Growing up, my family was all musically inclined. My Mom and my sister played the piano and sang, my brother played the drums and sings a little and my Dad, well… he is really talented at listening to the radio. Very early I had an interest in singing and so I started singing with the church kids choirs and before I knew it I was doing solos and being used a lot in our Musicals. I can remember just like it was yesterday, our church had an Event downtown Shreveport, La and I had the big solo… “I Am a Promise“. The program was televised and the audience was packed. Of course as a child, it looked like a million people were in the audience. I really enjoyed that and seemed to have no problem singing in front of people. As I grew up there came more opportunities and I made a promise to myself…. I would only sing music that glorified God. There may have been a few exceptions here and there for a wedding or Musical but I have stayed true to what I promised God. I had the opportunity to Sing in Competitions, Bands, and Musical Groups and ultimately as Worship Minister at various churches.
There did come a point when I no longer had that “platform “ and over a period of time it seemed I would never sing in that capacity again. I felt like I was being punished somehow and I stopped singing publically and just attended church, not being involved at all. If I could not sing for God, I was not going to sing at all. That was pretty selfish of me at the time, because there were plenty opportunities for me to sing for God, but I refused to see them. I had opportunities at the church I attend and I performed in a few church plays and as a member of the choir and worship team. But something was missing. Even though I had the opportunities, I did not feel like I deserved to be there for whatever reason. It was like I had given up on the call that God placed on my life. That led to me not being in church at all for a period of time. Just because things don’t go the way we planned them, does not mean God has forsaken you or given up on your gift. ( Proverbs 18:16 (Amplified) “A man’s gift makes room for him and brings him before great men “) God had not given up on me or my gift; He was just waiting for me to stop hiding it. I was using excuses like work and family and other things that were there for me conveniently to have an excuse. I had to come to a place where I realized that what I had was a gift just that, something God had given to me, not something I had to earn or pay for but a gift. I realized that gift could no longer be placed in a box and placed on a shelf. So I asked once again to be considered as a member of our church worship team. Just in the very short few months I have been back singing have been some of the most incredible experiences in worship I have had even as a Leader of Worship.
God knows your heart and He knows your desires. He is the one that gives you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart.” ) There is a renewed excitement about the gift that God has given me and this time, I am sharing that gift with Joy and Purpose.
David is a great example for us. Yes he did sin and some of the things he did where awful, but he always came back to God with a Heart of desire. Wherever you are, God is ready for you to come back with open arms. Just take that simple step forward and watch how God can use this experience in your life to bring Glory to God.
Can I Get A Witness?
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