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{Heart Touchers}   *My Musical Adventure*  10/23/01

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We have a new writer to Heart Touchers today!
Be sure to write to Holly and encourage her after
you read her story!

From my family to yours,
Michael

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My Musical Adventure

By Holly Johnson

From the time I accepted Jesus as my Savior, at the
age of 18, I had a very strong love for vocal music.
I knew I couldn't sing -- I had heard a recording of
myself and it was horrible.  But nonetheless, the
desire to hear music, sing music, learn to play music
was just undeniable.  It was like a strong physical
hunger that I couldn't get rid of.

At one point, I heard a sermon about how if we wanted
or needed something from God we should ask for exactly
what we needed. "If you need a car, and you ask for
just any car, don't be upset if you get an old rusty
beater to drive.  Ask for a car that really meets your
needs and desires."  So right then and there, during
the sermon, I just said a quick "Lord, could you give
me a piano, in nice condition, and not very expensive,
that would fit right on the wall in my dining room
under that little shelf that sticks out of the wall,
so I could learn to play the piano?"  (Since I knew I
couldn't ever sing, I thought I could at least learn
to play music tolerably well.)

I totally forgot about this prayer, and never
mentioned it to anyone.  Well, a few weeks or a month
later, my husband went to an auction to buy some
tools.  He came rushing into the house a couple hours
later and said, "Move the furniture out of the dining
room before I get back".  After that cryptic remark,
he put what looked like a plain wood piano bench in
the dining room.  I kept thinking, "No, it must be a
coffee table, not a piano bench!"  But you guessed it,
a short time later, in he came, dragging a piano.  Not
just any piano, mind you, but one he only paid a
couple hundred dollars for, and it was a small studio
piano, so it fit just right under the shelf on my
dining room wall!

Well, I couldn't afford lessons, especially after the
piano purchase, so I asked God to help me learn to
play all by myself.  I took out a hymnal and began
using familiar hymns to kind of pick out the tune, and
I tried to figure out the relationship between the
sound I heard and the little dots on the page.  After
some days, I began to understand the notes, the rests,
and play in a semi-functional, half-witted kind of
way.  At least well enough for my own joy and
amazement!

Well, sometime after that, I met a couple at church
that was very musical.  They both sang, and the man
could play piano by ear.  We all became close, and
sometimes would spend time at their piano with both of
our families singing together for fun.  (I purposely
sang quietly so as not to offend anyone's ears.)

One night, all of our kids were gone at camp, so they
came over to my house.  We sang at my piano, and for
once I decided not to be so self-conscious, and
thought "They love me, they will forgive my off-key
singing, they won't say anything about it".  I sang
more and more strongly and confidently, just enjoying
worshiping and praising God with them.  All at once,
the man turned to me and said, "You're not going to
like what I'm going to tell you."  I thought, "Oh no,
he's going to tell me he can't take any more of my
horrible singing!"  Instead he said, "You have a very
nice voice, and I think you should join the choir at
church."

Well, I laughed it off, but later as they were leaving
for the night, he said, "I'm going to be praying that
God convicts you that you should use your voice for
Him."  Well, I thought he was a little crazy, and
chuckled to myself as I shut the door.

That night, as I did my Bible reading before bed, I
came across two different verses that talked about God
giving us the desires of our hearts.  Then, when I
turned back to look again at the first one (I was just
dumbstruck with the "coincidence" of it all!), I
"accidentally" turned to the verse "Sing to the Lord a
new song"!  Wow.  Three verses that I could just sense
were God's message to me - I can't explain how, but I
knew the Holy Spirit was speaking to me through those
verses.

Well, that night I dreamed all night about singing in
church and being able to glorify God in song.  When I
woke in the morning, I thought, "What if my pride is
making me think that I can sing?"  So I asked the
Lord, since I felt he had given me three verses, to
also confirm it through three people as well.

I arrived at church that day, before choir practice,
to tell Rod, my friend's husband, what had happened
with the verses the night before.  When I walked in to
the sanctuary, before I could say a word to him, Rod
said to me, "God showed you that He wants you to sing,
didn't he?"  Then someone else walked up and said, "I
heard you singing to the children in the kid's Bible
program the other day, and I think you should join the
choir."  Then someone else came up and said, "Oh good,
I heard you singing behind me the other day in church
and you have a lovely voice -- are you here to join the
choir?"  What could I do?  Obviously God was giving me
the confirmations I had asked for!  I joined the choir
that day!

In the 15 or so years since then, the Lord has led me
on a wonderful journey with music.  I began singing
with great fear and trembling.  I eventually began
singing in small groups, then even solos.  In spite of
much insecurity on my part, the Lord has blessed and
used my singing for His glory.  I think it goes to
prove that it isn't the vessel that is the important
thing; it is the Potter who created the vessel.  I
have seen Him reach way beyond my own musical and
spiritual abilities to do amazing things through me at
times.  Occasionally I have seen people touched by His
Spirit while I sang, people with tears on their faces,
and I know that was His power, not mine.  We have an
amazing God, and He can, and will, do more than we can
ever ask or think, if we will just step out and
believe Him.

Holly Johnson
poochkie1@yahoo.com

Write Holly and let her know what you thought of her story!

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I am the mother of four beautiful children ages 2 to 23,
and reside in Wisconsin. I am a single mother,
working full-time as an office manager in a holistic health center.
My first love and passion is for the Church that the
Lord has placed me in -- and it is my great joy to be
serving as part of a music worship team.  I've
been walking with the Lord for 22 years, and am
still constantly amazed by God's glorious mercy and grace!

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Thought For The Day:

"The squeaky wheel doesn't always get greased;
it often gets replaced."
John Peers

Verse for the Day:

"Let your conversation be always full of grace,
seasoned with salt, so that you may know how
to answer everyone."  Colossians 4:6

Kid's Thought For The Day:

"Save a place in line for your friends."

Parent's Thought For The Day:

"Perhaps the greatest social service that can be
rendered by anybody to the country and to
mankind is to bring up a family." -- George Bernard Shaw

Coach's Thought For The Day:

"The best inspiration is not to outdo others, but
to outdo ourselves."

Deep Thought For The Day:

"How come the dove gets to be the peace symbol?
How about the pillow? It has more feathers than the dove,
and it doesn't have that dangerous beak."

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  _
/_/\/\    MICHAEL T. POWERS
\_\  /    HeartTouchers@aol.com  
/_/  \    "For I have been crucified with Christ and I no
\_\/\ \   longer live, but Christ lives in me.  The life I
  \_\/   live in the body I live for the Son of God, who    
           loved me and gave Himself for me."
           Galatians 2:20
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"I thought of you first after my family sat down to watch
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and so touched--they really, really, really loved it.
Thanks for helping to make it so special to us all.
My mom mentioned how the songs were perfect
for the video too! Thanks again!"
Kelli-- College Station, TX

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