I’m so glad that Jon Acuff dedicated an entire chapter in his book and an entire section in his conference to figuring out what your dream is. I was also relieved to find out I wasn’t the only one without a clearly defined dream. As I’ve been digging and searching, it seems my dream has three parts. Here’s part one.

One of the greatest quotes from the book is that finding your dream is “an act of recovery, not discovery.” It involves digging into your past and rediscovering those things that you’re passionate about. Don’t ask, “What do I want to do with my life?” Ask, “What have I done in my life that I loved?” Asking that question makes it all seem a little less daunting.

Asking that question of myself always brings up one answer; usually immediately. Singing. That’s the answer I came to when I decided to switch majors in college. It’s why I settled on music. I wasn’t entirely sure what I could do with a music degree, but I knew I loved singing.

I have had several people ask me throughout my life why I’m not a professional singer. I am greatly flattered by this question and quite honestly floored that people think I have what it takes to be a professional singer. My answer is usually something to the effect of; don’t know where to get started, there’s so much competition, blah blah blah. It’s an overwhelming thought. How would I even go about that? The thought of auditions and rejection are almost too much to take.

After singing a solo at a Christmas Eve service one year, a friend leaned over to Drew and said, “She could pay the bills with that voice!” Drew’s response?

“She hasn’t yet.”

So true. But it makes me wonder why I haven’t. I think it’s time to start trying.

I think another thing that has made me feel “stuck” is that I don’t want to be the next American Idol. I really don’t enjoy being in the spotlight. I am an introvert that prefers to hide in the shadows. (I’ll be honest… I do love the high of performing and receiving compliments.) I am not looking to be famous and on the road all the time. I just know that I love singing and have heard that people are blessed through it. So I want to figure out something with that.

So where do I start? I think for the moment I need to reacquaint myself with my voice. I’ll be honest. I can’t remember the last time I spent doing a really good vocal warm-up. That makes all the difference. I can tell that my voice is not up to what it could be. I sing and I can feel the scratchiness of my throat; I can hear my voice struggle between registers; and that high G that used to come so easy is a bit of a stretch now. What I find funny is how people compliment me on how well I sing when I notice all these things. I think, “Wow, I suck.” They hear beautiful music. How much better could I be if I really try?

My immediate, attainable goal is to spend at least a few mornings a week doing vocalises. Heck, I don’t even need to carve out special time for this. I can do it in the shower. Here we go… Mee-ahhh…