When I was in elementary school, I had a giant crush on a girl named Alison—I was in the first grade. It lasted until she left the school, when we were in the fifth grade. The only problem was, she never knew it.

I spent five years, never knowing whether she felt the same way. I would sit on the swings or the bench and stare across the yard as she would hang out with her girlfriends at recess, talking and laughing and having fun.

It’s one of the very few regrets I have in my life, even though I was only a child at the time. As I’ve grown older, I’ve tried my best never to let something good go unsaid, leave a problem unresolved, or let an opportunity slip by.

Composer’s sometimes use an old adage to express their deep desire to create:

“Don’t die with your music still inside you.”

I think that expression fits well with anything we might want to do in our lives. We often wait for approval from others, including family, friends, and coworkers, before embarking on a new adventure or that big project we’ve always wanted to tackle.

I think it’s fear that prevents us from being the light and inspiration we know God has called us to be. Fear of failure, fear of embarrassment, fear of...?

On March 11th, I will be giving the lesson at church while Reverend Billie is out of town. I’m calling it, “The Music in You.” That music was put there for a reason. It’s paramount that we not let it go to waste, because God never gives us a dream or a desire without giving us the tools to carry it out. What music do you have in you?