When God Gives Back a Lost Dream
After one of the longest winters in my memory, spring has arrived with a suddenness and intensity that suggests it was as anxious for it to get here as we were. And I celebrated today by going out for my first full-length walk of the season around my field. All the grass is still brown and squished flat, with visible trails from where the mice made their snow fort trail system beneath the drifts. But it won’t be long before everything will be busting out green and yellow with spring dandelions, and I can hardly wait.
Things have been blooming in my business, too. I just wrapped up a big freelance project, which means I’ll have a bit more time each week to dedicate to my current manuscript, Every Rose that Blooms (Peace Crossing Book 3).
I also published a demo for a new Mother’s Day song that people have been loving. (Check out “You Made Me (Song for Mom)” here.) I’m pretty proud of it—not just the composition but the production, which I believe is the best one I’ve done so far.
And! Check out these beauties:
Honestly, the photo doesn’t do them justice at all.
My author copies for the new covers of Finding Heaven and The Friday Night Date Dress arrived last week, and they are just gorgeous. And, of course, you can get them in my shop if you want to get your hands on one. (And most other stores, but… frankly, you can offer more support by buying from me directly.)
My Calling Came Calling
Image courtesy of Yanna Zissiadou via Unsplash.
Remember how last time I talked about some thoughts on living your calling that had been sparked by a special Sunday morning sermon at a small town church? That was our first Sunday at that church, but we’ve been going back every week since.
When I say it’s small, I mean it’s really small. As in, they’re borrowing worship leaders from their sister church every week. So, before we’d barely decided whether we wanted to make that our new church home, I’m looking at stepping into worship ministry there.
I haven’t led worship for nearly ten years—since grief and perimenopause caught up with me and it was all I could do to try to write books and get this whole “author business” thing figured out. Until last year, I’d barely even touched a piano in five years, since I quit teaching in 2020.
But then last spring, God gave me back a dream and gift I thought was lost forever—songwriting. Since then, he’s been opening doors, one by one, for music to become a bigger part of my life again.
And while I definitely love getting to bless others with the songwriting gifts God gave me, honestly, having music back in my life has been a huge, life-saving blessing for me.
But now, it seems God wants me to step back onto a stage again. And I’m going to be honest—I’m nervous. I’m not the same person who used to lead worship on a regular basis, and I definitely don’t have the same energy. But maybe that’s a good thing. I’ve got better boundaries. More life experience. A faith tested by many trials. And a lot more hard-earned wisdom.
So what if I’m a little rusty? Rust can be polished off. And even if the process might be uncomfortable, as our new pastor friend reminded my husband and me on Sunday, the result can be a brilliant, useful tool fit for building the kingdom for God’s glory.
And, in my opinion, that’s worth any nerves or discomfort.
What about you? Is there a gift or dream you’ve set aside that might be waiting for you to pick it back up? I’d love to hear your story in the comments.
“I didn’t know then what I wanted, but the ache for it was palpable.”
