Somewhere along the way, I became a "sounding board" for a lot of people in this field. That's not anything I set out to do. It just happened; and I'm honored and humbled that people trust me in that capacity. Just this morning, I received a call from a friend of mine who is a major player in Southern Gospel music and, well, this person just needed someone to talk to. Things were not going well in a lot of aspects and this person was literally on the verge of throwing up his hands and saying "I quit." His exact words were "I'm tired of always feeling like I'm wandering around in the dark."

Well, I've been there, too. Sometimes things would look hopeless and it would have been such a relief to walk away from it all. But I don't think God would put us in any position if He didn't have the confidence that we could handle it.

All of us in Southern Gospel music have a special purpose, whether it be singing, writing, promoting or whatever else the case may be. But we're all human. Just because we try to lead a Christian life does not mean we are exempt from disappointment, trials and valleys. Yet, God wants us to carry on and work toward the common goal of pointing people toward salvation. And in our case, we do that through Southern Gospel music.

Since Southern Gospel music is such a large entity, it takes a lot of people working together to make this industry's wheels move. And to truly work together, we should do more than simply cooperate. We should share each person's load. We should bear each person's burdens, rejoice in each person's joy. We should lift up each other in prayer.

In football, if a player goes down with an injury, other players rally around. If a basketball team gets behind, the cheerleaders work to get everyone pulling for the team. If the baseball team is losing in the 8th inning, there are shouts of "you can do it." That's what we should do in Southern Gospel music. If one of our "players" is down, rally around. Listen. Encourage. Be a cheerleader. Be a pillar of strength. Pray. Be a lighthouse when the skies are foggy and dark.

Did you notice that all of what I just said we should do is exactly what Southern Gospel music does? We, as a part of this music, encourage, provide comfort and strength. But before we can do this effectively, we have to minister within our own ranks. And if we will do this, I have no doubt that Southern Gospel music will become even stronger. If we'll support each other with prayer and encouragement, Southern Gospel music will stand as a candle shining in an era when there seems to be more night than day.

This truly shows the importance of Southern Gospel music.

Because, you see, there is not enough darkness in the whole world to put out the light of a single candle.