If I were to have come across that quote ten months ago, I probably would've said, "Yea, right!" Now I say,"Yea, he's right!"
Everybody that knows me knows that music is my thing. It always has been. I think the first time I sang in church was when I was three years old. I remember my grandpa holding me up to the pulpit, and I remember singing He's Still Working On Me. I still remember every word to that song. When I was seven I started playing piano. In fifth grade I started the French horn. My life just always seemed to be filled with music. The music I was interested in certainly changed over the years. I look back and laugh at the stuff that I liked growing up. Hanson, Britney Spears, N'Sync, Boys II Men, TLC, Nelly, those are just a few I remember. Haha! I'm seriously laughing looking at that list! Now the list includes Jeremy Camp, Casting Crowns, David Crowder, anything Christian really. Man how I've changed. More like man, look how God changed me!
I graduated high school in the spring of 2001 thinking that in the fall of that year I would start my college journey out at Clarke in Dubuque. Music Therapy was what I was gonna do. Of course, the fall came and went, and I couldn't commit. I still don't know why. January 2002 started, and I enrolled at NICC. Two years later I ended up graduating with a Marketing degree. Marketing...Music...hmmmmm...obviously I still didn't know what I wanted. This is probably a typical story. One year later I was married, and a year after that I had a baby. Music dream = gone! At least that's what I thought anyway. It's funny how God works everything out for our good. I may have abandoned music, but not Him.
For years, I played for myself, and occasionally for a Christmas pageant or wedding. That all changed last February. In February I flew to California to spend some time with one of my best friends in the world. Her husband was actually deployed at the time, and I didn't want her to be on that journey alone. My friend had been going to a Christian church and she knew that going there was definitely on the agenda during my stay with her. So, Sunday morning came along, and off to church we went. The moment I walked in that door, I was consumed with the Holy Spirit. It was the music that hit me in the face. Immediately I wept. All barriers broke down, and Jesus literally took me over in a way that He knew I would respond best...through music. After church, I went up and got prayer from their prayer team. I totally needed that. It is amazing what people can do when they put their hands on you and pray for you. Did you know that we, as ordinary people, can be healers? We can! Then the most amazing thing happened to me! I went into the bathroom to get a tissue, and one of the women that prayed for me said that God had given her a message to give to me. She looked at me and said,"Music moves you." She turned and walked away. Then she turned back and said,"Worship music." What! This woman had never met me, and knew nothing about me, yet she knew everything.
I came home seeking a different direction with Jesus. I didn't want to just know who He was. I wanted to be in a relationship with Him. I needed Him more than ever. What I didn't realize was that for nearly ten years I hadn't really had a relationship with Jesus. I was in a "desert period" with Jesus and my music. I needed a change.
Ya know, social networking can be really great when it comes to encouragement. All I had to do was go on facebook, and find the most positive person that I knew. One person in particular stuck out to me. So, I decided to e-mail her and ask where she went to church. She said,"Hope Church in Dubuque. We'd love to have you come!" I had nothing to lose! Sunday morning I was there, and the Saturday after that, and the Sunday after that. Amazingly enough, this church was a mirror image of the church that I had been to just weeks before in California! Was this what God wanted for me?
By the third weekend, I managed to drag my whole family along with me to see how wonderful this ministry was. Then the best thing happened. A man stood up and gave his testimony. He talked about how he used to be in a band, and then he played for some churches, and then he found Hope Church and began playing for their music ministry. After he was done, there was an announcement made. They needed more people to be on their music teams. Was this God handing it over to me?
I went home that day and prayed and prayed and prayed about it. I said, "God, give me a sign. If I'm supposed to do this I need a sign." On Wednesday of that same week, my son Isaac had a music banquet. One of the speakers just happened to say,"If you have the gift of music, you shouldn't waste it." Ok, that was enough of a sign for me. I sent out an e-mail that very night. Two weeks later, I played for the first time.
I want to show you a picture of this place because every time I walk through the doors, it changes me.
