I can't remember a time when I didn't love singing. Growing up I did not have a musical family, so I was kind of shy with my somewhat foreign gift. My parents always wanted to hear me sing because they were, of course, my biggest fans. Not a lot of people knew I could sing until I branched out and pushed myself past my stage freight. In 6th grade, I tried out for the talent show and ended up singing for the first time on a stage, and that night I won 1st place. I was so incredibly nervous, but that step of courage started my musical journey. All throughout middle school and high school I was in choir and started singing at my youth group. Once I got older I began to take voice lessons from many amazingly talented women. After high school, I went to worship school and sat under the leadership and talent of some fairly well-known worship leaders. After that, I began singing in front of thousands of people on stage every week for my church. I slowly became known for my ability to sing.
The singing world can be so competitive and so stressful. There seems to be so much pressure to perform and be perfect, even in the church world. After being flooded by performance and the title "Singer" and "Worship Leader" I decided to take a step back to figure out who I was and not just what I was naturally good at. God began to reveal to me that I was so much more than just a singer. When people used to ask me "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I would always answer "A Worship Leader!" As the years went by, that dream slowly started to fade as I realized God had blessed me with many other talents and even deeper passions. I began to see that He didn't want me to be defined by one gift that people knew me by. I was way more than "just a singer."
As I took a step back from leading worship, the Lord challenged me to start writing more. I began writing consistently for about a year with not much feed back. Definitely not as much feed back as I had as a singer, but I knew I was supposed to keep writing. After diligently writing for a while, I started to accumulate some traffic on my personal blog, and now I write weekly for Odyssey. It has really stretched me to trust God with my gifts and allow Him to make them better and not rely on myself for talent and success. I believe the anointing of God can flow deeply from this place of surrender.
I have discovered many other passions and desires that I have as I move forward in my future and I truly believe they are not just interests and talents of my own, but ones that the Father is interested in. Sometimes I don't know how it all works together, but that's what makes it unique and beautiful. If I knew exactly what I was doing it wouldn't take trusting God to get me through, and I wouldn't be able to recognize God's hand and anointing as strongly as I do now.
It seems like people tend to get caught up on one thing they are good at and neglect other gifts and passions that God has placed in them. And even further than that, some people completely define themselves by one title, one gift, or one thing they do. Now, I am not saying that you need to neglect that gift, but I am saying that you are worth more than just your talent or something that you are known to do or be good at. Plus, how cool is it for God to receive glory in an area that you may not be naturally the best at. When you start getting better in that area or succeeding, you will automatically know that God is the source and not you. This way God receives the glory. I don't want to be defined by one gift that I have, but I want to be uniquely defined by my Father and the intricate design and purpose He has given me in EVERY area of my life. Don't be confined to one thing, explore different areas and gifts in your life that God has given you. Be fully you. Walk in all of your gifts, and never let them define you. There is so much more to you than meets the eye, so discover what it is and embrace it.
