Greetings!

First off, let me apologize for my no show last week. Although I had experienced a beautiful, quiet and restful weekend in a rural part of the island, courtesy of a wonderful couple, who welcomed me into their home and treated me like a Princess [that’s what the gentleman called me], when I returned to the city on Monday, I just did not have the mental or physical energy to write. Shortly thereafter, as my grandmother would say…the fortyleventeenthings to be done [read that strange word which she coined to mean…innumerable] would not give me pause. Please understand.

So, here I am, at the start of the new work week, coming to you from the new face of this blog spot, which also has a new name….Gracednotesblog.com. Thanks to the gently persistent prodding and poking of Lady C, one of my daughters, who is has become my tech-mentor, I am trying [not without screaming] to embrace a bit more of what is commonplace for her and the generation referred to as Millennial. I am facing my fear [sometimes disdain] of technology…trying to embrace opportunities to positively impact others, via the [few] platforms I am slowly, albeit with increasing comfort, using.

Yes, I am facing my fear of technology but there’s also a bigger, greater fear that I am seeking by divine Grace, to overcome. It is the fear of putting myself on a public stage where possibilities of failure, even rejection, are very real. Earlier this morning, as I sat in quiet meditation, reflecting on passages of scripture in which two persons of stature were told by God to return to that from which they were running, I had to confess to seeing myself in them. I am talking about Elijah [1 Kings 19: 15 – 19] and Jonah [Jonah 1: 1 – 5a, 15 – 17; 3: 1 – 2] and have indicated in the brackets, for your own reading and reflection, the particular texts, dealing with the very intimate conversations, in which God challenged them to confront their fears and in so doing, perceive the wonders He would be able with them, to bring to pass.

Let me share with you today, one personal example [I do not want this to be an overly lengthy reflection] of how, in keeping us within a particular space, whether emotionally or spiritually, God is often trying to get our attention…to apprise us [sometimes by way of the comments and challenges of others] of the length, breadth and depth of His love for us and the confidence He has, in and by our ability…to glorify Him. Sometimes I wonder why it is that I, you…we doubt God so much! After all, having created us, who better is there to know and affirm our capabilities? Sigh! It just occurred to me and this, by way of anthropomorphism, that God must have a full head of grey locks, extending down to his holy feet, having to deal with people like me and yet, in love, He reaches out again and again, until [hopefully] we get and internalize the point He is trying to make.

Anyway, here’s the example. You will recall my sharing a couple Mondays ago, that I am putting in place, plans to produce [after years of procrastination] an album i.e. a selection of the songs that have blessed me over the years. Well, having had consultations with the musicians involved, one had the brilliant idea that instead of doing only covers viz. singing over other people’s songs, I should try my hand at writing some of my own…Boom! I felt as if this young man had kicked me in my gut! Did he not realize that getting to the point of actually beginning the process towards recording was a major achievement and now he is coming up with this…harebrained, did I earlier use the word brilliant, idea?

To cut a long story short, the gentle encouragement of these musicians – amazingly talented men, sent me into a tailspin! Immediately, I sought the Lord, explaining to Him that because I don’t have that talent, it would be impossible to write a song…what if it didn’t meet the mark…what if nobody liked it…what if it was just another demonstration of my many inadequacies? Even as I complained to the Lord, He began to respond [cf. Isaiah 65:24].

God must be a fan of Nike because all I heard as I whined and griped was… “Just Do It!” Nothing else! Then, pretty much in the vein of the genesis of my writing these reflections…setting up this blog, I heeded that very terse instruction…“Just do it” and wrote something down. With fear and trepidation I shared what I wrote with my musician friends one of whom asked – “do you have a melody?’ Da bwai yah chubblsum yuh nuh! Of course I had thought of a melody but had no intentions of sharing it. These are musicians for crying out loud; aa oo mi? Or rather, who am I to be offering a melody for a song…even one I composed? I am only a singer! Well, the goodly gentlemen coaxed said melody out of me and after a few tweaks, one of them actually said… “Aa big chuun dis yuh nuh!” More anon!

God moves in mysterious ways His wonders to perform. One such way is to hold our fears before us; to send/urge us along paths that challenge our facing of them…our delving into their depths to find, more often than not, that pride and a healthy dose of lack of faith rather than talent or ability, is at their heart.

To be sure, the foregoing is not a testimony of my abilities; far from that! What it seeks to unveil, which is not unique to my situation but may, with very little modification, be also applied to yours, is God who, having called us to a particular task or project, will enable us to complete it [cf. Philippians 1:6], even if it means holding our fears before us long enough, for us to face and transcend them.

Well, that’s a wrap for today! So as you join me in facing and moving beyond fear[s], continue to stay safe and well, as you remain in His grip.

Grace+