I have been a singer since I was a little girl.  My mom said I used to sing and hum all day around the house and in the car.  I started taking voice lessons when I was 13 years old and continued on during my time in college.  I sang hymns and praise and worship songs in church and even taught the congregation some new tunes.  I was a nervous wreck during a solo or a performance.  My knees would knock, my breathing stopped working properly and I usually made a mistake or faultered because of my nerves.  Many lessons and lots of songs sung, I think I finally have my nerves under control.  I still get a flutter in my stomache if I have to sing solo, but nothing like years ago.  I stopped taking lessons many years ago, but I still sing on a worship team at the church we attend.  My team is “on” every 4th or 5th weekend and it is a big time commitment, but I love to do it.  I am good at it, I know I am good at it and I can bless others by using my voice in this way and give praise and honor to God by using this gift he has given to me.  Richard and I are not always on the same page when it comes to my being on a worship team.  It takes between 11 and 12 hours over the course of a weekend as we have 3 services.  My boys don’t like it when I leave and have a hard time saying good-bye and I am wipe-out by the time the weekend is over.  But… I love to do it and it is one place where I can use my gift.

I am also a teacher and a storyteller.  I taught at Fort McMurray Christian School for four years before Richard and I started our family.  Three little boys later, I have not returned to teaching, nor do I have a desire to, but I still love to work with kids and tell stories!  I started volunteering at our church just behind the scenes during prep work for sunday school activities, then moved into a classroom and helped with one small part of the program and then last year I was asked to be a story teller.  The format of our churches children’s ministry program bring all the kids (ages 3-5) together for story time and then breaks off into smaller groups.  So I get to tell a story when all the children have been gathered together.  We sing together, we pray together and I get to “teach.”  Again, it is a time commitment because I tell the story for all three services on the weekend, but I love to do it.  It’s like I am back in the classroom again, just me and the kids, doing what I am good at, teaching.

I share this with you because I am stuggling with having to let go of these things when we go cruising.  There won’t be any worship teams to be a part of and not many opportunities for teaching sunday school.  I will be able to homeschool and teach my boys, but it just isn’t the same.  We will probably have home church on the boat and do some singing of praise and worship songs during our “church” time, but again, it is not going to be the same as what I am apart of now.  These two activities that I am involved in help define who I am and shape how I feel about myself.  I love to do them,  I am good at them and they are huge boost to my sense of confidence.

I guess I am going to have to get creative and maybe think outside the box for opportunities to continue to use my gifts.  Just because I am going to have discontinue some of my volunteering at my church, doesn’t mean I have to stop being me.

I am a singer and a storyteller!

L