I remember with great detail listening to my Dad practice a Randy Travis song at our kitchen table accompanying himself on a black flat top guitar when I was five years old. He was a self-taught guitar picker and singer who never read a lick of music, and he had an old time rock/country band from the time I was born until a traumatic head injury took his talents at the age of 47.
Music was his first love. He practiced every day and was playing a gig about every weekend. At the age of five, I started singing with him. I loved it. I sang in a lot of churches where I grew up in Tennessee. I think I even sang at my eighth grade prom (ha) In 2002, my Dad had a terrible car accident which left him unable to talk, let along sing, and he lost use of his strumming hand. One side of his body was left paralyzed, and his first love was taken away within seconds.
It made me sad for so long. I still have difficulty listening to some of the songs he used to sing. Sadness is stirred within me, and I am sad for him. After he had his accident, I couldn't really think about singing anymore. On some level, I lost my desire. Most people in my life today don't even know about my love for music. I have kept that part of my life buried and forgotten. Obviously, I am not the best singer in the world. I make mistakes and am far from perfect. But just as our worship pastor said, "God isn't looking for perfection. He just wants you to worship with your heart."
One Sunday night at an event at church, a lady shared her testimony of how she used to dance, but that she went through some depression and the devil took her dance. She told of how she had recently started dancing again and it felt wonderful. Her story touched me and I felt the Lord speak to my spirit and say, "You've let the devil have your song." It hit me like a ton of bricks. I let my circumstances snuff out the fire inside of me to praise the Lord with my voice.
Today, for the first time in twelve years, I took the stage at church and sang in an ensemble with two wonderful ladies and our worship pastor. I learned that I could sing soprano (I never thought I could), and that trying to anoint your vocal chords with oil by drinking oil is never a good idea. Ha I know I don't have a future career in the music industry, and I don't want one, but it felt good to get my song back and give it to the Lord.
The reason I am sharing this story tonight is in hopes of encouraging someone else. Has the devil taken your song? Whether it be an actual song or something else in your life that you used to enjoy doing but you got discouraged and gave up. If so, it's time to reclaim it! Give it your best, and God will bless you for it.
