My fascination with putting words together extends back into my childhood. Before junior high school, I was writing little poems like this one:

Autumn Leaf

A single leaf clings to an old oak tree.
A gust of wind easily sets it free.
Dancing, dancing along a golden hill,
Wild and free to go where the cold wind will.
Blistering, sizzling, twisting, turning,
Nearly ashes now, the leaf is burning.

   In junior high, I continued to write poetry, mostly little ditties to tease my schoolmates about boys on whom they had crushes. Much to their dismay, I often posted them on the classroom blackboard! Through I remember most of them, I won’t repeat any here because some of my friends still know where I live and the others could find me quickly on the Internet.

   In 1984, I attended my first Southern Gospel concert where I heard The Singing Americans.  I had given my heart to the Lord in 1978 while in college and this gospel music thrilled my soul.    Life went on and I continued to write, married, had a child—all of the usual things. At the turn of this century, I wrote my first gospel song. In 2002, I felt the Lord calling me to focus on writing gospel songs. My first reaction was, “You’re joking, right?” as I had no real musical abilities. To write one song was one thing, to focus on writing gospel songs was something entirely different. I was overwhelmed by the idea. I’m sure I felt a little like Moses when God called him to lead Israel out of Egypt as I sputtered back at the Lord that there were so many people doing such a wonderful job at it already. He didn’t need me.

   I had filled just about every position within my local church, but had never felt that any of them were my true calling. I had prayed over the years for the Lord to give me something that was MY calling. I never expected it to be something for which I felt completely unprepared.    The Lord was persistent in His urging, and at last, I surrendered and became obedient. I knew I have made the right decision because the peace it gave felt like coming home.

   I’m not sure who said, “The Lord doesn’t call the equipped. He equips the called.” That was certainly true of me! I trusted in God’s promise in Romans 8:28:  “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose.”

   Now, looking back over my life, I can see a number of ways the Lord prepared me for gospel song writing even though I felt unprepared at the time. After receiving a Gideon Bible at school, I began reading it every day and I did so for about eleven years before I was saved. I did not grow up in a Christian home but this reading of the Scriptures contributed to my accepting the Lord as my Saviour and it gave me a good grounding in the basic events of the Bible, even if I didn’t have the Holy Spirit to guide me in its deeper spiritual implications.