Yesterday was a day full of “coolness” as my daughter would say!

I got a call from a friend to meet for lunch.  That is always awesome, especially when we are going to the Two Friends Cafe.  I love their chicken salad plate!  I walked outside for lunch and I had no idea how gorgeous the day had become.  It was as the song says, “sunny with a high of 75″!  We had a great lunch and a great chat.  She had contacted a music minister of a large church here in town several months ago and had given him my CD.  He wants me to come and participate in a sing in three weeks!  It will include several churches from surrounding areas and I’m supposed to be sure and bring my CDs.  No problem!!

Then I received a call from an organization that is the “official” greeting service of Valdosta.  They provide welcome packets as well as several other services to newcomers.  One of the things they give the newcomers is a magazine called FYI and it has everything you would want to know about living in Valdosta and where to go to eat, see a doctor and attend a church.  In every issue, they also feature a local artist of some sort.  In this next issue, they would like to feature me!  Coolness!  They will come by to take a picture and have asked that I submit a bio to them.  The magazine will come out in June. 

Then someone called yesterday and said while they had been praying, they had a “word from the Lord” for me.  It encouraged and humbled me that they prayed for me and that they cared enough to call and let me know.  God is such a loving God!

Also, I have been excited this week because Karen Peck and New River are going to be in concert here in Valdosta on Saturday night!  You may remember that I received a call from Karen a few months ago after she heard “The Invitation” and Karen asked to put some songs on hold.  I am still so excited about that and even though I have no idea when they may record next, I am dreaming about the day when I could see my song on the CD jacket of someone like Karen Peck!  The cool thing is that I got word that Karen wants me to come early to the concert to meet with them.  “Can you make it?”  Uhhhhhh……let me think……YEAH!!!  IF I had anything else scheduled, it would have been rescheduled to be able to meet with Karen!

I read that Dolly Parton once said, “If you want to see the rainbow, you have to endure some rain.”  It felt like rain last week….but I am loving the rainbow!!!

Mrs. Steele was a gray haired, sweet saint of our church.  She sat on the second pew from the front, right next to Mr. Steele for more years than I can remember.  (Mr. Steele always loved to tell how his first date with Mrs. Steele was to a prayer meeting!) On many Wednesday nights she would stand up and give the sweetest testimonies.  They were always about God’s goodness and faithfulness and to this young mom they gave hope that I could endure, just like Mrs. Steele.

She was such an encourager.  She always knew just the right thing to say.  There were several times that Mrs. Steele would tell me that she believed in me and that she could see me on a talk show, or on TV or doing something like that in front of an audience.  I don’t know what she saw in me.  I was just a young mom, struggling to balance family and work and life.  But somehow, when Mrs. Steele looked me in the eye and told me how much she believed in me, she made me want to believe, too!

Well, I’m not on a talk show or TV, but I am going to be in front of a group of women leading worship at a ladies retreat on March 2-3.  AND, I’ve been invited to lead worship and speak at another retreat the following weekend.  That is definitely a big step out of my comfort zone for me. 

Singing is second nature to me; I am “at home” when I am singing.  And some would say that talking is second nature to me too, because I am always doing it….but talking and trying to share the word with a group of ladies for a weekend is a scary thing.  Even though I have spoken at a few retreats, I always find that I feel that I am so inadequate.  Which I know is a good thing…because I am totally reliant on God to give me the words to say.  How many times in the past have I prayed for speakers at retreats or prayed for speakers who were coming to our church….praying that God would give them just the right message that was needed?  Now I am seeking that same direction from God for myself.  I want so badly to be found in the center of His will and His leading as to what the women need to hear.  I realize they need to hear from God and not Donna!

So I begin with His word and asking for His direction.  I have written down several ideas and I am trying to decipher which is the one to follow.  It’s a beginning!  I love what I read this week from “The Artist’s Way”…….”The grace to be a beginner is always the best prayer for an artist.  The beginner’s humility and openness lead to exploration.  Exploration leads to accomplishment.  All of it begins at the beginning, with the first small and scary step.”

Mrs. Steele is gone now.  But on days when things are tough and I am feeling challenged to be more than I wonder if I can be, I see Mrs. Steele with that wonderful smile and that twinkle in her eye and I start to believe.