Mela Kamin – 4:10 Ministries

Just get started.
Easier said than done, right?
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I started with just one intention to write a song, then one song, one performance, one meeting with a producer, one trip to Nashville, one CD sale and so on. Often, the starting is the hard part, though.
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We can see what we need to do or see a dream out in front of us, but taking the first step to get there, is the difficult part – especially if it flies in the face of what we’ve always done.
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It’s easy to see, once we take that step, that we’re closer to our goal. But, tell that to someone who is frozen in fear – like I was . . . insecure and doubting my abilities.
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Even after writing more than 30 songs and getting to work in Nashville with talented musicians, I panicked. I was on the plane returning home and a fear rose up in me. I suddenly felt way over my head.
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As any writer would do, I decided to put my feelings to paper, as a form of catharsis. I was just talking to God, telling him exactly how I felt. I compared myself to Bible heroes – people I couldn’t fathom ever going through a bout of second-guessing where they needed to be.
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And, I guess deep down I knew they struggled like me, but I still felt beneath them – unworthy to be following Jesus.
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Why was I chosen to minister to others through music?
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“Start with One” came out almost all at once – melody and all.
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Still, I wondered, “Was this a silly writing exercise, or could this be my song?”
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The song is me feeling wholly unqualified … that’s a familiar tune.
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At the heart is the realization that we can all do/be/give enough, if we just start with one. God isn’t asking us to do it all.
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He already did. He accomplished what we couldn’t.
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He’s asking us to start where we are with what we have.
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1 Peter 4:10 says “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”
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I love how God puts that. We all have unique gifts to use to serve others. Grace can be shown in “various forms.”
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That’s a relief – there isn’t one right answer. Each situation, opportunity, person and conversation is going to be different. There are endless ways to plant a seed of hope, joy or peace. There are countless ways to tell someone about the hope you have in Jesus.
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The Holy Spirit tends the soil, waters it and keeps it nourished, growing it over time. We are responsible for the planting – not whether it will produce fruit or not.
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Share what you know and give what you have.
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And, just start with one.