Then Sings My Soul.

A few weeks ago Ike and Emily were singing How Great Thou Art. 

Then sings my soul, My Savior God, to Thee, 
How great Thou art, How great Thou art. 
Then sings my soul, My Savior God, to Thee, 
How great Thou art, How great Thou art! 

My heart stopped at “then sings my soul.” That’s it. My soul sings. 

My soul sings in the difficult times. My soul sings in the joyful times. My soul sings when I don’t know what is coming and my soul sings when I rest. 

I found this journal at my parents’ house last weekend written for my future children by my 16 year old self. After reading the first part, I’m 100% sure that I will never give them that journal. I found a note from a particularly difficult time in my family life – a story that is not mine to tell – and in the anger and sadness, I ended the note with the love of God. Then my soul sings.

Another entry was after I lost the student council race for the FOURTH year in a row. I think back now and I have no idea how I had the guts to run after all the losses. And there in my junior year of high school, I worked through feeling like a total loser (actually wrote that). I let my sadness pour out. And yet on the next page I praised God for the beauty in my life. Then my soul sings. 

I got to live in Brazil and make so many beautiful friends for a year and a half that forever changed my life. There my soul sang. And when I left them and my heart was broken, oh boy did my soul sing then. 

I have gone through more heartbreaks than I can count on my fingers. I felt alone and wondered when it would be my turn. I lost hope and gained hope. I got hurt and I loved again. And through it all, my soul sings. 

And now I get to marry this man and I can’t believe it’s real life. And I say once again, then my soul sings. 

In and out, up and down, my soul sings.