I Love to Tell the Story

I have a story to tell. I’ve been telling it all week. It’s pretty amazing. Here it is.

This past year I have been really, really busy doing lots and lots of things. I like keeping busy, so I haven’t complained too much, but lately, it’s been affecting the things I do. My friends have begun to notice. December was an especially busy time for me. And so it happened that in December one of my dear friends sent me an email.

In the email she said she was worried about me and all that I am doing. She suggested I quit handbells.

Quit handbells? Absolutely not! Of all the things I’m doing handbells is the most fun! And it’s practically the only thing I do where I’m not in charge. I just show up, ring my bells, and go home. No planning or preparation required. I would never consider quitting handbells.

That was December.

In January and February our church had it’s first official Discovery Workshops. As a Member Ministry Coordinator, I help facilitate the workshops, and I can tell you… they are wonderful!  The participants take all sorts of assessments to discover their unique set of spiritual gifts, abilities and interests. We talk about how each one of us was created with a plan and a purpose, and how God is working in us to fulfill his purpose.

Once an individual has completed the workshop, they have the opportunity to sit down, one on one, with a member of the Member Ministry Team to discuss what they learned from the workshop and any reflections or referrals that might be appropriate. After the January workshop I got to meet with a lady who is very busy, just like me. But she was also feeling a little overwhelmed. Recently someone had asked her to run for an office, and she had to say no. She was feeling bad about that, so I told her to remember…

When you say “No,” that means someone else gets to say “Yes,” and that’s a good thing.

I wasn’t sure where that sentence came from, but I thought it sounded pretty good, so I repeated it several times over the next couple of weeks.

As our February Discovery Workshop got underway and once again we began to reflect on God’s plan for each of us, I had a feeling God was trying to tell me something. Then on Saturday morning, as I was thinking about  the workshop and my new favorite saying (printed above) a little voice in my head said, “Linette, can you follow your own advice?”

wow

For the first time I considered what would happen if I left the handbell choir. Someone else would get a chance to play. They’d find out what great people are in that choir, and how wonderful our director is. They’d have the fun of making music, and the joy of contributing to worship. They’d be able to enjoy what I have been enjoying these past ten years. And that’s a good thing.

After the workshop that day as the facilitators and I were reflecting no how everything went, I told them about this change of heart God was working in me. I told them how I wondered if there might be someone out there who wants to give handbells a try. A friend looked at me and said, “You know what, I bet there is.”

The next morning during my quiet meditation time, I was ready. I sent our director a long email explaining everything. I told her I’m not quitting. I’m only saying that if there’s someone who's interested in joining the choir, I think God wants me to give them my spot.

After I sent the email I typed out my prayer for the day, which is how I always end my daily journal entry. I thanked God for changing my heart. I thanked God for the joy I felt in yielding to his will. And I told him that if there is someone, and if I do step down, that I would be so happy to share this story! I was careful not to tell God what to do. Maybe he didn’t want me to leave handbells. Maybe just knowing I was willing to do so was enough. But either way, I knew my future was in good hands.

I hope you’re still reading, because here comes the really good part.

So I closed my lap top, and there on the couch beside me I saw Krystal’s Participant Profile from the workshop. Everyone who attends a workshop gets a Participant Handbook, which is theirs to keep, and a Participant Profile, which contains the information we’ve discovered about the individual’s specific gifts and abilities which we then enter into our church’s database. Since I was to spend the afternoon with Krystal  I thought it might be good to look hers over. So I picked up her Profile and I’m paging through it when I get to the last page. It’s there that we have the participants list their previous service history, and also rank each experience as to whether or not it was a good fit. The last thing she wrote in her Profile was “MLC Handbells – yes.”

When you say “No,” that means someone else gets to say “Yes,” and that’s a good thing.

Could it be that easy? Was God answering my prayer in Krystal?

I couldn’t wait to find out. So that afternoon as Krystal and I drove to Redwood Falls, I rattled off the entire story and even before I got to the end Krystal says, “I’d love to join handbells.” We were both overjoyed! The Lord guides. The Lord provides. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

And so I’ve been telling this story a lot lately. I told it to the handbell choir. I told it to my friends. And now I’m telling it to you, because I just love it. I love how God had a plan for me, and Kyrstal. I love how in just a matter of days God was able to flip my heart completely around. And I love how I was able to say farewell to my beloved handbell choir with a huge smile on my face, and a story that gives all the glory to God.