Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I love this holiday. Warm food, dear family and my mom's homemade apple pie...mmm! Family gatherings can get pretty loud around here and it is basically a fun-filled riot :-) But right now, I unexpectedly find myself as the only person awake in my home, enjoying the stillness of the evening.
That has led me to ponder on the unexpected. Often, I find my life is filled with unexpected. Unexpected messes from my munchkins, unexpected obstacles to my music career, unexpected health challenges, unexpected demands on my day. Somebody forgot their lunch, the toddlers broke the lock on the fridge and decided to empty all they could reach onto the carpet, the internet is down at the only time of the day I budgeted computer time, you know, pretty much all of us know what it is like to face the challenges of unexpected.
Well, tonight in the quiet, my mind has been reflecting on the blessings of unexpected. When life takes us for a turn, it can often provide unanticipated experiences, unexpected views we would not have seen had we stayed on the road we were traveling. This year has been filled with change and struggle for me. Disappointment, hope and question have been my companions. And, certainly life has not been what I imagined, but I have seen the Lord's hand in many unexpected ways.
One of my goals for this year was to increase my live performances and play as much as I could. Particularly, I wanted to get a regular gig providing music at a restaurant. I live in an area where live music during dining is well appreciated and such opportunities seem readily available. However, after months of working toward this goal and being turned down time and time again, I became somewhat discouraged. Was there nobody who wanted a musician like me? I was even rejected by the local Christian coffee shop for crying out loud! I felt defeated and finally gave up near the start of Summer Break. This perceived failure and disappointment proved to provide opportunities for the Lord to bless me in unexpected ways during the months I would have otherwise been committed to playing at a restaurant.
I chose instead to focus my energies on my children while they were out of school for the summer. We had many adventures, and most notably took a lengthy road trip while my husband was away at a work a training. With very little planning, I decided to pack my four kiddos up in the mini-van (yeah, I'm TOTALLY a mini-van mom) and drive them across four states and 2100 miles to visit a plethora of friends and their families. We also took the time to stop at my Grandparent's home, a choice I am deeply grateful for. At the time I didn't know our visit would be my last before my sweet grandfather's passing a few months later. This was a beautiful gift that I couldn't have claimed had I not been available to travel.
Also during this trip and throughout the summer, my heart was turned time and time again to work on plans for launching a YouTube channel. This became my focus and has been an unexpected journey in itself.
Producing music videos has proven to be a very involved process. From finding somebody to film and edit, scouting locations, story boarding, recruiting extras, choreographing, costuming and rehearsing, not to mention trying to schedule everybody knowing it is all weather dependent and may have to be changed anyway has been quite the challenge! But, once again the unexpected proved to be a blessing.
I first set my eye on producing a video to "The Dream", the new age piano solo found on my album. I had been scouring Craigslist for months for a suitable piano and finally found what I was looking for. When I went to look at it, the owner who was a music enthusiast told me he had the perfect venue for a music video. He proceeded to give my husband and I a tour of his backyard. It was certainly gorgeous and full of charm, but nothing like what I had in mind for this video, it was completely the wrong feel. However, the more I thought about it, the clearer it became that he was right...it was the perfect venue...for one of my other songs, "Strawberry Jello"! I didn't have time to do both before winter set in, and this was a limited time offer, so my plans quickly changed from completing that project to embracing the opportunity to film at this match-made-in-heaven location. It was a whirlwind of an experience full of learning opportunities and humbling moments. Tomorrow we will film the final scene and I anxiously await it's release next week! I was not planning on this project being my first music video, and I still have an extra piano waiting in the wings, but how grateful I am that this unexpected blessing came my way.
I think the Lord has been trying to teach me that it is ok to make plans for my future and that He wants me to dream and do all in my power to reach them, but in the end, if I will let Him take the reigns and lead me down paths I did not see, if I am willing to walk the roads I didn't plan for, He can show me wonders beyond my hopes. For His ways are higher than my ways, His thoughts higher than my thoughts, and His plans wiser and more beautiful than those I imagined. Today, I am truly grateful for the unexpected.
