As with all good stories, I shall begin by saying, “Once
upon a time”. Unfortunately, life is not a fairytale and as a song says, “You
never promised me a rose garden”. Yes life is full of thorns, but the Son’s Light
and Holy Spirit’s Rain brings out the beauty in all of God’s children. I will
tell this story in third person because it seems easier to look back from a
once removed perspective… On with the story…
Once upon a time, there was a little toe headed girl. She
loved to sing Sunday school songs and could sing all 21 songs that she knew in
a row. Her parents used to take her with them to sing at nursing homes and by
the end of the hour, she would be standing on a chair entertaining them all. It
was around the age of four that she first heard “the Call” and she told her
parents, “When I grow up, I want to sing for Jesus.” It was at age seven that
she fell under conviction and with her mama by her side, knelt beside her bed
and accepted Jesus as her Savior.
Now, fast forward a bit, remember “the Call”? When she was
in fifth grade her family moved to Indian Springs and became members of Indian
Springs Baptist. By the time she was in high school, she was singing for Jesus in
Christ & Co. She went to college majoring in music education and by the age
of 23 she began her first real job of teaching music. The first church music position
came around the same time, just a little church, but the Lord had placed in her
heart a passion for worship. Meanwhile, she had married and looking from the
outside everything seemed to be moving along just fine. But deep inside her
heart, she was praying, “Lord use me. Use my talents for Your glory” for more
than anything that was what she wanted.
It was around age thirty that her life started to unravel.
Looking back, it was God’s refining fire that was clearing away all the junk of
life and cleansing her so that she could minister to people. It is because of
her experiences that she was able to minister to others. Encouragement being
her spiritual gift, she shared her experiences with those that God placed in
her path inspiring them to trust in the Lord with all their heart and lean not
on their own understanding.
One of the most rewarding times in her life was when she
served as music minister in Kingsport area churches. Leading worship, adult choir,
praise team and band, children’s choir, youth choir, and hand bell choir
brought her such joy although it was a very busy time! Being a single parent of
two beautiful children and carrying two jobs was not easy, but her strength came
from the Lord. When her father became ill in 2007, she resigned her church
position and had the blessing of helping care for her father until his passing
in 2011.
At the present, she is working as a music specialist and
feels that she has been placed at the school with purpose, not just teaching
music, but also sharing God’s love and compassion. Now being that it is a
public school, she can’t say where that love comes from, Jesus, but none the
less she knows that she is important in the life of her students. The prayer of
her heart has not changed except that it is in song form, “take me, mold me,
use me, fill me, I give my life to The Potter’s Hand”. Life is not without
struggle, but she “knows who holds tomorrow”, “He lives within my heart”. And
what does she say about her Savior?
“I'll say of the Lord, You are my shield, my strength, my
portion, deliverer,
My shelter, strong tower, my very present help in time of need!”
My shelter, strong tower, my very present help in time of need!”
~ Submitted by Kathy Neal
ISBC Women's Ministry
Communications Coordinator
