturday is a day of rest. No more shows, no traveling, no technology, just family and the Bible. There is always enough to give. Charity is a priority in our lives and in our business, through our small family business the Lord lends support to local charities that support young mothers, trafficked and abused children and the poor and hungry.
The years of our lives have always been marked by the knives we make, we can remember where we were and what obstacles we were facing just by looking at a specific knife from that time period. This year (2024) marked some incredible progress at Dawson Knives, much of the striving and struggling we had been enduring for years in our work is beginning to be a thing of the past thanks to God's guidance and provision. Recognizing this, John, who oversees our new designs and innovations, wanted to find a mark for our new knives. One that would represent all that we have seen, been through and experienced after giving our fishes and loaves to Jesus. A second generation of knives and second chance at life for us. So he began to pray about what this mark should be.
One night in his sleep, John saw a man who showed him the word TWO in the sky above him. He saw the T turn into a cross on a hill and the O roll away like the stone in front of the empty tomb. Then he wondered, what does the W represent? The numbers 1, 2 and 3 slowly appeared above the points of the W and the numbers 1 & 2 appeared below the bottom points of it. Like a chart of the sun rising and setting, he understood - these were the days and nights from the cross to the empty tomb. He knew in that moment this would be the symbol for a new generation of Dawson Knives and the dawn of a new era in our history.
We know that if God can redeem and restore our lives, He can redeem and restore our nation. But it starts with each one of us giving our fishes and loaves to Him and trusting Him.
"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."
2 Chronicles 7:14