That has led me to ponder on the unexpected. Often, I find my life is filled with unexpected. Unexpected messes from my munchkins, unexpected obstacles to my music career, unexpected health challenges, unexpected demands on my day. Somebody forgot their lunch, the toddlers broke the lock on the fridge and decided to empty all they could reach onto the carpet, the internet is down at the only time of the day I budgeted computer time, you know, pretty much all of us know what it is like to face the challenges of unexpected.
Well, tonight in the quiet, my mind has been reflecting on the blessings of unexpected. When life takes us for a turn, it can often provide unanticipated experiences, unexpected views we would not have seen had we stayed on the road we were traveling. This year has been filled with change and struggle for me. Disappointment, hope and question have been my companions. And, certainly life has not been what I imagined, but I have seen the Lord's hand in many unexpected ways.
One of my goals for this year was to increase my live performances and play as much as I could. Particularly, I wanted to get a regular gig providing music at a restaurant. I live in an area where live music during dining is well appreciated and such opportunities seem readily available. However, after months of working toward this goal and being turned down time and time again, I became somewhat discouraged. Was there nobody who wanted a musician like me? I was even rejected by the local Christian coffee shop for crying out loud! I felt defeated and finally gave up near the start of Summer Break. This perceived failure and disappointment proved to provide opportunities for the Lord to bless me in unexpected ways during the months I would have otherwise been committed to playing at a restaurant.
I chose instead to focus my energies on my children while they were out of school for the summer. We had many adventures, and most notably took a lengthy road trip while my husband was away at a work a training. With very little planning, I decided to pack my four kiddos up in the mini-van (yeah, I'm TOTALLY a mini-van mom) and drive them across four states and 2100 miles to visit a plethora of friends and their families. We also took the time to stop at my Grandparent's home, a choice I am deeply grateful for. At the time I didn't know our visit would be my last before my sweet grandfather's passing a few months later. This was a beautiful gift that I couldn't have claimed had I not been available to travel.
Also during this trip and throughout the summer, my heart was turned time and time again to work on plans for launching a YouTube channel. This became my focus and has been an unexpected journey in itself.
Producing music videos has proven to be a very involved process. From finding somebody to film and edit, scouting locations, story boarding, recruiting extras, choreographing, costuming and rehearsing, not to mention trying to schedule everybody knowing it is all weather dependent and may have to be changed anyway has been quite the challenge! But, once again the unexpected proved to be a blessing.
I first set my eye on producing a video to "The Dream", the new age piano solo found on my album. I had been scouring Craigslist for months for a suitable piano and finally found what I was looking for. When I went to look at it, the owner who was a music enthusiast told me he had the perfect venue for a music video. He proceeded to give my husband and I a tour of his backyard. It was certainly gorgeous and full of charm, but nothing like what I had in mind for this video, it was completely the wrong feel. However, the more I thought about it, the clearer it became that he was right...it was the perfect venue...for one of my other songs, "Strawberry Jello"! I didn't have time to do both before winter set in, and this was a limited time offer, so my plans quickly changed from completing that project to embracing the opportunity to film at this match-made-in-heaven location. It was a whirlwind of an experience full of learning opportunities and humbling moments. Tomorrow we will film the final scene and I anxiously await it's release next week! I was not planning on this project being my first music video, and I still have an extra piano waiting in the wings, but how grateful I am that this unexpected blessing came my way.
I think the Lord has been trying to teach me that it is ok to make plans for my future and that He wants me to dream and do all in my power to reach them, but in the end, if I will let Him take the reigns and lead me down paths I did not see, if I am willing to walk the roads I didn't plan for, He can show me wonders beyond my hopes. For His ways are higher than my ways, His thoughts higher than my thoughts, and His plans wiser and more beautiful than those I imagined. Today, I am truly grateful for the unexpected.
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