(The Making Of GRAMMY-Winning Recordings series presents firsthand accounts of the creative process behind some of music's biggest recordings. In this installment, Hillary Scott of Hillary Scott & The Scott Family details the making of Love Remains, which won Best Contemporary Christian Music Album at the 59th GRAMMY Awards, and "Thy Will," which won Best Contemporary Christian Performance/Song.)

What began as a way for my family to say thank you to the almost 300 people who cared for us around the time of my grandfather's death took on such a transformation over the life of the project. [Love Remains] was my father's idea, and he told me about it at lunch one day in Nashville, Tenn. Following the loss of his father, he had a journey through grief and wanted to do something in return for his supporters. He asked if I could get permission from my label to be part of it. I told him I would be honored, but I needed to pray about it and talk to my husband Chris [Tyrrell].

A few weeks later, I said, "Daddy, I'm all in, but I want to bring in the team and I want us to imagine making a record for the world to hear." That was the first transformation. We weren't sure how many people would hear it, so it really was the truest definition of a passion project.

As I thought about the process of the album coming together, I envisioned [producer] Ricky Skaggs as captain, steering the wheel of the ship. He had a very busy year, but I prayed about it and knew God would make it possible. We had little miracles like that happen along the way.

Every aspect of the process was an incredible experience, so getting to GRAMMY night was a culmination of all of it. My parents, sister and I were floating around after our wins. We were in shock, and had the most humble awe. In a way it was bittersweet, thinking about the ups and downs of life that went into this album. But ultimately, the blessing was getting to share it together. My dad and mom have always worked hard in their lives and careers, so being able to hand my dad a GRAMMY was really special. I can hardly say that sentence without crying.

I wrote "Thy Will" with [songwriters] Bernie Herms and Emily Weisband. It was our first, and unfortunately, so far, only writing session. I was walking through a miscarriage at the time, and I shared my heart and my story with them. I talked about what God was showing me in the midst of the grief. That song has so much of me in it, but there's just as much of them. They were the perfect people to write that song with, because Bernie is such an incredible pianist who plays with such emotion. And Emily has an incredible ability for vocal melody and lyrics. It was meant to be.

Onstage at the GRAMMYs, Bernie said that with some songs the writers become a pass through for a greater message. And that's how it was for "Thy Will." As personal as the song is, it's also universal, because "Thy will be done" can mean anything. It's about submitting to God's plan for your life.

Bernie co-produced the track with Ricky, which was a beautiful pairing. A majority of my vocal on that song is from the day we wrote it. Still today, I get emotional when I listen to it. I was at my rawest place when I sang those words for the first time. And now, over a year healed from it, I'm thankful to hear stories about how this song is touching so many people. There is beauty from the ashes. We all want to know that the valleys of our life have a purpose. Now I get to see the beauty, and how it's connecting and helping others. That's the reward.

It's been a life-changing season of my career and life. The beautiful thing is God meets you in the valleys and the mountains. After making Love Remains, I became a champion for songs that are in your fiber. I could no longer settle for "just OK" from the standpoint of the lyric, melody or production. And after each of us members of Lady Antebellum took a break to pursue our own individual passions, we brought renewed passion back to the band for our new album.

People, myself included, crave songs that strike a chord to the core of who we are as humans. We want to feel loved and understood and find peace in a crazy world. I want to use the gift God has given me to bring people to that place.

(Sarah Skates has been covering country music for more than a decade. Her recent work has appeared in Nash Country Weekly, MusicRow and Nashville Lifestyles.)