Tag: gifts and talents

Practice the Always

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Always holds big meaning to have six letters.

I have a few things that I always do, like I’ll always drink in house cold brew, and always brush my teeth before leaving the house. If you don’t, you’ll run into someone you haven’t seen in years, and they’ll want to hug and stand around and laugh, so it’s best to have clean teeth.

I’m becoming more comfortable with empty spaces. What works for me is looking at an area full of stuff, and emptying it out completely. Wipe the surface down and only put back the meaningful. It’s funny but even after putting back what was meaningful one day, they begin to lose some of their meaning the next. I’m excited to see what our house looks like by the end of the year, or better yet, one year from now.

After framing some art and having a wall of it in my room, I removed one painting and put it in the kitchen where it belongs. That’s where it was originally, but I used it to fill an empty space. I’ve been looking at that empty space along my bedroom wall all week, and knew what I wanted to put there. It’s a page from a magazine that was in another frame, but I utilized that frame and laid this clipping aside.

When people see it, they scream, “Is that Justin Bieber?!!” He was just a kid in this photo, and you can’t see his face, but his name is underneath the quote. I have signs hanging throughout our home as reminders of what’s important, and this is of the utmost importance.

It says, “I always thank God for giving me this opportunity and blessing me with this talent.” ~ Justin Bieber

I bought a frame for it and filled in the empty space. This frame looked lighter in the store, so it’s probably going to be exchanged for another one, but it works for now. The word ‘always’ is what jumps out at me from this quote. We have all been given at least one gift and should be on the lookout for ample opportunity to use it. I’m guilty of not thanking God nearly enough for the opportunities He’s given me, but I’m willing to practice.

I see this photo as soon as I wake up in the morning, so at first light, let’s practice the always.

Feel the Music

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This man holds an undying love for the Rodeo and wanted to be a part of it any way possible, so in high school, he chose to learn about bull riding.

When he wasn’t riding bulls, he kept singing, but his dream was to be a famous bull rider. There’s a movie about this song that you can watch on Amazon Prime for free entitled, “Dear Rodeo” co-starring Reba McIntyre. ‘Dear Rodeo’ is a love song where Cody lets go of his dream, but God still puts him in the Rodeo on a much larger scale and with no broken bones.

Rodeo Houston 2022-Sold out arena.

Cody’s love for the Rodeo is where it began, and he stayed for the bull riding, but bull riding wasn’t his destiny even though the rodeo was. The call came in from Houston Rodeo where their headliner had to cancel and they asked Cody to step in. In the movie, he talks about people thanking him for this song. How it changed their lives and saved many.

In this video Cody is singing to a sold out rodeo arena, but watch until the very end. After his performance, there’s a horse waiting for him at the bottom of the stage. He was supposed to mount the horse and do a slow ride around for the crowd, but instead, he dug his heels in and asked the horse to give him all he’s got. As the horse gallops around the arena, Cody says if felt like his past was flying off of him and he was able to let it all go.

God’s plan is so much better than ours. Our plan might actually prepares us for His plan which is far greater than anything we could ever imagine. The key is knowing when to let go of ours, to make room for His.

Cody Johnson Live-Dear Rodeo

To view ‘Dear Rodeo’ sang by Cody Johnson and Reba McIntyre, click here.

Cody is no stranger to Feel the Music. You can view two more here and here.

Dusting My Soul

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I noticed the piano sitting away from the wall more than it used to. It’s out on the floor. It used to be pressed up against the wall out of the way, with the music stand folded down. It was a piece of furniture dusted off every week.

I took piano lessons as a child, but didn’t like being made to do something. I’m still that way, but a couple of weekends ago, as my daughter was leaving the house, she looked at me and said, “Do something special for yourself.” The Rolodex in my mind started flipping through images, but came up empty on something specific.

I’ve created the kind of life where I enjoy everything I do, but what about something for my soul besides writing. Playing piano was a part of my childhood that feels incomplete. My neighbor offered piano lessons a while ago, so I walked inside and sent her a message.

I asked if the offer still stands, and if she’d be willing to give me lessons. She said yes, and we chose a day and time to begin. When I asked whose house she wanted you use, she chose mine and referred to it as a calm getaway.

The piano doesn’t need dusting as often, now that it’s being used. Everyday I sit down to practice, and run my hand across the keys I feel the progress dusting my soul.

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